#SAVETHEPAV

Urban Croft Community Building & Toilets 

Help us raise match funding to refurbish the pavilion, have access to toilets and keep our activities at Leith Community Croft running (MineCroft, Croft Carbon College and Croft Food Hub).   

In short

Leith Community Crops in Pots is a grassroots organisation based in a densely populated and deprived urban area. We aim to advance environmental protection and foster well-being by creating access to nature and good food and providing environmental education to kids and adults. 

Our croft houses a dilapidated old pavilion building – we currently store tools and toilets there, but the leaking roof and general disrepair make it near impossible to use. At the same time, our organisation needs a stable home. We want to raise match-funding to renovate the building. The present campaign will kickstart this by providing essential initial refurbishment to the roof, the main space and the toilets.  

When we realise the full vision of the repair, the space will provide a community café, two meeting rooms for community members, a workshop space, an office and an outbuilding. This building will be an essential point to nurture encounters, mutual support and learning across the diverse community of Leith. This will increase the communities’ resilience and help us continue our work to foster well-being, nature connection and biodiversity. 

In some detail

Who we are

Leith Community Crops in Pots is an award-winning grassroots organisation founded in 2013 based in a densely populated area with several zones of high deprivation. Our organisation’s purposes are to advance environmental protection by encouraging and supporting people of Leith towards sustainable lifestyles, to grow fruit and vegetables in urban spaces so they reduce their carbon footprint, to grow flowers for pollination and to improve biodiversity.  
We want to provide recreational activities to the people of Leith with the object of improving diets, reconnecting with nature, exchanging knowledge and goods (plants, food, recipes and growing know-how), and using Non-Violent Communication (NVC) to improve community cohesion and mental wellbeing, contributing to a better way of life for future generations.  

What we want to do

The money raised with this campaign will cover some initial alterations to the dilapidated building situated on our croft and give us access to toilets! This is the start towards the full project which involves the complete renovation and extension of the existing pavilion and convert it into a modern community building that will comprise:   
 
  • A central community cafe associated with prep areas (small kitchen and toilets),  
  • 2 community rooms for meetings, learning and other initiatives, the second community room will have a glass fronted extension linked to the outdoor space (croft),  
  • A learning and training space that opens to our 2-acre garden allowing learning about growing, biodiversity and green skills,  
  • two small offices for the organisation and  
  • A small outbuilding for garden activity and storage. 
If successful, this Crowdfunder will: 
  • Save the croft pavilion – Initial refurbishment to the existing building (roofing repairs, reuse of mains space, etc) 
  • Provide access to clean and hygienic toilets 
 
We anticipate that the combined benefits of refurbishing the pavilion will help reverse the cycle of deprivation in the area. 

What benefits this will bring

The internal alterations to the existing building will be the first step to saving the dilapidated pavilion. It will make the building safe to use by repairing the roof, mains space and the refurbishment of toilets which are desperately needed by our community who visit our croft on a daily basis.  
 
This work will be the initial stage to what in future will become a transformed building for community engagement and a dynamic place promoting healthy, inclusive and environmentally sustainable food production and consumption in Leith.  
 
By delivering our vision for the Croft we hope to achieve the following objectives:  
  • Create a resilient community by bringing together residents of Leith from a variety of backgrounds and break down barriers;  
  • Increase the skills base amongst people involved by providing access to/knowledge of, environmental issues, healthy food, food growing and composting;  
  • Address childhood mental and physical health problems; 
  • Increase biodiversity 

In even more detail

How this project will help the environment

The Urban Croft Community Building will be the home to our organisation, programmes and projects. The environment is at the heart and soul of everything that we do. This Hub is about creating a space that promotes a way of life tuned to the local environment and celebrates goods produced and food grown in Leith. We believe that local food systems actively benefit the environment as they revitalise the diversity of the land. Providing a home to our projects will strengthen our operations and increase our positive impact on the environment and local economy. People will breathe better air, eat better food, use less energy, reconnect with their community, build relationships and trust.   

How this project will increase volunteering, jobs & education

The Urban Croft Community Building will create an environment that invites people to visit the croft, volunteer, feel part of the food system, learn green skills, contribute to their local economy and do their bit for the environment. It’s the place for people who want to be part of a sustainable world and be part of the local food system, whether by discussing the subject, learning how to grow their own food by helping on the market garden, participating with a stall at market on the croft or working in the Hingabootery café. The croft already hosts more than 150 volunteers, several paid employees and many paid freelances, and the extension of our operations through the building will enable us to continue or even expand these opportunities. 

How this project will boost the economy

One of our most recent successful projects is The Market on the Croft, which runs every Sunday and focuses on supporting local businesses. It shortens the distance between producers and consumers and nurtures local jobs. By helping local businesses connect with the local market we will generate wealth in a more equitable and sustainable way.   
Some of the 21 traders who we are currently trialing the Market on the Croft have said that this opportunity has come in a time when they needed it the most, as they are fighting for survival and struggling to keep staff employed. There is increasing demand for use of our croft. Third sector organisations have also expressed their interest in using the croft to run their activities as deemed more covid safe.   
Having our pavilion refurbished will not only bring opportunities to our most immediate community but to a wide range of organisations and businesses that want to connect with the Leith community. 

How this project will promote activity and leisure

This project will be our community hub for sustainability and social gathering, located within Leith Community Croft. Its’ access to two acres outdoor space provides space for us to run MineCroft Activities (Environmental and Outdoor Skills Education for Children), Croft Carbon College outdoor and indoor workshops (upcycling, willow weaving, seed saving, plant ID, bike repair, etc), Market Garden Activities (food growing activities and workshops). There is enough space to connect while also maintaining social distance. It has helped many Leithers thrive in the presence of crisis.