'This is the best possible Christmas present': Clyne Heritage Society thrilled after £1.95 million award secures Brora heritage hub and visitor centre project

A SUTHERLAND heritage society is celebrating after receiving a massive Christmas present from the UK Government.

Clyne Heritage Society has been awarded £1.95 million from the Community Ownership Fund towards its long-running £4.5 million project to transform a historic, semi-derelict school building in Brora into a heritage hub and visitor centre.

The significant funding is at the top end of the awards made with only four out of the 72 awards made in this round of funding exceeding £1 million.

Chairman of Clyne Heritage Society Dr Nick Lindsay said members were “thrilled” with the award which was the final brick in the wall.

He said: “In our 25-year history, this is just the best possible Christmas present for us - ever!

"The construction phase of the project has been costed at £3.7 million and, with the final award from the Community Ownership Fund, the society has now finally raised the full amount.

“The society has reached this position through the sheer passion, resilience, dedication, dogged perseverance and skill of its volunteer board members.”

Situated on the north side of Brora, next to the A9 and the North Coast 500 tourist route, the Grade C listed Old Clyne School, built in 1863, was gifted to the society in 2018 by Scottish and Southern Electricity (SSE), developers of the Gordonbush Wind Farm.

Plans have been developed to convert the historically significant building, which served as the parish school, into a year-round community heritage facility with a cafe and a shop. Planning permission has been granted, additional land secured and a contractor identified.

But the society struggled to raise the necessary funds as construction costs soared and faced criticism over the cost of the project and the location of the Old Clyne School on the outskirts of Brora, with detractors saying it was too far from the centre of the village.

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Dr Lindsay said: “Since we were kindly gifted the building in 2018, we have been meticulously planning its redevelopment and working tirelessly to raise the necessary funds for us to realise our dream of operating the society independently from our own premises.

“We had raised enough to actually begin construction before the first lockdown. However, the ensuing inflation associated with Covid, the war in Ukraine, and other external factors beyond our control, have doubled the price of the project to an astonishing £4.5 million.”

“It has been a very long road, with many false dawns and bumps along the way."

Previous funding awards for the project have included £1 million from energy giant SSE; and £450,000 from the Scottish Government’s Regeneration Capital Grant Fund.

Dr Lindsay continued: “We hope to start the construction project in the first quarter of 2024 and we expect it to take around a year to complete.

“The local economy will be boosted during this phase with retail, hospitality and accommodation businesses benefitting.

“Our grant awards also include revenue funding for three full-time equivalent posts to prepare us for our operational phase. These posts will be advertised early in the New Year.

“Once operational, the centre will trade as ‘Brora Heritage’. The local economy will continue to benefit directly from the anticipated creation of four full-time equivalent jobs.

“Local businesses will also benefit from increased numbers of visitors wishing to spend more time in the area.

“Alongside other world-class venues such as Clynelish Distillery, Brora Golf Club and the area’s wonderful natural resources, our redeveloped Old Clyne School Community Heritage Centre and Museum will add to the visitor attractions and help make Brora become a definitive visitor destination.”

Society vice-chairman Dr John Alderson said: “Our preferred construction company, chosen through a competitive tender process, is locally based, meaning the economy of the Far North will be a main beneficiary of the construction spend.”

The Community Ownership Fund is a £150 million fund over four years to support community groups across the UK to take ownership of assets that are at risk of being lost to the community.

This latest round of funding from the UK Government’s Community Ownership Fund has paid out a total of £8 million to “protect 17 community treasures” across Scotland.

That brings the total Community Ownership Fund in Scotland to £13.6 million for 43 “treasured places”.

UK Government Minister for Scotland Malcolm Offord said: “It's great news that a further 17 Scottish projects are sharing £8 million from the UK Government Community Ownership Fund. Through the fund we are now supporting 43 community groups across Scotland to the tune of £13.6 million to breathe new life into the places where they live, work and play.

“In total we are directly investing more than £2.7 billion in hundreds of projects across Scotland to help grow our economy and level up the country."

Secretary of State for Levelling UP Michael Gove said: “Investing in communities improves lives – whether it’s rebuilding a community centre, saving historic pubs and theatres or improving sports facilities that families use every day..

“These are unique and cherished places, valued by local people of all ages, and we know how much they mean to communities. The Community Ownership Fund is about restoring pride in the places people call home and I’m delighted to be funding these projects.”

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