Calum Currie is the chairman of Portpatrick Harbour Community Benefit Society, the first community benefit society in Scotland. The society was formed in 2015 so that villagers could sell shares in their harbour to save it from private owners that had left it to rot.
See the Guardian for more on Portpatrick’s community share sale.
How Scottish villagers bought their harbour – and saved their future | Hazel Sheffield https://t.co/solEIoFEYa
— Society Guardian (@SocietyGuardian) September 28, 2016
What is your name?
My name is Calum Curie, I’m the chair of the Portpatrick Harbour Community Benefit Society. For work I’m an offshore oil technician. The Portpatrick Harbour Community Benefit Society came together to secure into local ownership the harbour of Portpatrick and help sustain the local economy.
Portpatrick: how community shares saved a village from Hazel Sheffield on Vimeo.
When was the moment you decided to do this?
The society was launched after a public meeting, when the community decided to save the harbour into local community ownership in order to secure its future. That was in 2015.
Why did you get involved?
I’m born and bred in Portpatrick and I’ve always had an affiliation with the sea, being a lifeboatman and a fisherman. Securing the harbour for the community was a natural progression for me.
How do you fit it in with you work?
I’m fortunate that my work schedule is two weeks in Norway and four at home so that gives ample time to look after the harbour.
What’s been your proudest moment?
My proudest moment would be seeing the community of Portpatrick turning up in their masses at a public meeting and really showing their support and really getting involved.
If the harbour is busier, the village is busier. The restaurants, guest houses, pubs, shops, they all become busier. That means that the local economy becomes healthier, when you’re sitting down to your dinner it’s all connected.
That was Jan 7, 2015, at an extraordinary general meeting when the community discovered for the first time the background to the harbour and the meaning that it had for the community gong forward. That’s why I got involved.
And the hardest?
I don’t see any hard moments. As my old boss used to say, bring me solutions not problems. That’s the way it is.
What drives you when things get hard?
Willpower. I always liked to try and find solutions. That’s the type of person I am. I go find and problem and try and find the right solution. I was brought up to not seek the answer but to find the right question.
What’s the next step for the society?
We’re starting to go into regeneration phase for the harbour. We’re looking to building toilet facilities, expand the business side of the harbour. We’ll hopefully be employing soon.
If the harbour is busier, the village is busier. The restaurants, guest houses, pubs, shops, they all become busier. That means that the local economy becomes healthier, when you’re sitting down to your dinner it’s all connected.
How did you vote in the EU referendum and why?
I voted to come out of the EU. I voted to come out because I believe I’m old enough to remember a Britain before Europe. I don’t see why we can’t be in touch with Europe financially but hold our own identity.
I see it like the referendum with Scotland and the UK, I voted to stay in the UK because I feel first and foremost I am Scottish but that doesn’t distract from the fact that I’m British. We’re one island. Our infrastructure and our economy is the same.
But our infrastructure and our economy are not the same as Europe’s. That’s my point.
How do you think the outcome will affect what you do?
I can see it might affect grant funding but at the same time I feel confident that the harbour is in a strong position where if we follow our business plan we shouldn’t need to rely on grant funding. The idea with this project is that it is self-sustaining and it can stand up on its own back legs.
What does community mean to you?
Community? Diversity. One thing we found here with the share offer is that our community is diverse. We have people from all over the world who have shown quite clearly that they want to be part of this community and they are part of it. They support it, they become involved with it, they follow it and subsequently in this digital era where you can reach people from across the world, they are part of it.
What would you say to people who want to get involved?
If anyone wants to get involved in running something, it’s an admirable thing to do, but you have to ask yourself if you are ready for the commitment.
And then you’ve really got to get professional help and support from third sector. Most importantly, be transparent, be open and be involved.
