The third dimension of a new paradigm for the landscapes of the north and west of Scotland is the return of people to the land.
Areas like Argyll are currently depopulating, but the tide can turn for our small, scattered villages if they are given the resource to grow their community infrastructure.
A “good news” story is the acquisition, in Clachan, West Kintyre, of the old Free Church: a beautiful stone building that had been lying empty in the centre of the village for many years.
The village hall committee had been wrestling the thorny problem of their hall: an old concrete building that had to be closed in 2019 because of increasing dampness. What to do? Repair, or pull down and rebuild on the old site?
Members of the committee started to think laterally. What if they acquired the old Free Church building and renovated it to become the new hall?
In the end they opted for this latter option and yesterday, thanks to a grant from the Scottish Land Fund, they became the owners.
