INCH COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION: Scottish Land Fund (SLF) Stage 1 Project

Inch House Community Asset Transfer Feasibility Study

INVITATION TO QUOTE: Specialist Architectural / Business Advisers

Background

Inch House Community Centre, based at Inch House, is owned by the City of Edinburgh Council and operated by Inch Community Association (ICA), a fully constituted two-tier SCIO (SC049401). Unusually for a community centre, Inch House is also a Category A listed building comprising a historic 16th century Tower House with notable Georgian and Victorian extensions. Inch House has been a council-owned community centre for nearly 40 years and the building fabric has suffered from underinvestment over this period.

Inch House is of great significance to local residents and numerous community groups, given its rich history and heritage, its role as an adult learning centre, and hub for many community, arts, cultural, wellbeing and environmental organisations and activities. Under a current grant from the Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF), ICA is assessing future viable options for much needed refurbishment of Inch House; it has also been investing its own resources in a programme of restoration and improvement of its rooms and internal spaces (many of which are empty) to make these available for external / community users.

Inch House – Community Asset Transfer preparation

As part of a wider project to secure a long-term sustainable future for Inch House, we are considering all options, including the potential acquisition of Inch House for community ownership through the Community Asset Transfer (CAT) process, working with the City of Edinburgh Council and other stakeholders to develop a viable and sustainable long-term community ownership and management solution that safeguards the future of Inch House.

In order to inform this potential long-term solution, ICA is currently preparing to submit an application to the Scottish Land Fund to secure the necessary ‘Stage 1’ funding to assess the feasibility of developing a CAT solution for Inch House and to prepare the ground for this.

Our application to SLF will be submitted on 02 October and we anticipate a response to our application by mid-November. The likely fee value of this work is £28,000 (including VAT) to be carried out between mid-November 2026 and mid-March 2027.

Invitation to Quote – Specialist Advisers

ICA is now seeking to commission specialist architectural and business consultants with the relevant knowledge and expertise to deliver this project on our behalf. Details of the scope of work, project timeframe and the assessment criteria for advisers, are set out in the attached. NOTE proposals and quotations from qualified and experienced advisers are sought for this work by 3pm, Monday 12 October.