Assynt Foundation still strong: Chairman admits 'mistakes have been made' but says charity is not on verge of financial collapse and there is 'much opportunity ahead'
The Assynt Foundation is strongly refuting claims in a national newspaper report that it is in a "hopeless financial position" and about to fold.
The foundation's board of directors say the "main entity remains very alive and active", but confirm that its trading arm, Assynt.Biz, is in the process of being wound up after building up debt it cannot repay.
And Lewis MacAskill, chairman of the five-strong board, said there was “much opportunity ahead” with the foundation now embarking on a new, partnership model of working.
“Mistakes have been made, but much knowledge has been gained and lessons learned along the way,” he said.
Assynt Foundation staged a community buy-out of the 44,000-acre Glencanisp and Drumrunie Estates in 2005 with substantial help from the Scottish Land Fund and others.
The buy-out was the first major land holding purchase under the community buy-out provisions of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003.
But the foundation, a registered charity, has since been continually dogged by rumours that it is struggling financially and that the community purchase has not been a success.
Mr MacAskill said a recent article in a Sunday newspaper suggesting the foundation was on the point of financial collapse, was based on “misinformation”.
He said the departure of a previous manager in 2019 had sparked a “full and unfiltered review” of the finances of Assynt.Biz, a limited company which ran Glencanisp Lodge as a hospitality and letting business.
Assynt.Biz was established early on as the trading arm of the foundation in line with best practice which advises that charities establish separate companies to operate business activities in order to protect assets.
Following the review, the board took the decision to close Glencanisp Lodge temporarily in November 2019 to allow time for a “more detailed forward plan to be developed”. However, with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and lockdowns in 2020, the lodge remained shut.
Mr MacAskill said: “Assynt.Biz had been building up debt over a number of years, and it became evident that there was little or no chance of Glencanisp Lodge being able to trade its way out of debt as the ongoing pandemic restrictions resulted in prolonged closure of hospitality businesses.
“The time to face up to reality had come, and in spring 2020, the boards of Assynt Foundation and Assynt.Biz made the difficult, but correct, decision to wind up Assynt.Biz.
“Since then the Assynt.Biz board has carefully and methodically set about this process, and has managed to settle in full with a number of creditors, including all local businesses.
“The current Assynt.Biz debt position is that there are three remaining creditors - Assynt Foundation itself, HMRC and the Royal Bank of Scotland. Assynt.Biz remains in dialogue with the latter two.
“Assynt Foundation itself remains in a sustainable financial position with assets of well over £4 million on its balance sheet and money in the bank. Assynt Foundation auditors did not express any concern about the Foundation’s status as a going concern.”
Mr MacAskill continued: “Community ownership comes with no training manual. The elected volunteer board directors and members are on a constant learning journey, and with that comes highs and lows.
“From its inception, Assynt Foundation has taken a long-term view of life - undoing the previous land ownership management model and creating something more sustainable with community at its core will not happen in a year or two and that has been borne out.
“One of the key lessons learned is that we know now that no one manager or volunteer board of directors possesses all the requisite skills and experience to fully develop the range of assets that make up Assynt Foundation.
“We have made the strategic decision to develop working partnerships with those who have the specific skills and resources to be able to fully develop our assets in a joint way with the community owned entity - be it hospitality, tourism, recreation, woodlands, deer management or conservation management to name but a few.
“So while many challenges remain, Assynt Foundation is far from struggling and there is much opportunity ahead. We are currently working hard on one or two very positive long-term partnerships that will help to create a strong, healthy and sustainable community owned asset well into the future.”
