After 2 years, Creetown Initiative’s contract working with Barrhill Community Interest Company and Barrhill Development Trust has come to an end. We have had a fantastic couple of years working with the community of Barrhill and hope that the community are pleased with progress made. Creetown Initiative provided Project Officer support and one staff member (Amy) worked out of an office in Barrhill every Tuesday, working to deliver community development projects in the village. This worked extremely well in being able to integrate into the community to gain a better understanding of the needs and priorities of local residents, whilst maintaining open communication channels between the Trust and the CIC and the community.
Some of the projects achieved during this time included:
- Carried out extensive community consultations, feasibility planning and business planning to establish the viability of the community taking over the last remaining pub in the village.
- Secured funding from Scottish Land Fund for the purchase cost of The Trout Inn pub.
- Employed a village community Handyman to maintain communal areas of the village, provide an aesthetic “makeover” of the village and carry out maintenance and improvement work for the village hall (Barrhill Memorial Hall)
- Provided assistance with communications to the community and various bodies, stakeholders and funders
- Created Barrhill Development Trust
- Developed and set up a weekly youth club
- Installed solar panels, with a feed-in-tariff, on the Barrhill Memorial Hall
- Delivered business development workshops
- Installed 39 high quality, large planters in the village
- Collated and created the quarterly community newsletter
- Installed a hearing loop, defibrillator and sound system in the Barrhill Memorial Hall
- Investigated other legacy project opportunities in the village
Creetown Initiative wishes the community of Barrhill all the best for their future projects and activities.
