Our programme connects to and reflects the unique and rich environment in which our work takes place, and the interests, concerns, needs, and priorities of our rural and semi-rural local communities.

We are based on a 50-acre site on Scotland’s west coast, just over one hour northwest of Glasgow on Argyll’s Rosneath Peninsula. The site overlooks Loch Long, a sea loch flowing into the Firth of Clyde and on to the Atlantic. This location connects Cove Park to Argyll’s rich history and natural heritage, its numerous sea lochs, islands, peninsulas, shorelines, and Atlantic rainforests.

The Peninsula – just six miles long, roughly two miles wide, and flanked by Loch Long to the west, the Gare Loch to the east, and the Clyde estuary to the south – has a population of just over 2,500. It encompasses six villages, two primary schools, community halls, and a volunteer-run library, and is served by local transport connections to the nearby town of Helensburgh and, by ferry, to Gourock in Inverclyde and via train to the town of Paisley and the city of Glasgow.

The site itself has an eclectic history, functioning variously as common land, a naval store and, immediately prior to Cove Park, as a conservation park. We have maintained the principles of the conservation park, continuing to host sheep and Highland cows, and managing grazing pasture so that the site’s rich biodiversity can flourish. To support this, 500 native trees were planted in 2022 by resident artists, local community volunteers, and our team to create a new micro-rainforest for Argyll.

The nearby Royal Naval Armaments Depot at Coulport and HM Naval Base Clyde at Garelochhead means the Peninsula has both a permanent community and a transitory one of Naval and Ministry of Defence personnel and their families.

Since 2021 we have built upon our connections to the region’s primary and secondary schools to involve many more community organisations and groups, namely ACT: Argyll & the Isles Coast & Countryside Trust, Cove Burgh Hall, Cove Community Library, Helensburgh & Lomond Carer’s Centre, Jean’s Bothy Mental Health & Wellbeing Hub in Helensburgh, and Project 81 Youth & Community Enterprise in Garelochhead. Like Cove Park, these organisations seek to address the specific needs of our community. Our current programme include creative events and projects developed in collaboration with these organisations and their participants.

Argyll’s natural heritage – the rich biodiversity of its coastal and marine environments, peatlands, and rainforests – is unique, and the growing threats of rising tides and flooding are very real. Our commitment to our local environment is central to Cove Park’s Environmental and Sustainable Travel Policies, and the actions we are taking to reduce carbon emissions.

In partnership with ACT, we are the Argyll Beacon, one of 13 regional Beacons selected by Creative Carbon Scotland to mark COP26 in Glasgow in 2021. This initiative brings environmental, activist, and cultural organisations together with individuals and groups in our local community, to heighten awareness of the climate emergency and to develop new creative commissions and projects connected to the impact of climate change upon their local areas. We are continuing our work with ACT to preserve and celebrate our local place.