saving bellfield
In April 2016, the merger of Portobello’s three Church of Scotland congregations into one at Portobello and Joppa Parish Church raised concerns that the space on Bellfield Street would be lost.
Aware that its future was in question, a group of local volunteers began working together with the goal of retaining the Bellfield buildings as a community resource – owned by the community, for the community.
When it became clear the sale of Bellfield would proceed, a public meeting was held. Over 75 attendees voted unanimously to establish Friends of Bellfield to retain this vital asset.
Two processes were instigated: (1) a Community Right to Buy (CRtB) process to ensure the community had first right to buy the buildings a market prices, and (2) a process to secure funds from the Scottish Land Fund (SLF). These funds would enable us bring in the expertise we needed to put together an application for over 80% of the purchase price.
Action Porty was created as a company limited by guarantee, to meet the legal requirements and facilitate the process. Action Porty offered full membership to all voters in Portobello, junior membership to those under 16, and associate membership to those outwith Portobello. Over £16,000 was quickly secured from SLF to hire consultants, architects and business experts to help assess the business case, evaluate community needs, and to develop strong plans.
In September 2016 we became the first urban community in Scotland to successfully register our CRtB application. This required the completion of all the paperwork, as well as over 40 volunteers going door to door to secure the minimum 10% backing from the electorate for this venture. In a matter of weeks, and working to a deadline, we managed to secure the backing of 1,500 voters (over 25% of voters in Portobello). With just four days to recruit members of Action Porty before submission, 315 people signed up!
The community were incredibly supportive throughout. Over £2,000 was raised in one night in a Bellfield cabaret, and almost 200 people participated in an event at the Library to feedback their ideas and responses to the initial architects drawings and options appraisal.
Find out more about how the community in Portobello took ownership of Bellfield Church via the Community Right to Buy Scheme here