Build a new Forest School and Workshop that will provide a hub for woodland restoration activities, environmental education and community development, including employment, training and volunteering.
Estimated Cost
£675,000
1. Activities
Demolish existing wooden 1970s Forest School (FS) buildings, which are no longer fit for purpose and construct a new FS and workshop. The FS will act as a hub for restoration work in Loch Arkaig pine forest. It will provide office accommodation for ACF staff and our Woodland Trust Scotland (WTS) partners. There will be a meeting space with capacity for up to 20 people,catering for ACF, partnerships and the community. There will also be a kitchenette, toilet and shower facilities. The entrance vestibule will be accessible to the public, display information about the overall restoration project and provide seating areas. The workshop will be large enough to host training events for up to 12 people in woodland related skills and crafts and have an outside covered area. Volunteer activities will be based at the workshop, which will have storage areas for tools. A freezer room for venison is also included. The facility will also included an accessible toilet available to passing visitors on the Great Glen Way. Limited parking will be provided for staff and visitors. Active transport, particularly cycling, will be encouraged. The new facilities will be much more energy efficient and will use water from our own borehole and the existing array of solar panels will provide most of the electricity.
2, Importance of Project
Forest restoration and regeneration address both the climate and biodiversity crises. Increases in native woodland and specifically caledonian pinewood and rainforest are key targets for the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy. ACF was established as a community group in 2014 to purchase 1000ha of surplus mixed plantation and ancient Caledonian pine forest from Forest and Land Scotland (FLS), the large scale of the project requiring funding and management support supplied by partners WTS. Following a community consultation and commissioned report (attached), the old FS building and land around Clunes were acquired in 2020 through CATS transfer, together with a further 5.5ha of adjaced oak woodland and derelict community garden. As part of the development a native tree nursery (TN) and deer larder (DL) were built and developed by ACF and have now been operating since 2022 and 2023, respectively. The consultation provided ample evidence of local support for these activities. The old FS facility has provided an operations base for ACF and WTS staff to date.
The Arkaig Pinewood Project has since been awarded Nature30 site status and designated a Landscape Scale Nature Restoration SBS Exemplar Project by NatureScot.
It has become clear that there is no longer sufficient room to house all our existing staff comfortably. The premises are deteriorating, enegry inefficient, and cannot be maintained much longer. In addition. we struggle to host increasing numbers of visitor groups.The existing workshop/shed is small and decaying. At present there is insufficient space to house significant educational and training events, for which there is an increasing demand. ACF envisages that the new facilities will become a hub for rainforest and nature restoration events within Lochaber.
A new business study has been commissioned (2026) to examine the costs and feasibility of building new facilities, and the draft report (attached) underlines the case for proceeding with this project. The new FS will provide local employment, training in woodland related and other rural skills, environmental competency, opportunities for social enterprises and educational placements, including through UHI.
The project meets the following priority criteria within the Lochaber Local Place Plan:
People. ACF encourage engagement with youg people in Lochaber, collaborate with UHI, whose students participate in volunteer activities, and welcome local school groups. We offer employment, training and volunteer opportunities for individuals throughout Lochaber and beyond, enabling retention of local talent. The community is encouraged to participate in woodland-based activities including arts projects, woodland crafts and social events. Volunteers are welcomed into a shared community space where they meet others from a wide range of ages and backgrounds.
Place. We enable and promote community resilience and adaptation to climate change by growing trees, controlling deer numbers, provision of locally-sourced, high quality venison, running courses such as fire awareness training, and providing education opportunities. There will be a maintained public toilet facility. We will run environmental activities and host meetings to promote best practice and share information. The facilities will enable the partnership to operate and manage the restoration of the Arkaig catchment, which will boost biodiversity and provide greater resilience to climate change.
Prosperity. The facilities will enable the production of venison, which is sold in the local area. The project will allow us to employ up to 8 people and provide training and skills development through courses and volunteering in a remote rural area. The project facilitates participation in various partnerships such as Beo Airceig (BA): comprising ACF, WTS, FLS and Achnacarry Estate, and the Lochaber-wide environmental group, Loch Abar Mor, as well as working with third-parties such as Highland Council. ACF provides a link between the local community and these partnerships, as well as offering members an opportunity to engage directly. Facilities will aslo be available for community meetings and events.
3. Outcomes
Increase sustainability of a significant community organisation
Provide a stable base for the Arkaig partnerships
Provide opportunities for expanding volunteering and training
Provide facilities that will allow the employment of up to 8 locally-based staff
Improve the visibility of the project and provide a showcase for the restoration work being done
Allow the wider project to continue to flourish, enabling forest regeneration and bodivesity gains
Promote closer ties between the community and the Arkaig project
Educate the wider public about the Project and the need for ecological restoration
Facilitate new rural businesses within the Spean Bridge area
Provide local employment durung the construction phase
4. Milestones
Community engagement consultation undertaken
Grant funding for project development from SSE Community Fund (£42750)
Architects and associated partners engaged to take the planning up to and including RIBA stage 4 (Kearney Donald partnership)
Draft business plan for rebuild produced
Design of proposed FS and workshop agreed with architect
Site location agreed and surveyed by engineers
Quantity surveyors have provied initial costings
NHLF and other funding sought as part of a wider BA project bid - EOI expected by HLF this summer
.png)
Most voted