Urban Right to Buy Developments in Scotland

An Aberdeen community have used new community buyout powers to claim a piece of private land as their own, becoming the first in Northern Scotland to utilise the Urban Right to Buy scheme. The land, that was once a bowls club, will be used as a community market garden and cafe. http://www.scottishcommunityalliance.org.uk/articles/2720/

Scottish Land Commission publish discussion paper about diversifying land ownership

Scotland, as many know, is quite a few years ahead of England with land reform. The Scottish Land Commission has just published a discussion paper by Peter Peacock about diversifying land ownership which is our recommended reading this week! https://landcommission.gov.scot/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Land-Lines-Land-Ownership-Peter-Peacock-March-2018.pdf

Scottish land reform updates

(both updates via the excellent Senscot weekly briefing) When the Community Empowerment Act extended the right to buy to all of Scotland – there was an optimism about what this could mean for communities in our cities. However, news this week that the community buy-out of Edinburgh’s Sick Kids Hospital has been thwarted is a… Continue reading Scottish land reform updates

The Land of Scotland and the Common Good

If you have not had a chance to browse this official Scottish Parliament document about land reform, I highly recommend that you do – http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0045/00451087.pdf Just the introduction spelling out their remit is a beautiful stand alone piece of prose in its own right! I have taken the liberty of copying it below to save… Continue reading The Land of Scotland and the Common Good