£60,000 for project at walled garden in Kirkcaldy park

The cash is going to not-for-profit company, Rural Skills Scotland, to help its bid for almost £500,000 of funding from the Vacant and Derelict Land of Fund (VDLF).

It is for an investment project at the site which would have benefits for all its users. If successful, it would lead to a significant improvement on the entry to the site which sits in close proximity to Dysart.

The garden runs to 2.5 hectares with circa 90% currently leased by Fife Council to Kirkcaldy Community Gardens & Allotments (KCGA) group run by its members on a voluntary basis.

They manage the whole of the growing area within the main walled garden and have sub-let an area to Greener Kirkcaldy which has established the Ravenscraig Community Training Garden including a community orchard with over 100 fruit trees.

The remainder of the site has recently been leased to RSS and this funding will let it enhance and grow delivery of its employability and national apprenticeship programmes which mainly target those from places of most identified need.

The funding was agreed by Kirkcaldy area committee this week.

In 2022, Kirkcaldy councillors sank £14,000 into the former house in the walled garden at Ravenscraig Park which is now an office and training base for RSS which carried out major renovations to the long abandoned building, and the money from the area committee helped to improve its security.