Care, Collaboration and Continuity 🤝
2026-01-09T18:09:00.000Z · Findhorn Ecovillage
Summary
View in browser Website Donate Retreats 💫 Welcome to 2026.
Content
View in browser Website Donate Retreats 💫 Welcome to 2026! 💫 In this Newsletter: Survey Results ✅, Shared Meals 🍴, and Steady Progress 📈 Washed up tree trunk on a snowy Bay, Photo: Tessa B Assets Transfer Survey Update 🏘️📣 As many of you know, the Findhorn Foundation Trust has chosen to pass its remaining land and buildings assets to a group of successor charities and other organisations and representatives of this group of organisations have now met five times since mid-October to discuss possible ways forward. There has been a good sense of cooperation and initial proposals have been made . These proposals were presented to FF trustees on 17th December , and they came back with a yes, with the understanding that the various boards of the organisation had not had time to seek formal ratification of the proposals, and that more due diligence on the assets would be needed before a final decision could be made. From 18th December and until 5th January, EF conducted a poll to understand our members' views about these potential ways forward and we would like to share the results with you. Click here to view results! --> Click here to view results! The Proposed Title Plan Community Café ☕🍽️🫂 Over the Christmas and New Year period , something quietly remarkable happened in the Phoenix Café and Universal Hall Lower Foyer. What began as a brave, community-led experiment became a thriving hub of warmth, connection and good food, lovingly held by volunteers and supported by so many across the community. The Community Christmas Café ran successfully for two full weeks over the holidays, proving just how much care, capacity and generosity lives here when people come together. On Monday 5th January , a joyful awards ceremony was held to celebrate everyone involved in the venture, recognising the effort, humour and heart that carried it through. The pilot was led by Dorota and Joan, both EF board members , who took on the financial risk themselves and fully funded the project, making this a quasi-EF event rooted in personal commitment as much as collective spirit. We offer our deepest thanks to Dorota and Joan for their courage, vision and generosity, to the Phoenix Café staff who inducted and guided the volunteers and kept everything running smoothly, and to the many volunteers and cooks whose time, energy and love made this wonderful success possible. Dorota and Joan: the winners of the Order of the Phoenix Award! 🏆 Community Christmas Meal 🎄🎁 Alongside the two-week Community Christmas Café, the Phoenix Café team and volunteers also played a vital role in supporting this year’s Community Christmas meal on 25th December . Volunteers came together to help prepare and serve the special meal, creating a welcoming and generous atmosphere that many will remember fondly. 100 Christmas lunches were served across 2 sittings - quite a feat! A special thanks go to Mark Richard for capturing the spirit of the day in a beautiful video, which offers a touching glimpse into the care, connection and shared effort that made the meal so meaningful. Universal Hall Sustainability Update 🌿 There’s lots happening on this front, as we work with various partners to re-envision the Hall as a vibrant, multipurpose arts venue and community hub . Alongside its much-loved role as a performance space for music, theatre, workshops and conferences, we are exploring how the Hall can be used more fully for community events, workshops, gatherings, event hire, celebrations and learning — helping the Hall to thrive as both the cultural heart of The Park, and as an arts venue for the region . As part of this work, our grants and trusts fundraiser, Anna Konarska , has created a funding ‘pipeline’ for 2026 , and we have begun conversations about a potential joint funding application to the National Lottery Heritage Fund , in collaboration with several other Park-based organisations . This is still at an early stage, any such application would need to focus on long-term resilience, accessibility and public benefit. In the meantime, we are taking practical steps to plan responsibly for the Hall’s future. A portion of the £23,000 already raised through recent fundraising will be used to commission a professional engineering study , looking at the Hall’s long-term energy strategy and insulation needs. This will give us a solid evidence base from which to seek quotes for improving insulation and, in due course, replacing the existing biomass boiler, some of which will hopefully be partially grant-funded. These preparatory steps are about making informed, future-proof decisions — ensuring the Universal Hall remains warm, welcoming and fit for purpose for decades to come, while reducing costs and environmental impact. Over the next months, our core task is to develop a well-constructed business plan for the Hall , with a robust operating model that will be able to deliver sufficient income to meet the Hall’s operating costs and provide a sinking fund for future maintenance needs. A small team of key stakeholders will meet to pursue this, convened by EF board member, Lisa Mead . And thanks to our locally-based regional MSP, Ariane Burgess , Lisa has a meeting lined up next week with representatives of Highlands & Islands Enterprise , to explore how they can help EF in terms of business planning and funding pointers. Thank you, Ariane! Last but not least, the RHI rebate payment finally came through just before Christmas, for the period 18 Nov 2024 (when EF completed the community buy-in of parts of The Park, including the Universal Hall and biomass boiler) until 20th October 2025 . The amount was approx £32,000 , which is a welcome ‘Christmas gift’ in terms of easing EF’s tight cashflow position, which has arisen largely from EF’s support of the Universal Hall operating costs over the last 14 months. £15,000 of this has already been paid back to FF Trust , which in early December kindly provided EF with a short-term loan to bridge the gap until the RHI payment arrived. The less good news is that we have recently identified a significant leak in the biomass’s underground pipework, which is causing large inefficiencies, so this needs to be rectified as soon as possible. RI Crudens , who maintain the biomass boiler, have estimated £10,000 to replace underground pipework, but it needs further investigation to find out exactly what needs doing. Important Contacts Update – Guest Lodges & Hazel Hoose ☎️🏡 As a New Year reminder, Pip will not be managing the Guest Lodges in 2026 . After a full year of caring for EF accommodation and a very busy summer season in 2025, Pip is taking a well-earned break and will be on holiday throughout January. During this time, please do not contact Pip about EF-related matters . Thank you so much Pip for all your hard work on behalf of EF! 🙏 To help everyone reach the right person quickly, please use the contacts below: Bookings & Rental Agreements For information about Rental Agreements for the Guest Lodge and Hazel Hoose (formerly the Bunkhouse), please contact Britta at: bookings@ecovillagefindhorn.uk Hosting, Cleaning & Guest Support For day-to-day hosting, cleaning and guest support, please email: homecare@ecovillagefindhorn.uk EF Board Contact – Guest Lodge Management For board-level queries relating to guest accommodation management, please contact Mari Hollander at: mari@ecovillagefindhorn.uk Finance Queries For invoicing, payments or other financial questions, please contact Eveline at: finance@ecovillagefindhorn.uk Emergencies, Health & Safety (24/7) For urgent issues, please call or WhatsApp the EF phone: 07511 356130 This number provides 24/7 guest care support . Finally, please remember that anyone can report a maintenance issue using the online request form on the EF website. Scroll to the bottom right of the homepage: www.ecovillagefindhorn.uk As winter does its thing outside, we’re continually reminded that what really keeps The Park warm, is people — turning up, pitching in, sharing thoughts, and occasionally making the tea. Thank you for all the visible and invisible ways you help keep things moving through the darker months. We look forward to more conversations, collaboration and cups of something hot as the season continues. With blessings, Tessa 🦄 EF Team Ecovillage Findhorn Community Benefit Society General Office, The Park, Findhorn, Moray, IV363TZ, Scotland Sign-up to support the work we do for our community! Email: office@ecovillagefindhorn.uk You received this email because you signed up. You can unsubscribe at any time. Unsubscribe