Tag: Action Porty

Action Porty to buy former police station

📣 We have HUGE news to share! Scottish Land Fund have announced that they will fund 100% of the price for Action Porty to buy the former police station building from Police Scotland via a Community Asset Transfer.

🎉We at Action Porty are absolutely thrilled!!! (Actually, that’s an understatement. We were dancing on the tables when we heard the news!)🎉

When Action Porty bought Bellfield on behalf of the community, Scottish Land Fund (SLF) awarded us 90% of the purchase price.

It’s partly our strong track record that led to this amazing result, but its mostly the incredible work, which has been happening behind the scenes, by a group of very dedicated volunteers: Frazer McNaughton, Mark Boggis, Justin Kenrick and Kieran Gaffney, with Kieran and the team at Konishi Gaffney architects and local structural engineer James Lewis, Hive Structural Ltd, providing pro bono services. 🙏🙏🙏🙏

Background – what has led us to here?

Aug 2024: Police Scotland announced plans to sell the building. (Operational police officers haven’t been stationed there since 2016).

Oct 2024: 97% of Community Council survey respondents supported community ownership.

Nov 2024: Community consultation event overwhelmingly endorsed Action Porty’s proposal.

Jan 2025: Action Porty submitted the Community Asset Transfer request.

Jul-Sept 2025: Police Scotland agreed to request and price and Scottish Ministers gave their approval.

Dec 2025: with SLF deciding to fund the purchase, we are in reach of the finishing line!

🏁The actual finishing line will be March 2026 when the sale completes.

To meet the funding conditions and complete the sale we need to get the necessary planning permissions and building warrants in place. There’s lots to do!

Watch this space 👀 – we’ll share more news as we get it.

What’s next for this iconic public building which has served the community for almost 150 years?

Find out here: https://www.bellfield.scot/heart-of-porty

Any questions, comments or feedback that you’d prefer to not post on social media? Email heartofporty@gmail.com

#ScottishLandFund

#communityownership

The National Lottery Community Fund Scotland

Development Trusts Association Scotland

Action Porty: Bellfield’s Big Build

BUY SHARES, BUILD COMMUNITY

Bellfield’s Big Build – Community Share Offer

Dates: Saturday 29th March – Saturday 30th April 2025

Location: Bellfield, Portobello, Edinburgh 

Target Raise: £200k (successful share issue will unlock £450k capital grand from Community Ownership, if we are unsuccessful we lose the £450k).

Porty’s trailblazing take on keeping community spaces thriving

Can we raise 200k from the community in a month? 

  • Action Porty are launching a community share offer to raise funds to double the space in the celebration hall (the old church building) in Bellfield community centre
  • Action Porty currently turn away 50% of bookings due to lack of space, and the new refurbishment will create a warmer, more efficient and more accessible building.
  • Action Porty were the first Urban organisation to have used the community ‘right to buy’ legislation to have bought the building in 2017.
  • Councils, churches and police buildings are being sold off all round the country, Action Porty are showing a way that communities can get organised to own and run their own community spaces. 
  • Community members and organisations who buy shares will have a say in what happens with the building in the future. 
  •  The building is used for youth theatre, ceilidhs, belly dancing, yoga, weddings, birthdays, Quaker meeting and much more!

“When you build more roads, you get more traffic. When you create more community spaces, you get more community” (Justin Kenrick, chair of Action Porty)

“I had my mother’s funeral here; I’ve spent pivotal moments of my life in this building – happy or sad, joyous or full of anguish, this building has housed all those emotions” (Shauna)

More info – contact membership@actionporty.com, Phone: 07786577884 (Hazel) 

Website: https://www.bellfield.scot/buy-shares-1

Instagram: @bellfieldporty

Facebook: Action Porty

Bellfield’s Big Build_FINAL_digitalDownload