Cost fears force Cowane's Hospital in Stirling to close

One of Stirling's historic buildings is to be closed to the public because of concerns about running costs.

Cowane's Hospital, which is near Stirling Castle, will close its doors from 30 July. The venue's coffee shop will also close.

Private events will not be affected and the building will remain available for hire.

A £3m appeal had previously been launched for Cowane's Hospital to become a national visitor attraction.

The closure decision was made at an emergency meeting of the Cowane's Hospital Maintenance Trust.

Trustees had been given financial advice that the running costs had become unaffordable.

The funding appeal will continue. It has the backing of Stirling Council and 15 members of the Scottish Parliament.

Trust chairman Fergus Wood said: "It was a very sad decision to have to make but, despite looking at a range of options, there was no alternative - if we stayed open to the public we could not pay the bills.

"However, we believe that the action we have taken will allow us to stabilise the situation and allow us to continue our efforts to raise the funds needed to save this nationally important building and give it a sustainable future at the heart of the community."

Cowane's Hospital was built as an almshouse in the 17th Century.

The trustees said mothballing the building would allow the charity's funds to be used to ensure its upkeep.