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Social Land Ownership Case Studies
Compiled and Edited by Graham Boyd and David Reid, April 1999
With the whole question of community land ownership now central to plans for land reform in Scotland, it is welcome and timely to be reminded that the idea of social land ownership is nothing new. As Graham Boyd argues in his historical review, To Restore the Land to the People and the People to the Land, "The subject of community and voluntary organisation ownership of land in the highlands and Islands has an old and varied history."
This review, first published in the spring 1998 issue of the Scottish Journal of Community Work and Development, forms the opening chapter in this impressive and fascinating set of case studies that looks at eight examples of social landholding across the Highlands and Islands. These case studies unfold the attempts by organisations to develop or manage land in ways, which address environmental, social, economic and governance objectives. The accounts have been written by people who have been closely involved in the initiatives and who have been prepared to share their experiences in the hope that it will inspire others to own and manage land in a co-operative way.
The chapters include:
 | An Introduction and Overview – David Reid |
| Historical Review: To Restore the Land to the People and the People to the Land – Graham Boyd |
| Business Planning: The Assynt Experience – John MacKenzie |
| Sconser Estate: A Partnership between a Crofting Community and the John Muir Trust – Angus McHattie |
| Dalnavert Community Co-operative Limited – Euan MacAlpine |
| Earthshare: Moray’s First Community Supported Agricultural Scheme – Christopher Rayment and Stewart Noble |
| Highland Renewal: A Highland Land Regeneration Project – Carol Riddell |
| Whitebridge Forest-Farms: An Innovative Farm-Forestry Proposal in the Highlands – Bernard Planterose |
| Nature Reserves and Local People: Two Case Studies from Badenoch and Strathspey – Stewart Taylor, Les Street and Pete Mayhew |
The collection is drawn together by an Introduction and Overview by David Reid that provides a detailed and insightful comparison and analysis of the lessons and differences between cases. In addition the collection has a Foreword by the former Scottish Office Minister Lord Sewel. All the case studies are written to a uniformly high standard (assisted by a rigorous process of peer review and good editing) and provide valuable insights to the range of experiences gained by a wide variety of social land groups in very different circumstances in the Highlands of Scotland. This collection of case studies is soon to be followed by a second volume, which is due for publication in June 2000.
Social Land Ownership: Eight Case Studies from the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, Volume One
Compiled and Edited by Graham Boyd and David Reid, 68 pages, April 1999
Not-for-Profit Landowners Project Group and Scottish Community Education Council
ISBN 0 947919 45 7 Price £9.95
Copies available from:
Scottish Community Learning, Roseberry House, 9 Haymarket Terrace, Edinburgh EH12 5EZ (Tel: 0131 313 2488 or Fax: 0131 313 6800)
The case studies are also available on the Internet at:
www.caledonia.org.uk/socialland