This list contains the majority of land under community ownership in Scotland. It includes areas purchased in community buyouts, as well as land gifted or transferred for a nominal fee.
The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 introduced rights for communities to purchase land in their area. The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 extended the Community Right to Buy to communities of any size, including those in urban areas. The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 allows ministers to compel landowners to sell if they decide that the sale will further sustainable development in the area. Funding for buying land has been provided by the Scottish Government through the Scottish Land Fund.
Property | Date | Type | Owner | Purchase price | Area | OS grid reference | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
hectares | acres | |||||||
Glendale Estate, Skye | 1908 | Estate | Glendale Trust | 9,300 | 23,000 | NG1749 | Purchased by the government, then sold to the crofters[1] | |
Stornoway Estate, Lewis | 1923 | Estate | Stornoway Trust | £0 | 28,000 | 69,200 | NB4232 | Gifted by Lord Leverhulme |
Macdonald Estate, Skye | Apr 1971 | Estate 19,452 | Clan Donald Lands Trust | 7,871 | 19,400 | NG 6206 | The Trust was founded by Clan Donald community members local and worldwide to buyout part of the old Macdonald Estate and preserve the land for future generations of our community. | |
North Assynt Estate | Feb 1993 | Estate | Assynt Crofters' Trust | £300,000 | 9,000 | 22,200 | NC1032 | Previously known as North Lochinver Estate[2] |
Eigg | Jun 1997 | Island | Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust | £1,500,000 | 3,000 | 7,400 | NM4786 | [3] |
Abriachan Forest | Mar 1998 | Forest | Abriachan Forest Trust | £152,000 | 534 | 1,300 | NH5434 | Purchased from Forest Enterprise[4] |
Knoydart Estate | Mar 1999 | Estate | Knoydart Foundation | £750,000 | 7,000 | 17,300 | NG7703 | [5] |
Isle Martin, Loch Broom | May 1999 | Island | Isle Martin Trust | £0 | 150 | 400 | NH0999 | Gifted by the RSPB[6] |
Little Assynt Estate | Nov 2000 | Estate | Culag Community Woodland Trust | £244,000 | 1,200 | 3,000 | NC1526 | [7] |
Gigha | Mar 2002 | Island | Isle of Gigha Heritage Trust | £4,000,000 | 1,300 | 3,200 | NR6449 | [8] |
Dùn Coillich, Perthshire | May 2002 | Hill | Highland Perthshire Communities Land Trust | 420 | 1,000 | NN7653 | [9] | |
North Harris | Mar 2003 | Estate | North Harris Trust | £2,200,000 | 22,500 | 55,600 | NB1010 | Increased to 25,000 ha (62,000 acres) with purchase of Loch Seaforth estate in 2006[10] |
Aline Community Woodland, Lewis | May 2005 | Forest | Erisort Trust | 633 | 1,600 | NB2114 | ||
Glencanisp and Drumrunie Estates, Assynt | Jun 2005 | Estate | Assynt Foundation | £2,900,000 | 18,000 | 44,500 | NC1718 | [11] |
South Uist Estate - Benbecula, Eriskay and South Uist | Nov 2006 | Estate | Stòras Uibhist | £4,500,000 | 38,000 | 93,900 | NF7830 | [12] |
Langamull and West Ardhu Woodlands, Isle Of Mull | Dec 2006 | Forest | North West Mull Community Woodland Company Ltd | £343,000 | 700 | 1,700 | NM3952 & NM4250 | Purchased from Forestry Commission Scotland under the National Forest Land Scheme[13] |
Galson Estate, Lewis | Jan 2007 | Estate | Urras Oighreachd Ghabhsainn (Galson Estate Trust) | £1,200,000 | 22,600 | 55,800 | NB4458 | [14] |
Cultybraggan Camp, Comrie | Sep 2007 | Former prisoner of war camp | Comrie Development Trust | £350,000 | 36 | 100 | NN7619 | [15] |
Kinloch village, Rùm | Feb 2009 | Village | Isle of Rum Community Trust | £0 | 100 | 200 | NM4099 | Transferred from Scottish Natural Heritage[16] |
Rhubodach Forest, Bute | Jul 2010 | Forest | Bute Community Land Company | £250,000 | 161 | 400 | NS0273 | Larger area of forest bought for £1.475m, then part of it immediately sold for £1.25m[17] |
RAF Machrihanish | May 2012 | Former air base | Machrihanish Airbase Community Company | £1 | 409 | 1,000 | NR6622 | [18] |
Evanton Wood | Aug 2012 | Forest | Evanton Wood Community Company | £300,000 | 65 | 200 | NH5966 | [19] |
Mull of Galloway | Jul 2013 | Heathland | Mull of Galloway Trust | £350,000 | 12 | 0 | NX1530 | Sold by the Northern Lighthouse Board[20] |
Bridgend Farmhouse, Edinburgh | Nov 2016 | Former farm and steading | Bridgend Inspiring Growth | £1 | 0.41 | 0 | NT280710 | Sold by the City of Edinburgh Council[21] |
Portobello Old Parish Church, Edinburgh | Sep 2017 | Former Church | Action Porty | £600,000 | 0.18 | 0 | NT280710 | First urban community right to buy in Edinburgh under the LR(S)A 2003 (as amended). Property sold by the Church of Scotland[22] |
Ulva | 21 June 2018 | Island | North West Mull Community Woodland Company | £4,400,000+ | 2,000 | 4,900 | NM410396 | Sold by Jamie Howard after a grant of £4.4 million from the Scottish Government through the Scottish Land Fund[23] |
Bonnymuir Green, Aberdeen | Sep 2018 | Greenspace and building | Bonnymuir Green Community Trust | £120,000 | 0.5 | NJ922067 | Former bowling green[24] |
References
edit- ^ Macpherson, George W. "Glendale Estate An [sic] Unique Early Experiment in Crofting Ownership". Social Land Ownership. Caledonia Centre for Social Development. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Assynt community considers buy-out". BBC News. 5 August 2004. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ Lloyd, Mike (12 June 2002). "Eigg marks five years of independence". BBC News. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ Matheson, Christine. "Case Study Four: Abriachan Forest Trust". Social Land Ownership. Caledonia Centre for Social Development. Archived from the original on 31 August 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Residents' buy-out victory". BBC News. 2 March 1999. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ Osborne, Roy. "The Isle Martin Trust - A community-based charitable trust". Social Land Ownership. Caledonia Centre for Social Development. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Locals buy estate". The Herald. 30 October 2000. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Island officially changes hands". BBC News. 15 March 2002. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Highland Perthshire Communities land purchase (Dùn Coillich)". Highland Perthshire Communities Land Trust. 10 May 2002. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Estate handover complete". BBC News. 21 March 2003. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Assynt group buys estates in deal". BBC News. 3 June 2005. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Land buyout reality for islanders". BBC News. 30 November 2006. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Woodland bought by Mull community". BBC News. 11 December 2006. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
- ^ "Islanders in huge estate buy-out". BBC News. 12 January 2007. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "New history of Cultybraggan POW camp produced". STV News. 14 April 2010. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Islanders vote to become kings of their own castles". The Scotsman. 14 January 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Islanders complete Bute forest buyout". BBC News. 28 July 2010. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Sale of former RAF airbase at Machrihanish confirmed". BBC News. 28 May 2012. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Community efforts pay off with woodland deal". Ross-shire Journal. 10 August 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
- ^ "Mull of Galloway community land purchase deal complete". BBC News. 4 July 2013. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
- ^ City of Edinburgh Council. "Finance and Resources Committee". www.edinburgh.gov.uk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
- ^ City of Edinburgh Council. "Finance and Resources Committee". www.edinburgh.gov.uk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
- ^ "Deal reached on community buyout of Ulva Estate". BBC News. 11 May 2018. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ "Case Study: Bonnymuir Green Community Trust" (PDF). Community Land Scotland. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- "The lands in communities' hands". BBC News. 13 June 2007. Retrieved 29 May 2012.