Appeal against decision to reject charity's plans to transform old church hall

A reporter has been appointed to determine an appeal against Renfrewshire Council’s decision to reject a charity’s bid to take on the running of an old church hall in Paisley.

Ferguslie Community Development Trust (FCDT) is eager to transform the former St Ninian’s Church Hall in Blackstoun Road into a thriving hub but has been denied twice.

Its request for a long-term lease of the facility, which has lain vacant in recent years, was turned down at the community asset transfer (CAT) review appeals panel in May.

The move essentially confirmed the decision of the CAT sub-committee in January and left the trust’s plans for the site hanging in the balance.

However, FCDT has challenged the ruling to ministers and the Scottish Government has allocated the case to Katrina Rice for consideration.

The appeal focuses on four key areas including the reasoning for refusal of its application; a perceived ‘lack of consideration’ of the current alternative use for the asset; procedural issues in the review process; and concerns about discussions at the relevant meetings.

In its statement, it said: “It is the position of FCDT that our application was not considered in full detail and that the relevant authority failed to uphold the community empowerment that is encouraged by the Community Empowerment Act.”

FCDT wanted to lease the asset for £1 per annum over a 30-year period. Its vision was to transform the hall into a multi-purpose venue that supports all generations and complements existing community facilities.

Activities it felt could be hosted at the building included children’s birthday parties and soft play; weddings, funerals and community celebrations; film screenings and stage performances; youth programmes, wellbeing groups and training workshops; and arts and heritage events celebrating Ferguslie’s culture.

Councillor Lisa-Marie Hughes, who chaired the recent CAT review appeals panel, acknowledged the application had “merit” but said there were a “couple of fundamentals” that posed concerns.

The SNP representative for Renfrew North and Braehead added at the meeting: “I think they’re aiming to do very good things with the business plan but if you look at the page where it’s actually got the finances for the business plan, it refers to things like the café and soft play and things, but if you look at some of the opening statements, there are references to some of these things might happen and some of them might not.

“I think if you are indicating them as financial outcomes, ideally you want to definitely be doing them.

“I appreciate that they might want a bit of flexibility around what they’re doing, of course you would adapt your business planning as you go, but it feels to me like maybe there is a wee bit more work to do there.”

At the time, John McIntyre, chair of the trust, said: “My real concern is that Ferguslie Park loses its last community asset, that is my real concern.

“My heart would be absolutely broken for the Ferguslie Park community if they lose yet another community centre.”

The planning and environmental appeals division has set a target date of Wednesday, September 9, for the case.