People of Scotland Share Thoughts on What Heritage Means to Them

A report on what heritage means to Scots has been published today (Tuesday, 20th June) by Historic Environment Scotland (HES) and reveals which of Scotland’s places, buildings and monuments should be recognised and celebrated.

The results of HES’s ‘What’s Your Heritage?’ project also gathered information on the public’s thoughts about what level of changes are appropriate for Scotland’s buildings and sites.

In the first phase of this project, 2,000 people across all of Scotland’s 32 local authorities took part in the survey that ran between November 2016 and March 2017. Key findings include:

1. 95% believe that Scotland should look after its heritage with 89% wanting to see Scotland’s heritage celebrated.
2. 78% of those surveyed believe that some change should be allowed to historic sites, 8% would prefer no change at all and 6% would like a lot of change.
3. 70% of people would like to have a say in how HES decides what becomes listed or designated.
This feedback will form part of a wider process which will help to formulate historic environment policies which reflect the broader views of people living in Scotland in relation to protecting and celebrating historic sites now and in the future.

Barbara Cummins, Director of Heritage at Historic Environment Scotland, said

“As an organisation we wanted to involve the public and hear what’s important to them. The survey and workshop responses will feed into our review of our historic environment policies.

“I am delighted with the enormous amount of passion and interest in our first ever public campaign of this kind and I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone that took part.”

As part of the campaign, HES ran workshops open to everyone across the country to give people a chance to participate in conversations in their area and share thoughts about their heritage. 200 people took part in the workshops which were held at 12 locations across the country.

Participants shared their thoughts on what was important to them and how they view change to the historic environment.

Findings show that people feel heritage and local identity are closely linked and that it’s not just buildings and historic places that are important but also stories, dialect and local traditions.
Participants explained that ensuring communities are informed and included in decision-making at a local level is very important. The feedback also tells us that people believe that the historic environment is something that you inherit and that those who live in Scotland have an obligation to look after it for future generations.

The full report and findings of ‘What’s Your Heritage?’ is made available on Historic Environment Scotland’s website at historicenvironment.scot/whatsyourheritage

Entries now open for Scottish Heritage Angel Awards 2017

Nominations have opened for the third Scottish Heritage Angels Awards in a bid to find those groups and individuals – or ‘Angels’ – from Edinburgh who have played a special part in caring for, recording and celebrating the nation’s historic environment.

Launched in 2014 and funded by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation (ALWF), and run by the Scottish Civic Trust in partnership with Historic Environment Scotland, Archaeology Scotland and the Scottish Government, the scheme seeks to celebrate both groups and individuals who have gone above and beyond in their efforts to promote, protect and, in many cases, rescue Scotland’s heritage.

Last year saw entry submissions from the length and breadth of Scotland, with eventual winners including Mark Cranston, for his remarkable efforts to collect, catalogue and research Scottish bricks, and Dig TV, a television channel run entirely by young people to highlight an archaeological dig in Dumfries, which scooped the first Young Heritage Angel award.

This year, a brand new set of categories have been introduced for the Scottish Heritage Angel Awards. They are:

• Best Rescue of a Historic Building
• Best Contribution to a Heritage Project by Young People
• Best Craftsperson or Apprentice on a Heritage Rescue or Repair Project
• Best Rescue, Recording or Interpretation of a Historic Place

Nominations will close on Friday 11th August. A panel of heritage experts will have the tough task of whittling down shortlists for each category and a panel of judges will choose the eventual winners who will be announced at the Scottish Heritage Angels Awards ceremony on Monday 16th October at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh.

In an exciting first, an overall winner from the Heritage Angel Awards in Scotland, England and Northern Ireland will be selected and crowned at the London ceremony.

John Pelan, Director of the Scottish Civic Trust, said:” I’m delighted to once again welcome entries for the Scottish Heritage Angel Awards.

“Now well established in our third year, we have taken this opportunity to update the award categories and extend the criteria to include professionals and apprentices as well as volunteers and voluntary groups who can demonstrate that their project has had a wider community benefit. Our categories are aligned with the Angel Awards in England and Northern Ireland to reflect the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation’s aspiration to recognise and celebrate the unsung heroes of heritage across the UK.

“Last year we showcased some wonderful projects reflecting the scale and diversity of heritage initiatives throughout the country. I am confident that in this year of History, Heritage and Archaeology we can do so again.”

Andrew Lloyd Webber, whose charitable foundation helped establish the Scottish Heritage Angel Awards, said: “‘I am delighted that the Scottish Heritage Angel Awards are open for another year of applications.

“Too often the individuals and groups who work tirelessly to protect their local historic buildings go unnoticed. We set up the Angel Awards in Scotland three years ago to change all that. I encourage everyone to come forward and celebrate these stars of heritage – those who keep our heritage alive and thriving for the next generation deserve to stand in the spotlight.”

The Scottish Heritage Angel Awards support the delivery of Scotland’s historic environment strategy Our Place in Time, which places a strong focus on supporting and enabling community participation and engagement across the historic environment.

For full details on how to enter the 2017 Scottish Heritage Angel Awards, nominate someone else for an award or find out about our previous winners, please visit www.scottishheritageangelawards.org.uk.

Keep up to date with the latest from the Scottish Heritage Angel Awards on Twitter at @ScotAngelAwards.

Animation workshop taking place at Forthview Primary, W Pilton Pl, Edinburgh EH4 4DF. The workshop was led by animator Henry... use WWI as a subject for the stories. SCRAN has supported this project by providing the background images for the animations as well as other supporting material. Henry Cruickshank (animatior), Sylvie Silk (Learning Officer, HES), Jackie Sangster (Education Officer Scran)The red carpet is set to be rolled out at Forthview Primary on Thursday 8 June for parents to attend the premiere of a special animated film showcasing a project between Historic Environment Scotland, SCRAN (Scottish Cultural Resources Access Network) and Forthview Primary School in Edinburgh.

Historic Environment Scotland’s Learning Team have been working with Forthview Primary since 2014 to support their WWI topic, with pupils taking part in a series of cross-curricular workshops at their school and Edinburgh Castle.

To showcase the pupil’s learning and experiences, Historic Environment Scotland commissioned animator Henry Cruickshank to work with the pupils to create their very own animation that they will share with parents and other pupils at a grand unveiling on Thursday 8 June.

Sylvie Silk, Learning Officer at Historic Environment Scotland, said: “Pupils took part in a number of activities such as propaganda poster workshops, a recruitment activity at Edinburgh Castle and a poetry workshop, and found inspiration through visits to the Scottish National War Memorial and National War Museum. This film encapsulates all that they have learnt along the way and it will be a great resource for pupils studying the First World War in the future.”
SCRAN also worked closely with P7 pupils to explore the archives and historical footage available on their online catalogue. The animation uses SCRAN archive imagery as a backdrop and follows the journey of a soldier during the First World War, exploring themes of propaganda, recruitment and remembrance.

Jackie Sangstar, Education Officer from SCRAN said: “It has been extremely rewarding to see the class engage with the First World War archive material through SCRAN and see them use the imagery and information so creatively in their learning. The pupils integrated archive photographs into their animation with great effect. The outcome is a wonderful film and a valuable resource for First World War studies.”

Before making the film, P7 pupils took part in animation workshops and studied techniques such as character and plot development, storyboard creation and animation techniques.

Ms Watson, Class Teacher of Forthview Primary said: “Our Primary 7 pupils have thoroughly enjoyed the First World War project and learned many new facts and skills. The trips to the castle really developed their breadth of knowledge and understanding of life in 1914. Everyone joined in the engaging, hands-on workshops and rounding it off with an animation workshop was excellent!”

The film will be housed on Historic Environment Scotland’s website later this year where it will be available as a resource for other pupils studying the First World War.

Historic Environment Scotland operate a free visits scheme for schools, colleges, universities and other learning groups. For more information and how to book, visit the Learn section of the Historic Environment Scotland website.