AMBITIOUS plans to create a visitors’ centre celebrating Bonnie Prince Charlie’s victory at the 1745 Battle of Prestonpans have come under fire, with organisers accused of pushing “hand-me-down heritage” onto the town’s community.

Prestonpans community councillors have raised concerns about the £5.7million proposal by the Battle of Prestonpans Heritage Trust to transform the former bathhouse on the site of Prestongrange Museum into a new home for the Prestonpans Tapestry and visitor centre.

READ MORE: Tourism centre plans for historic bathhouse

There was anger at their meeting that the project had not been brought before them for further discussion after an initial meeting with a representative of the trust earlier this year.

And the community council called for the trust to be asked to attend a meeting in the near future to discuss the plans in full and provide details of the proposal.

Community councillor Calum Miller said: “The battlefield trust has gone ahead and just announced these plans. We should call these proposals in and have a look at them.

“This is hand-me-down heritage; we have an organisation telling us what our heritage is. Whose heritage is it?”

Former community council chairman Jimmy Yule said there were concerns that the industrial heritage of the museum and the area was being overshadowed by the battle history, adding: “This is a mining museum.”

The Courier recently revealed the first images of the new bathhouse proposal as an application for support was lodged with the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The trust hopes to receive up to £3.7m in lottery funding for the project, which it projects could benefit the local economy to the tune of £5m a year.

Councillor Willie Innes, East Lothian Council leader and a ward councillor, said the local authority had been working with the trust on its proposals and believed it could receive Government backing.

He said: “We were approached by the trust about a site for the tapestry there. We believe there is a synergy between the tapestry and the battle, and we think there is an opportunity here because we know there is support from the Government.”

The trust said its representative Fiona King had attended a community council meeting last year and it said it would invite members to attend a meeting in January for further talks.

A spokesperson said: “We will be more than delighted to invite the community council to an extended discussion of what aspirations we have, that are supported by ELC and Cllr Willie Innes, and how they will create up to 14 new jobs directly and bring very substantial benefit to the local economy.”

The 104-metre-long Prestonpans Tapestry tells the story of Bonnie Prince Charlie’s journey from France to victory at Prestonpans.