Hopes are rising that a way will be found to secure the future of Geilston House and Garden at Cardross – even though campaigners have rejected the idea of setting up a ‘community trust’ to run the property.

The campaign group Friends of Geilston (FoG) say they were unable to agree to the idea of a community-run facility – the preferred option of the property’s current owners, the National Trust for Scotland (NTS).

But despite that decision, the Friends’ chair says the group at last feels it’s “beginning to make some progress” towards securing Geilston’s long-term future.

The house and garden, which were bequeathed to the NTS when its previous owner, Miss Elizabeth Hendry, died in 1989, have been at the centre of controversy since the the trust announced in June 2017 that it was to review the future of the property because of increasing losses.

That revelation sparked the formation last autumn of the Friends of Geilston, who have been locked in talks with the Trust ever since in a bid to save the facility from closure and secure its long-term future.

Writing in their latest newsletter, the Friends’ chair, Allison Hillis, says they are now working with the NTS on an economic assessment of Geilston and its future.

She said: “We received a letter [from the NTS] which encouraged us to hope that we are beginning to make some progress.

“We met with NTS in July and asked if Geilston would be re-opening in the spring of 2019.

“The answer was that the garden would not be closed while NTS and FoG were having discussions, and then only if the agreed outcome was that the garden would have to close. This is a guarded response, but one which we view with some optimism.”

Ms Hillis said the Friends had been unable to reach an agreement with the NTS on the conditions attached to setting up a community trust to run the property.

The Trust based its decision to review the future of the house and garden on annual operating losses at Geilston, which have been increasing for many years and reached £91,661 in 2016-17.

But the Advertiser understands that accounts to be presented at the Trust’s annual meeting next month will show the losses to be even greater for the current year.

New figures show Geilston attracted just 742 paying visitors in 2017-18, along with 9,556 members of the NTS or National Trust – both of whom permit free entry for those who have paid membership fees.

That compares to 10,328 NTS or National Trust members and 945 paying visitors in 2016-17.

The NTS says losses at Geilston are covered by cross-subsidisation from the trust’s general income fund but are not sustainable because of other conservation priorities, including the Hill House in nearby Helensburgh. An NTS spokesman said: “We continue to work closely with the Friends of Geilston with the objective of assessing a new management model for Geilston House and Garden.

“An economic appraisal is being commissioned and we hope this will inform our thinking.”

Meanwhile, Geilston Garden has been included in a new map published by Discover Scottish Gardens, which encourages locals and tourists to visit gardens and attractions throughout the country.

The garden consistently receives glowing reports on TripAdvisor, which has awarded the attraction a certificate of excellence.