Give locals priority over developers in right-to-buy

Councillors now have the opportunity to support projects for the community, urges Alison Reeves

Every community needs a public space to meet, activate, celebrate and be creative together. When a community lacks a space, people take action to find or create one.

In the 1980s, the people of Wester Hailes (newly-created with almost no amenities) organised the building of seven huts to house community activity, including the emerging WHALE arts project which is still flourishing today.

It’s no surprise then that the Community Empowerment Act which came into force in January is already being used to secure spaces for creativity. In Portobello, they’re celebrating the purchase of the church and halls in Bellfield Street with funding from the Scottish Land Fund, to provide low cost spaces in an area thronging with artists.

In Leith, a former tram depot will be replaced by studios for 30 artists. This was the vision of the Community Asset Transfer section of the legislation, providing the legal strong arm for communities to take on poorly used buildings and bring them to life.

In south Edinburgh, however, there are battles to be fought. Public buildings that are our community heritage also promise big returns for developers. Pound signs are flashing over the old Boroughmuir High School and the Sick Kids hospital. The latter is now the subject of a Community Right to Buy application from the Marchmont and Sciennes Development Trust.

This is a big test for the legislation with developers ready to buy if it fails. Even if the application isn’t appealed by the NHS, the Trust only has eight months to put a business case together.

A better situation for the community than at Boroughmuir, where the might of the developer won out prior to the new legislation. Out of the Blue, the arts trust behind the tram depot development, bid £4.5 million for the school and were outbid by Cala Homes, offering almost three times that. But, last month, the planning committee rejected Cala’s plan for 87 homes, largely because of anxieties over parking.

A victory for local campaigners, particularly since planning officials had recommended it, and given the committee’s record on approving the use of public buildings for housing.

People with the drive and now the means to keep public spaces in community use need council representatives on their side. Yes, budgets are tight and new housing targets high, but the planning committee are making decisions that will shape our city forever.

To embark on community buyouts, people have to know that councillors will discourage developers by blocking inappropriate development of former public buildings and that sensitive plans put together by local people will get preference. As the new councillors take their seats, let’s hope we get a planning committee willing to back the Government’s own vision. ● Alison Reeves is a former creative director of WHALE Arts, now continuing a 20-year career in participative and community arts.