New stretch target
The extra funding will go towards the refurbishment of the building including fitting a wet room, decorating and furnishing.
Helping the Sandness community bring the Drs Hut back to life with a refurb and new identity
by Sandness Community Development Group in Shetland, Shetland Islands, United Kingdom
The extra funding will go towards the refurbishment of the building including fitting a wet room, decorating and furnishing.
Help us give the Dr's Hut a New Lease of Life and bring benefit to the Sandness Community
This is a fundraiser created by the Sandness Community Development Group to support the Sandness Dr's Consulting Rooms Trustees create a new future for this special community building.
A Bit of History
The Doctor’s Consulting Rooms (known locally as the Dr's Hut) was gifted to the community in the early 1900s to be used by visiting GPs for local surgeries. In 1986, after much negotiation and fundraising a new building was built next to the community hall to replace the original corrugated metal building opposite the Norby junction.
The Dr’s Consulting Room Trustees have looked after the building on behalf of the community for many years, renting it to NHS Shetland for use by Walls Health Centre. In recent years local needs and healthcare practice have changed with the building falling out of use in 2018. The Health Board continued to pay rent until the end of 2019 and still cover utility bills at the moment. However, in June this year, Trustees received written notice confirming the Doctor’s Consulting Rooms are no longer required for use by the local GP and NHS Shetland will cease responsibility for the utility bills as of 31st December 2021.
New Lease of Life
The building is in good repair and we don't want it to fall into ruin. It is an asset which belongs to the whole community, but it needs some way of generating income to cover its utility costs and maintenance in the future.
Pre-lockdown the Sandness community discussed various options for ownership, community use and funding. Recently the Sandness Hall have committed to taking over the ownership of the building with a view to refurbishing the property and using it for a short stay Airbnb accommodation. The building will be available for use by the Sandness community and visitors to Shetland. It is hoped the new lease of life will generate income to cover costs of the building’s upkeep, add to community funds, create a viable community building and local part-time employment.
There is a long way to go to make the building usable and much work to be done. We desperately need funds to make this a reality. We need to cover legal costs of transfer of ownership from the Dr's Consulting Rooms Trust to the Sandness Public Hall; for planning permissions for change of use and for the refurbishment.
It will be a great help even if you can only donate a little towards the total needed.
We hope you will join us in giving this community asset a new lease of life. Your support for our community is really important and is very much appreciated.
Thank you from the Trustees of the Dr's Consulting Rooms & the Sandness Community Development Group