Anstruther Improvements Association aims to restore the decorative shelled gable end wall next to Dreel Bridge at 1-5 High Street East, Anstruther. The gable wall was originally elaborately covered with shells by the slater, Alexander Batchelor, who also decorated the well-known Buckie House just across the road. The building is an important part of Anstruther’s heritage, the wall has been slowly deteriorating over recent years and is currently in a very poor state.

If you are keen to get involved, we need volunteers to help us collect undamaged white dogwhelks or buckies of any size, ensuring there are no sea creatures still living inside! We aim to collect small amounts of shells from a variety of locations to reduce the negative impact on the environment. NatureScot has given permission for small scale shell collection for the purpose of our restoration project.

Thanks to our project volunteers we have now collected a third of the shells required to restore the surface of the wall. This year we plan to meet monthly in a small group to collect shells and go for a coffee afterwards. Please get in touch if you would like to join our group.

You can drop off shells to one of our whelk shell collection buckets, which are located: on the back terrace at Dreel Halls in Anstruther, at Castle Street Beach in Anstruther and Kingsbarns Beach at Cambo Sands. You can also contact us to arrange a collection: julia@anstrutherimprovements.org or phone 07497 370556.

You can contact us via our Facebook page for the Dreel Shelled Wall Project.