Moray Council set to land Aberlour Community Association with ‘huge financial burden’
A council plan to make a village group pay for the maintenance of a 130-year-old hall could force community facilities like public toilets to close, a volunteer has warned.
Kelly Spark, chairperson of the Aberlour Community Association, said the group may be left with a “huge financial burden” when its 25-year-lease for the Fleming Hall expires next year.
Moray Council, which holds the building in trust, currently funds repairs and maintenance to the historic venue which totalled £7565.81 last year.
However, this responsibility is set to fall to the ACA as of March 31, 2026, under the likely terms of a new lease.
“Along with the increasing cost of gas and electricity, this will put a huge financial burden on ACA's limited funds,” Mrs Spark said.
Along with operating the Fleming Hall as a community venue, the ACA is responsible for the Old Station Tea Room, the Aberlour Visitor Centre and the village's public toilets.
The group also delivers a range of community events throughout the year, along with flower displays and Christmas lights.
Mrs Spark said that the threat of higher bills came while the group were still recovering from the financial impact of “devastating” floods which struck the tearoom, visitor centre and public toilets in 2023.
A Moray Council spokesperson said the lease for the hall had reached its “natural conclusion” and reviewing the terms was “standard practice for all historic lease agreements”.
The council would work with the group to ensure a “smooth transition”, she pledged, and wanted to “help ensure the continued operation of community facilities wherever possible”.
However, the council confirmed if maintenance and repair duties are passed on it would not provide extra cash or resources to cover this cost.
Given her group’s concerns about funding pressure, Mrs Spark said “drastic measures” were needed along with a big increase in the number of ACA volunteers.
“Unless drastic measures are taken, and enough volunteers step forward, there is a serious risk that some or all these community assets will be lost,” she added.
“We desperately need community members to step forward, regardless of how much time or experience you can give, to enable us to prevent the closure or sale of these buildings.”
In recent years, she said the number of volunteers had fallen to a “critical number”, impacting both fundraising and the operation of facilities.
“Over the years ACA has been extremely grateful to the community members who gave up their valuable time to volunteer,” Mrs Spark said.
“Unfortunately, for several reasons, most of these people have moved on.
“The ACA has been reduced to such a critical number, we are now unable to sustain the responsibility of these assets.”
The group is also currently fundraising to refurbish Aberlour’s playpark, and received confirmation of council funding for the project earlier this year.
Mrs Spark encouraged those interested in supporting the group to email aberlourcommunity@gmail.com or by placing a note through the visitor centre door with contact details.
The ACA also posts updates to its Facebook page.
