Community Right to Buy – Scotland’s Unique Rights for Communities

This is a legal right for communities that want to buy land and buildings in Scotland. It was first introduced in the 2003 Land Reform (Scotland) Act. Its introduction changed the way communities’ rights were viewed in Scotland—for the first time, communities had rights over land. The legislation reflected the fact that property rights were not absolute, particularly where they have a detrimental impact on communities and human rights, which in legal terms is framed as the ‘public interest.’

The first rights to be introduced were the pre-emptive Community Right to Buy (Part 2 of the Land Reform Act 2003) and the Crofting Community Right to Buy (Part 3 of the Land Reform Act 2024). Part 2 is a pre-emptive right, meaning that it effectively gives communities the first right of refusal over land and holds a sale for six months for the community to raise funds. The Right can be used on almost all land and buildings, although it has to be done in the public interest and for the furtherance of the sustainable development of the community. It has been used to purchase 24 assets since 2003.

Since then, two further rights have been introduced, which are effectively compulsory rights that force the sale of land and buildings if they are not being used in the public interest. Community Right to Buy is complex, and there are questions about whether it is fit for purpose in the fast-moving land market of the 2020s. In 2024, the Scottish Government started a review of the Rights. Community Land Scotland is advocating for the rights to be simpler and stronger.

Scale and Range

The first buyout to complete was the transfer of the town of Stornoway and surrounding land in 1923. Over the past 30 years, community landownership has become mainstream in Scotland, with 500+ communities owning over 800 assets (land or buildings) between them. The number of assets in community ownership is measured as part of the Scottish Government’s National Performance Framework and is supported through the Scottish Land Fund and a suite of rights, including Community Right to Buy.

According to the latest Government figures, communities owned 208,597 hectares of land at the end of 2023—around the same size as Leicestershire. The Western Isles (Na h-Eileanan Siar) leads the way, with three-quarters of people living on community-owned land.

Anywhere, Any Asset, Anyone

Communities in Scotland own a huge range of assets, including islands, estates, forests, harbours, former MoD bases, housing, renewable energy projects, nature reserves, pubs, shops, industrial estates, and community gardens, among many others. Community landowners operate as businesses and as drivers of economic, social, and environmental change.

The Scottish model is highly democratic. Community landowners are geographically based (in islands, towns, villages, and suburbs) and have open membership to anyone living in their community.

The movement started in the rural Highlands and Islands and has since spread to the rest of Scotland, including towns and cities. In rural areas, community ownership has been a powerful tool to reverse depopulation, while in urban areas, it is most often used to secure greenspace and community space. Many communities own multiple assets. The first asset to be purchased will normally generate an income, acting as a strong foundation for future development.

Land Reform in Scotland

Scotland has one of the most concentrated landownership patterns in the world, with 421 people owning half of privately owned rural land. When the Scottish Parliament was established in 1999, one of its main priorities was to begin a programme of land reform. Seven hundred years of feudalism ended in Scotland in 2004, following the Abolition of Feudal Tenure (Scotland) Act 2000.

In 2003, the first Land Reform Act established two Community Rights to Buy and introduced the Right to Roam. In 2016, a second Land Reform Act was passed, and a third is currently working its way through Parliament.

Community ownership has cross-party support. The original Community Right to Buy was brought in during a Labour-Liberal Coalition and was then supported by the SNP and, more recently, through the SNP-Green power-sharing agreement. In 2017, the Scottish Land Commission was created as a non-departmental body to drive forward land reform.

Support for Community Ownership

Communities seeking to buy land and buildings have long been supported by the Scottish Land Fund, which is now funded by the Scottish Government.

“Ownership or control of land and buildings—both urban and rural—is a powerful tool for communities to drive change and achieve their goals. It can help to develop the local economy, provide activities and services, and boost community identity. We want to increase community ownership as an important way of delivering our vision for Scotland and our three central missions of equality, opportunity, and community.”
—Mairi Gougeon MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands

There are now four main routes to community ownership in Scotland:

* Negotiated purchase from private owners – This is the most common route to ownership and has been used to buy a huge range of land and buildings.

* Community Right to Buy – The legislative right for communities to buy assets.

* Community Asset Transfer – Introduced in the Community Empowerment Act (Scotland) 2015, this route allows communities to buy land or buildings from public bodies such as local authorities, Forestry and Land Scotland, and others. It gives communities the right to ask to buy or lease assets.

* Ownerless Property Transfer Scheme – A non-legislative scheme managed by the King’s and Lord Treasurer’s Remembrancer (the Crown’s representative in Scotland), which allows communities to take ownership of ownerless land in certain circumstances.

Watch our ‘Introduction to Community Right to Buy’ video here: