New from old: the bid to breathe new life into Scotland's derelict eyesore sites

The Shettleston garden will burst back into life: the frogs and newts will take up residence in the pond and the amateur gardeners will tend their little corners, have a chat, a laugh, pick up new skills and share what they’ve learned with the next generation.

Yet not so long ago their busy garden was vacant and derelict land, unwanted and seemingly without any use.

“It was an eyesore,” says Kenny McCubbin, project co-ordinator at Shettleston Community Growing Project. “This land was just lying derelict for years and no-one knew what to do with it.

“When you look at the garden now, the orchard and the wildlife area with frogs, newts, hedgehogs, foxes… all this wildlife and nature is not what you expect to see in the middle of a Glasgow housing estate.”

Since it opened 11 years ago, the garden has ‘grown’ arms and legs. Out of a derelict and contaminated patch of ground has sprouted a children’s gardening club which teaches little ones how to cook the fruit and vegetables harvested from the land as well as grow it, produce is shared with local food banks, and the site has become a lifeline for people who would never otherwise have picked up a spade and packet of seeds.

It is, according to the Scottish Land Commission, just one example of what can be achieved from vacant and derelict land.

Throughout next month, the Commission will run a major campaign aimed at encouraging Scotland’s local authorities to take a fresh look at similar ‘waste’ sites in their areas, to see if they, too, can transform ugly and unwanted patches to benefit their communities.

A key element of Land Reuse Month will be encouraging the public sector bodies to prevent further sites and buildings in their area from falling into long-term disrepair.

When it comes to existing waste land, there is no shortage of opportunities: Scotland has almost 11,000 hectares of vacant and derelict urban land – an area roughly twice the size of the city of Dundee, equating to a staggering 15,000 football pitches.

Almost one-third of Scots live within 500 metres of a derelict site, however, in deprived communities, the figure rises to 55%.

Some sites have been linked to causing significant harm to communities, from negative impacts they have on mental and physical health, to attracting unwanted gatherings for anti-social behaviour and safety concerns.

In many cases, such as at the Shettleston site, industries and factories have moved on, leaving behind contaminated soil and barren landscapes.

“We don’t underestimate the scale of the task in bringing back into use the countless derelict sites which are a remnant of our industrial past, but they have the potential to be a huge national asset,” says Andrew Thin, chair of the Scottish Land Commission.

“By bringing together prominent stakeholders including local authorities, decision-makers, policy influencers, land and planning experts, and other enthusiastic parties during Land Reuse Month, we can drive real change to the way we approach land using it as an asset that can contribute to community wellbeing and net zero carbon objectives.”

The Commission suggests many empty sites where little more than tumbleweed passes through, could even solve some of Scotland’s biggest challenges. Reborn as productive spaces, they could help tackle climate change, improve health and wellbeing, create more resilient communities and play a role in helping to rebuild the economy.

In an effort to inspire new thinking, the Commission and SEPA launched a national Vacant and Derelict Land Taskforce in 2018, bringing together 30 businesses, public bodies and third sector organisations working together to bring empty land back into use.

It went on to call for a range of actions, including an updated Vacant and Derelict Land Register to help identify problem sites and extra funding to help local authorities tackle waste land.

While a map of long-term derelict urban sites – known as DUSTEs – has been produced in conjunction with SEPA and the Green Action Trust, pinpointing over 500 ‘stuck sites’ over 0.1 hectares in urban locations which have been registered as derelict for at least two decades.

In some cases, sites have been languishing on the Scottish Vacant and Derelict Land Register for decades, often in areas of multiple deprivation and negatively impacting the area and wellbeing of residents.

The Commission suggests abandoned or unloved sites could be used for new homes to help limit urban sprawl and protect other green spaces, revitalise town centres, provide allotments and city farms, new parks, new businesses and for renewable energy.

In North Lanarkshire, with its long industrial heritage, derelict sites glow red on the online map showing multiple areas where nothing has happened and nothing appears to be planned.

However, some sites across the local authority area have been reborn. In Wishaw, land that was derelict for 20 years has become a world class pump track following a partnership between the local community and North Lanarkshire Council.

Since it opened in April 2018, anti-social behaviour in the area has dramatically reduced, with fewer police and fire related incidents and a drop in vandalism at the nearby golf course.

The group involved, Socialtrack, has also evolved to now provide bike maintenance classes, and promote action sports.

Derelict and vacant sites in other areas have been turned into playgrounds, community hubs, business centres and gardens.

In Edinburgh, vacant and derelict land was transformed by social enterprise, Social Bite, into a village for up to 20 people who had been living in unsupported temporary accommodation, shelters and bed and breakfast.

While in Carluke, a Category A listed mill which had been classed as a “stuck site” after being derelict for more than 20 years, is being brought back to life by a community project which aims ot turn it into a heritage tourism destination, community and learning garden and community food hub.

“Communities have identified these sites which are blights on their community, and want to bring them back into use to meet local needs,” said Karlene Doherty, Vacant and Derelict Land Project Manager, for Development Trusts Association Scotland, which supports communities which want to take on vacant land.

“There is a fantastic range of projects being supported, from an adventure playground in Possilpark, to renewable energy generation in Fife, to a Re-use Hub in New Cumnock.

“We know there is significant appetite for this type of support which leads to communities creating socially productive and environmentally beneficial projects to overcome inequalities in areas with significant levels of deprivation.”

The new campaign will see local authority and other public sector employees take part a series of seminars attended by Scottish Government Ministers, civil servants, environmental groups, community ownership specialists, land and planning experts, housing advisors and academics.

The sessions aim to encourage delegates to understand the opportunities in transforming derelict land, to collaborate with communities and other cross-sector organisations involved, develop relevant strategies, and how to help stem the flow of abandoned and derelict land.

Minister for Environment and Land Reform Màiri McAllan said: “Land Reuse Month will provide valuable support to local authorities to unlock the potential in areas of unused land, and I greatly encourage all those with an interest to sign up to the online seminars.

“Through our £50 million low carbon Vacant and Derelict Land Investment Programme, launched last year, we are already breathing new life into some of Scotland’s most long-standing derelict sites.”