Official opening of Clydesdale Housing Association's Community Hub in Lanark

Part of a new build project that delivered four flats for social rent and offices for the Housing Association, the CHA Community Hub was constructed in February 2020. However, just a month after completion, the facility was closed as part of the first Covid lockdown.

At the opening last Thursday, Maggie Botham, Housing Association chairwoman, said: “We are delighted to now be up and running, hosting diverse activities with a number of groups, including but not limited to English speaking classes, a ukulele group, a befriending group, the local art club, our own tenants’ and residents’ group and the TSB, which provides weekly outreach banking services following the closure of the local branch.

"Our vision for the Hub was to provide facilities not only for our tenants and local groups, but also for the wider rural community. We hoped that sharing our space with like-minded organisations and those providing vital services would support and sustain a better quality of life in the rural area, and support health and well-being throughout the community.

"We can now see that this is being realised and that the groups who use the Hub add immense value to our local community in the work that they do.

"The hub is the sort of place that will foster and enable further collaboration and partnership working over time.”

The building received the Scottish Property Awards 2021 Architectural Excellence Award (commercial use) – testament to the quality of the design by Gary Pinkerton from Grant Murray Architects.

Mairi said: “It was an honour to help officially open the CHA Community Hub. I have no doubt this will be a fantastic base from which the dedicated team at CHA can continue the hard work they do for their tenants throughout Clydesdale.

"Equally, the building will serve a wider purpose as a community hub. With somewhere to gather and spend time together, people become a community. This is needed now more than ever.”