The Scottish Government’s Scottish Land Fund has awarded Wigtown & Bladnoch Community Initiative stage one funding from the Scottish Land Fund. The money is for developing detailed proposals for the community to buy the former Bank of Scotland building in Wigtown. It adds to a grant from the Rural Housing Fund to look into needs for housing in Wigtown and Bladnoch, and to consider how the former bank could provide affordable housing options.
The building is now for sale, and we have a registered community interest which gives us until December to complete plans and put funding in place. Local architect, Hazel Smith, and two consultancy companies – Community Enterprise, and Dumfries & Galloway Small Communities’ Housing Trust – have been brought in to provide design expertise, and support with community engagement and business planning.
We will be arranging meetings in the new few weeks to hear what local organisations, groups and residents think, what people would like to see, and what they are worried about.
All residents within the area of Wigtown and Bladnoch will have the opportunity to vote to determine whether the former Bank becomes a community owned asset in July and we will be encouraging everyone to have their say. Posters, flyers and other information will be displayed and posted around Wigtown and Bladnoch over the coming few weeks.