COUNTER plans for the March Street Mills site in Peebles have won favour with the Scottish government.

Peebles Community Trust led the fight against housing proposals for the land by owners Moorbrook Textiles.

The application for 69 houses was rejected by Scottish Borders Council last year and also by the government earlier this year following an appeal.

The community group's own vision for the site, which includes “genuinely affordable” homes as well as extra care housing for the elderly and a protection guarantee for the on-site allotments, was tabled with Holyrood officials.

The community buy-out bid has now been accepted, giving Peebles Community Trust, what its members describe as, “a seat at the table” in discussions over the future of the site.

Officials from the Trust will now work with partners to develop plans for the former mill site and they hope to discuss the way ahead with the owners.

Chairman of the PCT, Lawrie Hayworth welcomed the news adding: “The owner cannot sell or transfer the land and should they have an offer from a developer, it gives an eight month window for the community to raise funds, even if it’s from various pots, to come back with a counter offer.

“It really means that the community, as represented by the Community Trust, has a seat at the table in what happens at March Street Mills going forwards.

“I hope that the owner would like to have a discussion and that the community right to buy is never exercised, and that we can find a way of being part of the solution for them rather than just being seen as a bit of headache.

“They do still have about another 21 days that they could launch an appeal through the courts but, again, it could only be on matters under the Act and certainly the decision that we received was very detailed about how we comply with the terms of that Act."

Directors and members of Peebles Community Trust gathered signatures from more than 10 percent of Peebles residents to qualify for submitting a Community Right to Buy to the government.

A similar approach in Tweedsmuir led to a community group stopping the historic Crook Inn being turned into housing, and taking over ownership.

A Scottish Government spokeswoman explained why the Peebles Community Trust's application was approved.

They said: “Ministers consider the development of the land, and ongoing maintenance of it, could lead to an increase in social cohesion by giving new and existing people an opportunity to live and work in Peebles.

“This proposal has the potential to help reduce the amount of the community’s youth that are not in education, employment or training, which could assist in retaining money in the local economy.

"The preservation of the allotments and the establishment of open gardens and greenspaces could secure the existing health and environmental benefits to the land and the community.

“Peebles Community Trust has recognised that there is a need within the community for an improvement in the range and capacity of care services and facilities in the town to cater for the need of the slightly raised proportion of older cadres within the population and ministers can see how the provision of a care facility has the potential to benefit those in the community with health issues that require 24/7residential care.”