Fantastic News!

Cairnbaan Community Trust are delighted to announce that the Scottish Land Fund (SLF) have awarded a grant of £134,796 to purchase the Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) buildings at Lock 8 in the village and carry out essential repairs. The buildings and land are being transferred to the community in an Asset Transfer from FLS.  

The grant will also fund a part-time Development Manager for the Community Hub for one year to oversee and develop this work and we hope to gain access to the buildings by July.

This is fantastic news for our community and means that we can now progress with our plans to repair and refurbish the buildings to create a hub for community use.

Forestry Buildings

The Trust will soon own the single storey office building and workshop/storage space at Lock 8, right in the heart of the village. 

The grant was awarded to the Trust by the Scottish Land Fund, to create a Community Hub. In the initial phase the office building will be refurbished to provide a flexible space for the community to use for meetings, activities and a warm social space. There will be something for young and old, permanent residents and visitors, families and friends. And we will make it together.

The grant will pay for the buildings, essential repairs and the employment of a part time Development Manager for a year. Their job will be to commission and oversee the essential work with contractors and to work with volunteers in the village. 

Jim Maitland, Chair  of the Trust said, ‘the award is the culmination of nearly three years of work by a small group of trustees, volunteers and many residents of our village who have supported us in all the hard work that it has  taken to get this far.  We are delighted with the outcome and wish to express our thanks to Forestry and Land Scotland for supporting an asset transfer of the two buildings and land to the community. We also thank the Scottish Land Fund for this award in time of economic uncertainty’. 

We can do more together

Once we have contacted everyone in the community about volunteering for the project, we can start to make a plan of work for the buildings and land which the Development Manager will oversee in the coming months.  

The Trust is encouraging the residents of Cairnbaan to volunteer their skills, energy and time so that the buildings can be made safe and suitable for the community and general public. No job will be too small and everyone has a part to play. 

The buildings are in need of essential work to make them wind and water tight and prepare them for use.  The project will enable the community to have a stronger role in, and control over, its future and it will have its own well managed and financially sustainable Hub.

It’s an exciting time for our village. We have gone for a once in a generation opportunity and we have succeeded in getting it!

We are very grateful to our neighbouring communities, local organisations and individuals who have supported and encouraged us so far. We look forward to working together in the future.

What a difference a year makes

A year ago Cairnbaan had little to celebrate: the hotel had shut and things were at a low ebb.

Now refurbishment work on the hotel is well under way and it will soon be open to the public. The new owners are committed to restoring the hotel as a focal point for the village and wider area. 

Polly’s coffee stop continues to be a great place for people to meet outdoors and to catch up over a coffee, tea, cake, soup and legendary sausage rolls.

 

The Trust made a community film in 2024 (We Are Cairnbaan), showing the challenges and strengths of our community. We have already moved forward with issues it raised. We have secured money to install a community notice board and fence a playpark. And now we have the opportunity to play our part in a bigger project.

Cairnbaan comes to life in the Spring when the canal opens to boats again. Swimmers will soon be dipping their toes into Loch a’Bharain and the radio controlled boats will be in the water too. Local people and visitors are already enjoying the beautiful surroundings of Cairnbaan by walking, cycling, kayaking, paddle boarding and visiting the ancient monuments in the area. 

2025 is the year to welcome the arrival of Spring with new opportunities for our village and its residents. 

Please click here to complete a short form telling us how you can assist the Trust with the repairs/refurbishment of the FLS Buildings

 

Trust Membership

You can also help, just by becoming a member of the Trust which is free and doesn’t commit you to anything. The Trust is always looking for more residents to join so if you have not yet done so, please join up by completing the online form on the website at – https://cairnbaancommunitytrust.org/become-a-member