News: Did you spot a giant pink bear on Royston Road?

That might be because the Rebel Bear, who usually dons a pink bear suit while working, has teamed up with Community Land Scotland’s Community Ownership Hub: Glasgow and the Clyde Valley, and Copperworks Housing Association to celebrate community ownership of land and buildings in Glasgow.

A future they determine for themselves

We worked with The Rebel Bear and Copperworks Housing Association to co-create a mural on Royston Road.  The mural shows some of Glasgow’s buildings that are owned and run by local communities, with children literally standing on a bin to create a new world for themselves.  The mural highlights the creative heart of communities that have a vision for a future they determine for themselves.

Hub Manager Carey Doyle said: “There is a lot of interest in community ownership in Glasgow and the Clyde Valley, building on the long history of community activism here. With the changes of land reform, communities are buying land and buildings held by all sorts of different landowners.  Communities are leading on the changes they want, and delivering these benefits long term through ownership.”

The mural was commissioned as part of the launch to the Community Ownership Hub, celebrating the increase in community buy outs of land and buildings by creating a piece of art that adds to the beautiful city of Glasgow.

Since the Community Ownership Hub was launched earlier in 2021  it has helped over 40 community groups and individuals with community ownership projects. More than 75% of these groups are interested in land held privately, demonstrating the strength of communities’ interest in having a meaningful stake in land development and ownership of all types.

Scottish communities buying land and buildings benefit from a range of support,  including legal rights to buy and funding streams such as the Scottish Land Fund.  Community ownership organisations have open membership and invest value from development back into local communities.

Celebrating Roystonhill 

In the mural, you can see Roystonhill Community Hub, known locally as ‘The Hub on the Hill’, which is owned by Copperworks’ neighbours and partners Spire View Housing Association. It had been clear to local councillors and housing associations in Royston that there was a need for more community spaces in the local area. Funding from Scottish Government (via Glasgow City Council), Scottish Land Fund and the National Lottery Community Fund, as well as several other funders, enabled the purchase from the Church of Scotland to build a community facility. The original façade of the community building was retained, but the resulting building is a beautiful combination of a historic building and up to date flexible community space.

The Community Hub is located next to Roystonhill Spire, a landmark on the Glasgow skyline, is a  historic building which is supported and maintained for the community by Rosemount Development Trust.

Further along Roystonhill lies the Millburn Triangle Site, now known as The Park on the Hill. This large area of derelict land was a blight on the local community for many years until Copperworks took the lead, with funding support from Scottish Land Fund, Scottish Government (via Glasgow City Council) and Rosemount Development Trust, to purchase the land in question bringing it back into community ownership. Funding also allowed for remediation of the site and the creation of a fantastic open green space for the entire community to enjoy.

Fiona Murphy, Director of Copperworks Housing Association and Spire View Housing Association, said “Community ownership is at the heart of everything we do at Copperworks and Spire View and the acquisition of these community assets has allowed us, in consultation with local people,  to further improve our community to grow and thrive. The Park on the Hill and the Roystonhill Community Hub projects have transformed local open space and created a fantastic state of the art community building delivering a huge variety of much needed services as well as fabulous community spaces with the most amazing views across the City. We are delighted to have been able to work in partnership with Community Land Scotland and The Rebel Bear on this wonderful mural project which recognises the achievements locally in our community and across Glasgow”.

In 2021 next steps for community-led and owned development at Roystonhill include an options investigation for another vacant and derelict site along at Provanhill Street, and regeneration of Royston Road, a historic through-road linking to the City Centre. This mural is part of that regeneration, and there are other exciting plans for the area.

Get in touch with the Community Ownership Hub if you want to know more! 

The Community Ownership Hub supports individuals and groups exploring and implementing community ownership projects. 

Get in touch if you want to know more!