Calls for Edinburgh's Foot of the Walk pub to be saved as councillor touts community hub idea

Fears are abound for the future of The Foot of the Walk

The Foot of the Walk Wetherspoons pub in Edinburgh has been put up for sale. Photo: JD Wetherspoon

Clamour is growing for an Edinburgh pub to be saved after owners JD Wetherspoon placed it up for sale.

Fears have been sparked for the future of The Foot of the Walk in Leith after the chain revealed it had been placed on the market this week. The news came months after it was forced to close for repairs to a damaged sewage pipe.

Dozens of people have signed a petition calling for the 'beloved local institution' to be maintained. Mark Harrington, a Leith local, is collecting signatures in the hope of prompting a change of heart from those in charge. Launching the campaign, he said the building, which opened as a cinema and then functioned as a snooker hall, was a part of 'local heritage'.

He said: "As a local resident of Leith, Edinburgh, I have cherished memories and experiences at Wetherspoons Foot of the Walk. This pub is more than just a place to enjoy a pint; it's where we meet friends and family, share stories, and feel part of our community.

"It offers reasonably priced drinks and food in an atmosphere that feels like home to many locals. However, this beloved local institution is under threat. We cannot stand by as our community loses its character piece by piece.

"The closure of such establishments not only affects social life but also has economic implications. According to CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale), pubs contribute £23.1 billion to the UK economy annually (source: CAMRA). Losing them means losing jobs and economic stability for many.

"We urge those with power over these decisions to consider their impact on communities like ours in Leith. Let's preserve our local heritage and keep Wetherspoons Foot of the Walk open for future generations to enjoy."

Meanwhile, Leith Walk councillor Katrina Faccenda raised the prospect of the building being converted into a community hub were JD Wetherspoon to pull out. She envisages space for charities and a canteen serving healthy and affordable food.

"There's lots of examples, especially in England, of successful community-run pubs", she said. "There are something like 150 community-run pubs now.

"I suppose the difference is that they're usually in small villages where the pubs have been going out of business and people have taken it upon themselves whereas I'm sure that Wetherspoons are looking to sell this pub as a business for quite a high price.

"But the real reason I make the comments is that we have a huge lack of community spaces where people can socialise, get a drink, get something to eat, and, especially in Leith, that's quite obvious. It seems that any building, like the bingo on Manderston street, that goes out of business, the first option is to build student accommodation and that is not what Leith needs.

"It needs jobs, it needs places where people can come together and that's why I think it would be a great thing if we, as a council, could look to support the community to actually bring that building into community use."

She insisted there would be enthusiasm for such a scheme in the area, and that although the financial foundations would have to be sound, the city council could help by taking a share of the associated risk.

As the chair of community food partnership Edible Edinburgh, Cllr Faccenda is a firm believer that a sustainable canteen in the building would be an asset to Leith.

She added: "There's a lot of talk about how you can create places where people can get nutritious, affordable food and learn more about nutrition and health.

"We've got lots of community kitchens, we've got lots of people doing one day a week but it would be really good to have these kinds of places that would be sort of council canteens where people will know that they can get a cheap and affordable meal that's healthy and it's not got stigma attached to it."