Maid Of The Loch Facebook Page

[George Ted]

Maid Of The Loch Facebook Page Bad news for Scottish maritime preservation

We are absolutely devastated with Heritage Lottery Fund’s decision not to grant funds to the Maid of the Loch, and it’s going to take some time to absorb this news and the reasons behind it.

https://www.facebook.com/MaidtoSail/posts/1855891321124926?comment_id=1855908984456493&notif_id=1538039212906906&notif_t=feed_comment

[youngac]

Shameful behaviour from HLF to allow the fundraising to go this far and then hit them with this.

[tramscape]

I'm resurfacing to comment on an issue very close to my heart.

Like Andrew says, why leave such a major thing to the last moment? Rule it out early for sure - and if there are any issues, make sure they are resolved as I think they have been over time. Just ditching it like this is disgraceful

maybe a bid can be resubmitted - but on what different premises?

Was it for the sake of a few missing grand ? This could have been surely sourced as the project progressed - in loans if nothing else

A disaster.

I'm off to see some more trams tomorrow for a bit of comfort

[kylemore]

Time for the SG to step in and secure their already considerable investment.

If they can throw £45m at Ferguson's to employ squads of Romanians to kid on they're building two car ferries in Port Glasgow, then they can find a couple of £m for a project that will secure more Scottish jobs.

[tramscape]

I assume that the SG's investment was a pledge. Maybe not, though ...... their grant to Fergusons was unconditional by all accounts (and subject to some controversy now it seems)

If LLSC can get in the £ 1,7 million donations and pledges, maybe they can do something along the lines of Queen Mary and get there in the end

The £ 5.5 million did seem a big amount to be needed

Interesting that public comments on the MOL FB page exhort them to do crowdfunders etc. Do they not realise that this was done a year ago and raised about £ 30 K and in total they did not get enough to buy a boiler ?

[DOUG]

Shameful behaviour from HLF to allow the fundraising to go this far and then hit them with this.

Simply appalling. LLSC had raised all the funds required of them and it was all looking pretty positive.
I understand there were a number of competitive bids for the available funds. I suppose the bottom line is that fewer people are buying lottery tickets compared with 10 years ago and therefore available funds are under severe pressure.

But the Maid project ticked all the HLF boxes, including the all important Education and Community. I feel desperately sorry for the LLSC who have invested so much voluntary time and effort into the project, especially John Beveridge who has devoted a large chunk of his life to the ship. Very sad.

[youngac]

I suspect the fact that £950,000 of taxpayers money was put into the project means that there will be immense political pressure on either the Scottish Government or an organisation such as Visit Scotland to provide the funds to allow the project to go ahead so that taxpayers money is not wasted. This would also provide a good PR stunt for the government in West Dunbartonshire (which happens to be a marginal constituency in both the Holyrood and Westminster Parliaments).

[tramscape]

Like I said, I doubt it would be wasted ..... unless the Scot. Gov was totally inept and negligent

Can't see them coming up with £ 3.5 million - and it would be wrong of us enthusiast community to think that they should

The application can surely be resubmitted - unless the pledges are not extended.

Yes, the initial response from HLF was that it lost out to a number of stronger competing applications. Let's wait for more flesh on that bone before drawing any conclusions

It does seem, though that if you are after a lot of money, you need to show a lot of benefits to society. I'm not so sure that for the amount of money needed, you get that much benefit. Sad for us enthusiasts, but other might say, rightly so. I don't think the HLF are biased against Scotland or ships, but many seem to think so. Still, we have no right to such vast amount of money even though it is there to fight for

Perhaps they are saving their money for Waverley !

Devastating nonetheless - and as for John, well, what can I say ?

[kylemore]

The procurement process for the boiler/s had begun - what happens to that now?

[youngac]

The procurement process for the boiler/s had begun - what happens to that now?

Could a scaled down restoration, perhaps without the major redevelopment at Balloch Pier, be achieved instead?

[tramscape]

I thought the heritage centre proposal for Balloch pier had already been dropped from the plan to keep costs "low"

The £ 5.5 million figure when announced - with such a large match-funding requirement threw the whole thing into jeopardy, but it was achieved

With the paucity of funds from enthusiasts, it would probably take another 20 years (if we are lucky) to get her into shape to get MCA approval - but surely there is a cheaper way ?

If the application can't be resubmitted or fails next time, who knows what will happen. many will quit the project I guess

Maybe just have her static ............... and build the heritage centre (with PSPS funds !) !! ..... but as a static exhibit she will do well to pay for herself

If she has to become as disco ..............like a dragon, "I'm Out !!"

[George Ted]

Clydebank’s MP Martin Docherty-Hughes has branded the rejection of a multi-million pound funding package for the Maid of the Loch restoration project as “devastating” and “baffling”. https://www.clydebankpost.co.uk/news...ing-rejection/

[tramscape]

Devastating (for us, yes) .... baffling ? We don't have the information to make that sort of statement

No doubt, once the application is resubmitted after the educational/heritage/community aspects are improved, and the project gets the funding, there will be plenty of people baffled as to how and why and old ship gets given so much money !

[billsea]

Devastating (for us, yes) .... baffling ? We don't have the information to make that sort of statement

No doubt, once the application is resubmitted after the educational/heritage/community aspects are improved, and the project gets the funding, there will be plenty of people baffled as to how and why and old ship gets given so much money !

She is not so old Launched 5 March 1953 Last paddle steamer built on the Clyde

[tramscape]

She is not so old Launched 5 March 1953 Last paddle steamer built on the Clyde

That is still old

[billsea]

She was the Last paddle steamer built on the Clyde she is in good condition she should have got a lottery grant maybe not the amount they was asking for just enough to get her sailing again.
She has got her own steam slipway that's a bonus.

[tramscape]

She was the Last paddle steamer built on the Clyde she is in good condition she should have got a lottery grant maybe not the amount they was asking for just enough to get her sailing again.
She has got her own steam slipway that's a bonus.

I think the amount was just to get her sailing again - the heritage centre was removed from the project. Maybe that was one of the main reasons why it failed !

People have to understand though, that just having her sailing as a fun day out is not what the HLF requires