Bruce Newlands: Inverclyde Shed founder loves to see transformation

Bruce Newlands is best known as the founder of Inverclyde Shed and the driving force behind local community gardens, orchards and growing spaces.

The qualified architect, who is originally from Buckie, a fishing town on the Moray coast, moved to Inverclyde in 2014 after 15 years in Glasgow.

He now lives in Gourock with his wife Erika, their wee girl Ruby, three, and their dog Harry.

The hard-working community advocate says there's a deep love for Inverclyde at the heart of everything he does.

Bruce, 45, said: "I do this because I genuinely love to see transformation take place.

"I want to make where I live better."

Bruce studied architecture at Robert Gordon University (RGU) in Aberdeen and as part of the seven-year course, he managed to secure an exchange year at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) in Chicago when he was just 20.

The co-ordinator for the exchange programme, tutor Iain Ramsay, wrote a statement of support for Bruce.

Bruce said: "He said I was from a 'seafaring town known for the tenacity of its seafaring men'.

"I think he saw something of himself in me."

Bruce said he knew the trip to Chicago would be 'life-changing' but he didn't expect to be quite so amazed by the place.

He added: "We saw skyscrapers for the first time and I remember a massive thunderstorm over Lake Michigan.

"We were just astonished by everything we were seeing. 

"We had to travel on an elevated tube system, it felt like something from the future.

"I made a lot friends from all over the world."

After his trip to Chicago, Bruce took on a role as a trainee architect in Edinburgh for a year before returning to complete his honours year at RGU.

He said: "I had learned about so many different ways of designing, approaches that were very different to the way things were done in Scotland.

"I was determined to show what I had learned and stay true to myself."

After graduating with a 2.i, Bruce went on to work for Anderson Bell + Christie,  set up MAKLAB, Scotland’s first 'makerspace', and was technical director of the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre.

He set up his own architecture firm in 2008 and opened his studio in a shop on High Street, Glasgow in 2010.

Bruce met Erika, who is from Inverclyde, when he was working in Glasgow, and within three months of meeting had decided he was moving to our shores.

He said: "I just fell more and more in love with Inverclyde every time I visited.

"We have a better quality of life here.

"Inverclyde gets a bad rap but it has an awful lot going for it."

Bruce moved his business to Inverclyde with him says he's fortunate to now be able to 'pick and choose' the projects he works on.

He added: "I love working as a sole practitioner. 

"The business is me and it lives and dies by me. 

"I love the terror and thrill of it. 

"I've very intuitively planned how to run my business to the point that I run it so effectively now that it gives me time, and that's the most precious commodity."

Soon after he arrived in Inverclyde, Bruce approached property businessman Andrew Bowman about setting up a Men's Shed.

He learned there was a group of men already keen to set one up so offered his help, and the Shed got off the ground in 2019.

Since then, Bruce has spearheaded Inverclyde Shed activities, opening the group up to men and women of all ages.

Bruce led the Shed team through the community asset transfer process to take on the East Blackhall Street base, completing the first successful community asset transfer in Inverclyde.

He also applied for National Lottery funding to get the Captain Street facility up and running, has helped set up community gardens at Shore Street in Gourock, and Muirshiel Lane in Port Glasgow.

Bruce has diligently created community orchards and small growing spaces in communities across Inverclyde.

The architect says community projects will always be his favourite thing to be involved in as he knows what a huge impact they have.

He said: "Getting outside makes a huge difference to mental and physical health.

"It's life affirming and good for the soul, and it has a massive impact on our future.

"We want to show people that we can grow our own produce here and enjoy it."