Stoer School

Stoer School In early August Highland Council (HC) put Stoer School for sale on the open market. This was despite telling the community in an open meeting about the planned closure of Stoer School in June 2019 that ‘we would ask all the other departments in the council whether they would have a use for the building. The next phase would be the opportunity for a community asset transfer, and a sale on the open market would come after that’.

On 25th August 2021 Assynt Development Trust wrote to the Council stating that it “is not in principle against Stoer School being sold, if this proves to be the best course of action, but rather with the hasty way this process is being conducted and the lack of proper consultation with the community of Assynt”.

Within days of the letter being sent John McHardy HC’s Head of Housing and Development contacted the Trust to say that the school would be taken off the market. Subsequently the Trust held a meeting with John McHardy and Ronnie Macrae of the Communities Housing Trust (CHT) where it was agreed that HC, CHT and ADT would work to produce a tender brief that would be sent to architects asking them to quote for the work in assessing the building and its possible conversion into other uses including affordable housing. Prior to an architect being appointed the Trust feels that it would be good if ideas for the future of the building could be put forward. The architects opinion will then give the community and HC more information on what is feasible with the building and this will possibly inform future business plans.

When that information is available the community will need to discuss and consider its implications. The board of Assynt Development Trust feel that the Trust itself has very limited capacity (possibly none) to take on another project so if the community feels that a community solution is the best way forward then it will need capable individuals to take the project on.

Please share your ideas with us so we can pass these onto the architect considering Stoer School. You can contact the Trust by email on willie.assyntdevelopmenttrust@gmail.com

21st September 2021