Share offer boosts Glenuig Inn community buyout bid
A campaign to secure community ownership of the Glenuig Inn has opened a share offer allowing investors the opportunity to buy a stake in the property.
Since March 10 residents and non-residents have been able to apply for shares in the 18 th -century inn, which oversees the Sound of Arisaig, with locals asked to invest a minimum of £25 in Type A shares and those from further afield required to put in at least £2,000 for Type B shares.
Rules of the share offer state that at least 51 per cent of total shareholders must own the locals’ Type A shares, and all shareholders will receive equal voting rights regardless of investment size. The offer closes on April 21.
The share offer is one of several ways that community benefit society Glenuig Community Inn Limited (GCI) is seeking to raise £700,000 to meet the £600,000 purchase price of the inn as well as cover initial working capital.
GCI, which already took on the lease of the inn from owner Rona Yard at the end of February, is hoping it will raise £200,000 from the shares, which will sit alongside an on-going Crowdfunder campaign, donations, and
application for a Scottish Land Fund (SLF) grant, expected to be concluded in June.
The group has also already secured support from the Plunkett Foundation, Community Regeneration Fund, and Democratic Finance Scotland, raising hopes that the buyout of the inn could be completed in 2025.
Should the buyout be successful, Glenuig Inn will join the village’s hall, shop, pier, and broadband under the community ownership umbrella.
Helen MacRae, Convenor of GCI, said such a community ownership model was vital in ensuring facilities in the rural area continued to serve locals.
“Obviously we do need to make money, but our purpose is to benefit the community,” Ms MacRae said of the potential buyout, which will prioritise local improvements with any dividends.
“The inn has become the heart of the community, and we want that to continue. We don’t want somebody else to come in and turn it into housing, or something that people don’t want in the village, which there is a history of happening across the West Highlands - people arriving with a particular vision and it is just for tourists,” Ms MacRae added, noting that having the inn in the stable of community owned facilities increased opportunities for joint activities.
Although Glenuig has a strong record of community ownership, with the hall soon to enter its fourth year under the model, the challenges of running an inn has seen the community seek advice from The Old Forge in Knoydart, which became community owned in 2022.
Speakers from Community Enterprise and Community Shares Scotland have also addressed residents on how the ownership model works, and a drop-in session on the share offer was held on March 15.
Ms Yard, who took over the Glenuig Inn in 2021, has noted she favours a community buyout of the property and described her years running the inn as “a privilege”.
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