Work starts on breathing new life into historic Fife building

The former flax mill has lain empty with holes in its roof, boarded up windows, disused livestock stalls and old farm machinery lying in its courtyard for more than 30 years.

Now, the category B-listed redbrick property has been made secure, watertight and weatherproof by a team of experts employed by Fife Employment Access Trust (FEAT) and is set to be developed into a custom-built multi-million-pound visitor centre and community hub.

Despite the lockdown, a team of contractors, who had been on and off furlough for most of the year, managed to work remotely and keep to a deadline to do the difficult work of making the run down flax mill watertight and safe for design teams to enter.

A design has now been finalised and 3D images revealed thanks to funding from National Lottery Heritage Fund, Architectural Heritage Fund and Fife Council.

“This is a fantastic project and it’s great to be supporting FEAT and Fife Council with such an important project,” said Lorraine Anderson of Scottish Heritage Fund.

Since the team of consultants were taken on by FEAT last year they began to design and fundraise for a multi-million-pound visitor centre, community hub and place of wellbeing.

The work did not go unnoticed by the nearby communities of Levenmouth and Lundin Links, who pulled from their pockets £10 and £20 notes and raised more than £22,700 towards this exciting community project.

“This is truly a story of the phoenix rising from the ashes,” said Silverburn Flax Mill project director, Brian Robertson.

However, there is a long way yet to go: £2.5 million is still needed to unlock more than £7.5 million in grants from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Fife Council and others.

“We are on track to deliver great things here at Silverburn but we need help to make it happen,” said FEAT CEO Duncan Mitchell.

“This place can be even more amazing we just need to keep the fundraising up.”

If you would like to make a donation to the flax mill project , visit – www.bit.ly/flax – or text FLAX to 70085 to donate £5.