Kayaks nabbed
used the house as the setting for the launch of her new fashion range with model Nadia Faccenda.
Members of the trust are confident they have secured around £600,000 in grants towards the purchase price but are looking to raise an additional £250,000 through crowdfunding, donations, partnerships and fundraising events.
Trust chairman Alan Marshall said a great deal of work remains to be done but the ambition of the community to own the historic house, which was once lived in by Bonnie Prince Charlie, is moving closer.
“This is a huge step forward for the trust and our community as Bannockburn House has now been removed from sale and a legal agreement is being drawn up, led by Bannockburn solicitor Alec Pollock,”said Mr Marshall.
“We are now in pole position to realise our ambition of owning this historic house and grounds, thereby securing its future and making it a vibrant core part of our community.
“People should also remember that we were told that we wouldn’t even get this far in our bid to buy the house but look where we are now.
“We’ve secured the sole right to buy the property after months of negotiations with the owners.
“We’ve had open days where thousands of people have visited, with several of them offering to help, and we have an active trust now fully constituted and registered with the charities regulator and ready to continue the journey towards full ownership.
“We’ve come a long way but we need help to complete the next steps.”
The majority of the cash raised will come through the trust’s stage two application to the Scottish Land Fund. They hope that most of the money will be in place later this summer and the deal can be tied up shortly after.
Mr Marshall said:“We need everyone, near and far, to get on board and donate. We have plans to reach out to families and businesses, both here and abroad, to support us.
“We’ve already established contact in the US, where there are an estimated eight million people who claim Scots or Scots-Irish descent, but we can’t just rely on them. We need folk back home to contribute too.”
He added:“It’s important to thank everyone who has helped us on our journey so far and it is particularly important to thank the owner of Bannockburn House, Peter Drake, as well as his agent Chris Ashton, who has been very accommodating and helpful during our open days and with the sale negotiations.
“We believe we have struck a fair price for the house and grounds and we thank them both for agreeing to support the community by agreeing an exclusive deal with us.”
Bannockburn councillor Alasdair MacPherson has been heavily involved in the plans and he said:“These are really exciting times.
“We’re closer to securing the house for community use and we need to thank all of the volunteers and public for their support and interest. It wouldn’t have been possible without them.
“The next stage is to secure additional funding but we’ll need to look at making the house more accessible for future events and improving the car parking is key to that.” Police are appealing for information after two kayaks were stolen from a car roof in Riverside.
A red Zet Raptor model and a blue Pyranha Blade, each valued at £850, were tied to the vehicle parked on Forth Crescent when they were taken by crooks.
The theft happened some time between 7.30pm on Friday and 8.20am on Saturday.
Police are appealing for anyone who witnessed anything suspicious, or saw any strange vehicles in the area, at these times to get in touch.
Contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.