Falkirk Council Strategic Property Review
In December 2022, Falkirk Council announced that Councillors had agreed in principle to make 133 council-owned properties available for transfer to communities, over a phased approach, as part of their Strategic Property Review (SPR) (linked for your convenience). The council has ran community consultation, with an online survey and in-person events, throughout January 2023.
An Informed Choice: Community Asset Transfer
Our team at CVS Falkirk is developing a programme of support for the local third sector and community groups around this, which includes information and guidance on Community Asset Transfer (CAT).
This included our “An Informed Choice” information sessions early in 2023 for those third sector individuals and groups who are interested in pursuing community ownership and CAT; we are looking at the next stage of this support programme and what should include to best meet the needs of Falkirk District’s sector and communities.
This will be announced via our communications channels; until then, we will continue to support the third sector in Falkirk with their enquiries and the CAT journey, and what is best for them and their communities.
For further information, please contact our team by email: info@cvsfalkirk.org.uk
What is Community Asset Transfer?
Community Asset Transfer (CAT) is a legal process, part of the Community Empowerment Act (2015), which allows community groups and organisations to make a request about any land or buildings owned or rented by a relevant public body (including Scottish Government, local councils, and health boards, amongst others). They can ask to buy or lease the land or buildings, or have other legal rights (such as using the land).
There is a set criteria that groups must meet to be eligible for an asset transfer, becoming a “community transfer body”; they include:
- The organisation’s rules must say what community it speaks for. All people who are part of that community must be allowed to be members of the organisation. Most of the members of the organisation must be from that community and they must decide what the organisation does. Any money the organisation makes must be used to help that community.
- A community can be any group of people who have something in common. They may live in the same area (“a geographic community”) or may enjoy doing the same thing, or have similar backgrounds (“a community of interest”).
- If a community transfer body wants to buy land or a building through asset transfer, they must also become a company, a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) or a Community Benefit Society. These are different ways of setting up a group to deal with the responsibilities of owning land.
If a community group cannot change its rules to fit the requirements, it can ask Scottish Ministers to make it a community transfer body by law.
Support from CVS Falkirk
Our team at CVS Falkirk is equipped to guide you and your group or organisation through the process (including any changes needed to your group’s legal structure), with information and support to help you make the best, informed choice for you and your community.
We can also put you in touch with national experts, including the Community Ownership Support Service (COSS) and Development Trusts Association Scotland (DTAS) and NatureScot, along with those who have gone through the process locally.
Contact us during business hours by phone: 01324 692000, or email: info@cvsfalkirk.org.uk
Resources
We highly recommend visiting the websites linked below under “Useful Information”. The following resources are also available:
- Scottish Government’s Summary Guidance of CAT for community groups
- Scottish Government’s full guidance for community groups
- COSS and DTAS resources page
- including the DTAS Route Map to Asset Transfer and their own dedicated page
- Falkirk Council’s FAQ
Case Studies
In 2017, CentreStage in East Ayrshire agreed the purchase of the previous Kilmarnock Academy with East Ayrshire Council, which was completed in 2019, and is the largest Community Asset Transfer in Scotland to date.
There are also a range of case studies available on the COSS and DTAS website.
Useful Information
“Community Asset Transfer (CAT) is a process that allows a community organisation to take over publicly-owned land or buildings in a way that recognises the public benefits that the transfer will bring. The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act has defined a legal process for asset transfer, which gives new rights to communities and places duties on public bodies.
CAT can be achieved in a number of different ways at the request of the community – the transfer of title for outright ownership, the use of a long-term lease or indeed management agreements.”
(Source: the COSS and DTAS website.)
“Part 5 of the Community Empowerment Act introduces a right for community bodies to make requests to all local authorities, Scottish Ministers and a range of public bodies for any land or buildings they feel they could make better use of. They can request ownership, lease or other rights as they wish.
The public authorities must transparently assess requests against a specified list of criteria, laid out in the Act, and agree the request unless there are reasonable grounds for refusal.
Should such a request be refused, the community group have a right to appeal or to ask for a review of that decision.”
(Source: Scottish Government website.)
