ALMOST 25 per cent of Scotland’s 21,000 crofts are now on community-owned land, the Scottish Crofting Federation has announced.
In these community buyouts, the owner is no longer the private landlord with local people – teachers and joiners and labourers and doctors - owning and controlling the land.
SCF chief executive Donna Smith said community owned land gives crofters “a much stronger voice on what happens in their area”.
She said: “As opposed to some private absentee landlord who lives in Spain or wherever. On community-owned estates, it puts crofters on the ground in charge of their own direction of travel.
“Across the Highlands and Islands there are examples where the relationships between community landlords and crofters have worked incredibly well and communities and crofters achieve amazing things.”
Community-owned Carloway Estate Trust includes a significant number of crofts. Donald Mackinnon, who works for the trust and is himself a crofter, said: “Community ownership should be the default position for all crofting estates. It doesn’t make sense that a crofting estate would be in private ownership.
“It promotes good communal working. For example, if the Community wants to develop some land, it will often be crofting land, so the community and the crofters have to work together.
“Sometimes there can be frustrations with that process, but I think it’s a good thing as it ensures the community works collaboratively. You can’t just go off and do something because you want to do it.
“There might be debates about peatland restoration or planning trees and the views might be different. But we respectfully discuss these issues until we come to a conclusion that everyone can accept.”
Community Land Scotland’s development manager Linsay Chalmers said: “It’s no coincidence that so much of Scotland’s community owned land is on crofting estates.
“Crofting communities have a good understanding of land reform, are business-minded and are used to working together cooperatively. It’s these crofting communities that have really led the way with community ownership and inspired people across Scotland to follow in their footsteps.”
