Remote rural areas
Good practice case study
Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust, Scotland, UK
The Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust is a unique partnership between the residents of Eigg, the Highland Council and the Scottish Wildlife Trust. The Trust was created in 1996 to purchase and manage the Isle of Eigg for the benefit of the community, is a company limited by guarantee, and a registered Scottish charity.
After gaining control of the island, the Trust was able to establish a variety of community ventures providing or supporting local services. These include:
- Eigg Trading Limited which owns and manages a community facility.
- Eigg Tearoom Limited runs the island tearoom, which is open daily from April to October.
- Eigg Construction Limited is the newest of the three subsidiaries, and was set up to undertake renovation works on the Trust’s properties.
The local residents participate in decision-making of the Trust directly via regular meetings of the Residents Association. Furthermore, as four of the nine Trustees are directly elected residents themselves, the community has a high level of confidence in the actions of the Trust.
Key lessons:
- If land ownership is highly concentrated it can act as a barrier to entrepreneurial activity and local development.
- Community ownership of local assets can help sustain vital public services and provide communities with an independent income to invest in local infrastructure or entrepreneurial activity.
Case study
Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust [pdf, en, 20kb]
