The Board and Executive team of Sight Scotland Veterans have recently taken the very difficult decision to sell land on our Linburn estate to safeguard the future of the charity and ensure we are able to provide services to visually impaired veterans for many years to come.
Sight Scotland Veterans exists to provide services to all veterans with sight loss across Scotland. We do this through our two centres in Linburn and Paisley as well as community based services across Scotland. Based on current budget and expenditures, it is expected that the charity will run out of funds by 2030/31. We are therefore urgently addressing our financial situation to ensure the long-term financial sustainability of the charity. This includes carefully reviewing our resources and making difficult decisions where necessary to preserve the essential services we provide, including safeguarding the Linburn Centre service for veterans with sight loss. We're looking at ways to ensure future viability by reducing operating costs and making best use of resources to continue our journey towards financial sustainability.
As part of our financial sustainability approach, we recently announced our intention to sell land near our Linburn Centre to a housing developer. Much of this land was identified for potential development in the West Lothian Development Plan many years ago. Although selling the land would secure the financial future of the charity, it would unfortunately mean that the existing housing on the site would need to be demolished. This would impact a total of 13 residential properties on the site, including seven veteran tenants with vision impairment and six private tenants, as well as three non-housing tenants (a military museum, a farmer, and a walled garden project). The housing was opened to private tenants due to a lack of demand from veterans with sight loss for this type of accommodation. There are seven vacant residential properties which were not filled due to their poor state of repair, which would have required significant investment that we simply could not afford. Our primary mission is to support veterans with sight loss living across Scotland.
We recognise that this decision will unfortunately impact current estate tenants, including veterans with vision impairment, and have extended the notice period to a full year. We wish to make it clear that no one faces immediate eviction. The charity is committed to working closely with each tenant to help them find suitable alternative accommodation and minimise disruption by offering personalised support through our Financial Wellbeing service. We informed the tenants of our long-term intentions at this stage; in order to start a conversation with each tenant to understand their specific needs so we can support them effectively.
We are taking steps now to secure our future. Selling land adjacent to the Linburn Centre would generate vital funds that we can strategically reinvest, ensuring we can continue to support veterans with sight loss for many years to come.
Our work is funded mainly by reserves and investments. Rising costs and continued high demand for our services mean that, without action, these funds will be exhausted by 2030–31.
A decision to progress with exploring a potential sale was made at Sight Scotland Veteran’s board meeting in May 2025. We began informing tenants and staff at the end of that month.
We are currently exploring potential sale options, which are commercially sensitive at this stage. As these options are still under consideration, we do not yet know exactly how much money the sale will raise.
The land currently includes 20 residential properties, a military museum, a walled garden, a playing field and farmland. Seven of the houses are already vacant. We are committed to supporting any residents affected throughout this process.
We are giving tailored support to the current residents of the residential properties affected, helping them find new housing and offering extra help through our Financial Wellbeing service.
No. The Linburn Centre – including its activity hall, garden and bowling green – will not be affected. Our commitment to delivering life-changing support to veterans remains unchanged.
Acting now allows us to plan responsibly and protect our long-term future, so we can continue to deliver vital support well beyond 2031.
In 2023–24, we supported 1,620 veterans, including 350 new veterans. Demand for our services remains high, which is why we are making these important decisions now.
Contact Us
If you want to get in touch with our team, please email us at press@sightscotland.org.uk and we will respond as soon as possible.