14/09/2026
We’ve had so much interest and support from people who are frustrated that they can’t join as members right now, so we wanted to explain what’s behind this funny looking purple map.
Trust us, we know it’s silly. Lots of our long-standing volunteers don’t even live in this area!
Community ownership funding and legislation in Scotland was originally designed with rural communities in mind. People across rural Scotland, particularly in the Highlands and Islands, campaigned for years to establish ways of collectively owning and managing land to benefit the people who actually lived and worked there.
We’re really grateful for this and inspiried by the stories of people power from places like the Isle of Eigg and Knoydart.
However, rural communities are much smaller than urban ones, sometimes just a few hundred people. So the guidance around defining a “community” says it should be an area with less than 4000 people.
That makes sense for a small village or an island, but trying to draw an area in Leith with less than 4000 people in it leaves us with the map you’ve already seen.
We know it looks daft. Leith is our community, and Leith stretches well beyond the handful of streets that we’re recruiting from. Somebody pointed out that our current “community area” is even smaller than the former parish area for the church itself!
The good news is that it doesn’t always have to be this way...if we’re successful with the funding, we can choose to open up the area in future.
BUT!
We won’t get the funding unless we can boost our members in the current community area by 22nd September.
So we need you to spread the word. Tell your workmates, neighbours, friends, families. If you’re in a club, tell your clubmates. Allotment pals, five-a-side pals, park pals, running pals, pub pals, cafe pals!
Tell anyone who might be interested and you’ll be helping to safeguard this beautiful community space for another 145 years.
members.leithstandrewstrust.org/join
