Volunteers sought to continue development of Ellon’s McDonald Park

An appeal has been made for community volunteers to seek out future funding opportunities for the continued development of McDonald Park in Ellon.

Donated to the local authority back in the 1920s, the McDonald Public Park endowment was established to support park maintenance and provide recreational facilities to enhance community wellbeing.

The park is overseen by the McDonald Park Endowment Trust – made up of local councillors – which recently gave consideration to de-registering from the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR). 

As Aberdeenshire Council falls under the remit of Audit Scotland, the local authority is bound by its auditing processes which cost in the region of £2,000 per year – far exceeding the most recently reported balance of £169.  

Audit Scotland has expressed concern that given the fund is no longer fulfilling its charitable aims, the current set up is not cost-effective, with trustees now being asked to consider deregistering from OSCR to remove this financial burden.

While this would not prohibit the trust from seeking funds, external funding streams would be limited to those which did not require a charitable status.

Aberdeenshire Council has developed a management plan for the park led by Landscape Services, with significant improvements having been made across the park in recent years. Any income generated from external funding opportunities identified by volunteers would support the delivery of a management plan.

Ellon councillor Isobel Davidson, who chairs the Endowment Trust, said: “Sadly, there is no capacity within the council to proactively identify and pursue potential funding opportunities on behalf of the trustees. However, local groups who attended our meeting suggested that before any decision is made around de-registering that we explore the option of local volunteers assisting the trust in investigating external funding sources. We would also welcome input from volunteers in terms of the actual management of the park, potentially reforming the Friends Group to host activities and events.”

A special meeting of McDonald Park Endowment Trust will be held on Monday, April 21 to consider any offers of local support and future options.

Any volunteers who wish to get involved should email the Formartine Area Office at formartineareaoffice@aberdeenshire.gov.uk