Tuesday September 1st 2026
CGI image of Gattonside House plans
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
The choice is “restoration or loss” of an historic Scottish Borders country house a developer has warned after a housing bid was submitted.
Fortis Homes has submitted a planning application to Scottish Borders Council for redevelopment of the Gattonside House estate near Melrose.
The proposals set out plans for the retention and restoration of the category B listed building alongside the delivery of new homes on the site.
The application proposes the conversion of Gattonside House into 14 residential flats and the restoration of two further listed buildings on the estate, together with 34 new homes – 12 of them affordable.
The wider proposals also include a café and padel courts, providing facilities for residents and the wider community.
Gattonside House has been vacant for 17 years, and the decay associated with that period of neglect is now accelerating.
Condition surveys commissioned by Fortis Homes since it acquired the estate nine months ago have recorded “measurable further deterioration” over that short period, including wet and dry rot throughout the building, resulting in collapse of much of the internal structure.
The building has been made safe and secured, but Fortis Homes’ proposal provides a programme of full refurbishment to urgently halt the degradation and save the building.
Fortis Homes’ application follows two pre-application processes and an extensive programme of community and stakeholder engagement.
This has included two Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) engagement events at Gattonside Village Hall, meetings with local and district councillors, and a site walkaround attended by more than 50 residents and stakeholders.
All feedback received during the consultation process has been reviewed and, where possible, reflected in the proposals submitted to Scottish Borders Council. This includes the decision by Fortis Homes not to progress the previously proposed holiday lets, following concerns raised during the engagement process.
Doug Innes, Managing Director of Fortis Homes, believes Gattonside House is “a building worth saving”.
But he says the case for saving it is “getting harder every month it stands open to the elements”.
He added: “In the nine months we have owned the building, we have watched its condition move in one direction, and we are now at the point where prompt intervention is the difference between restoration and loss.
“This has not been a straightforward development to make work. The cost and complexity of restoring a listed building of this scale, with its multiple and unpredictable risks, are considerable.
“The submitted design provides a financially viable route to restoration, funded through a carefully considered mix of affordable and private homes.
“We have engaged openly and positively with the community and elected members throughout the last nine months, and we have changed the proposals, where possible, in response to what we heard.
“We’ve been encouraged by the level of local engagement and a general sense that the community welcomes the opportunity to see a long-neglected site generated and Gattonside House safeguarded.
“We now hope for a proactive and timely determination so work on Gattonside House can start to halt the deterioration. We look forward to working with Scottish Borders Council as it considers the application.”
For further details on the Gattonside project, please visit https://gattonsidedevelopments.com.
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