BEFS News

Last week BEFS attended a briefing hosted by the Existing Homes Alliance to launch their latest research report Owning the Future: A framework of regulations for decarbonising owner-occupied homes in Scotland.

BEFS Policy & Strategy Manager, Hazel Johnson, shares her reflections on the briefing on the BEFS blog: ‘We can’t incentivise our way out of climate change’. You can read the debate on the Scottish Government’s response to the report here.

The ‘Improving Access’ Skills Investment Plan delivery group has been created to develop a collaborative approach to supporting the development and growth of accessible entry routes into the sector. They are seeking the views of people who are working across heritage on current activity, future plans and aspirations, and challenges and support needs. This information will be used to create a sector opportunities plan and develop a programme of support. The survey closes on 10 June.

Edinburgh World Heritage has launched its Building Maintenance Grants Programme. Grants of £150 – £1,500 are available to encourage maintenance work in the Old and New Towns of Edinburgh which will avoid incurring higher costs at a later date. The funding period will run until 31 March 2023.

Historic Environment Scotland has released its Annual Operating Plan 2022-23, setting out their priorities and performance indicators for the year ahead.

The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) have announced six new Honorary Fellows for 2022.

The Heritage Trust Network are holding their first in-person event in Scotland for two years. Join them at Carluke High Mill on 31 May for a day exploring activities that organisations can undertake as they are progressing towards a heritage regeneration project.

Scotland’s Towns Partnership have announced dates for their Town Centre Action Plan 2 (TCAP2) Roadshow events. The Roadshow will launch at a South of Scotland event on 31 May, with keynotes including Tom Arthur MSP and Professor Leigh Sparks.

BEFS noticed this proactive approach to Local Place Plans from Fife Council.

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Consultations

Allotments and the Community Empowerment Act
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
*NEW* Opened 4 May
Closes 24 May

Improving access to the heritage sector
Historic Environment Scotland
*NEW* Opened 11 May
Closes 10 June

Share Your Views On Cumbernauld Town Centre
Historic Environment Scotland
*NEW* Opened 12 May
Closes 12 June

Proposed Domestic Building Environmental Standards (Scotland) Bill: Consultation by Alex Rowley MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife Region
Closing date: 27 July

Review of permitted development rights – phase 2 consultation
Scottish Government
*NEW* Opened 11 May
Closes 3 August

Consultation Responses

Summary of responses to the Call for Evidence on the regulation of energy efficiency in existing non-domestic buildings (May 2022)

Building regulations – compliance and enforcement: consultation analysis (9/5/22)
Analysis of the building regulations compliance and enforcement consultation which ran between 11 November 2021 and 9 February 2022.

Heat in buildings – Scotland’s National Public Energy Agency call for evidence: analysis of responses (10/5/22)
Results of a call for evidence which ran from November 2021 to February 2022.

Publications

Designing for net zero – Local Authority Urban Design Forum 15 event report (Architecture & Design Scotland)
Learnings pulled together from the 15th Local Authority Urban Design Forum event in March 2022. The three part event discussed Net Zero Towns and Cities, Retrofit and Heritage, and Policy and Approaches.

Sustaining historic churches: what does recent research tell us? (The Historic Religious Building Alliance, April 2022)
This publication summarises a selection of recent research reports directly bearing on the sustainability of historic churches.

Historic Environment Scotland: Annual Operating Plan 2022-23 (13/5/22)
The Plan focusses on six priorities: wellbeing, inequality and access, sector recovery, managing heritage assets, net zero, contributing to a stronger, greener and fairer economy and building HES.

Public participation in planning in the UK: A review of the literature (UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence (29/4/22)
Community Consultation for Quality of Life (CCQOL) is an Arts and Humanities Research Council funded project that seeks to develop a Code of Conduct for inclusive participatory planning. The first stage of the project is this systematic review of the literature on public participation, focusing on the UK since 2010.

Owning the Future: A framework of regulations for decarbonising owner-occupied homes in Scotland (Existing Homes Alliance, 6/5/22)
The EHA has published a report to support the development of a regulatory and enabling framework for decarbonisng Scotland’s owner occupied homes.

A Cost-Benefit Analysis of a Traditional Glasgow Tenement Net Zero Retrofit (UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence, 9/5/22)
This report, from a major evaluation of a pre-1919 tenement net zero retrofit demonstration project in Glasgow, undertakes a social cost benefit analysis comparing the costs and wider benefits of the actual project alongside two counterfactual comparators (demolish/new build and an EESSH2 retrofit).

The AfterCovid.City Global Charter
This document articulates the direction and clear steps our cities must take to shape a prosperous future after the Covid-19 pandemic and leverage the power of public space for recovery.

Scottish Government Publications

Transforming derelict land (10/5/22)
Some of Scotland’s longest standing vacant and derelict sites will be transformed into affordable housing, community gardens and places of enterprise and learning by awards from a £50 million programme.

Working together to fix cladding issues (12/5/22)
Single Building Assessment programme expanded.

Scottish Central Government Energy Efficiency Grant scheme: form and guidance (17/5/22)
A scheme to offer capital grant funding support to enable the delivery of heat decarbonisation and energy efficiency projects across the public sector.

News Releases

The Europa Nostra Heritage Hub for Central and Eastern Europe will be based in Kraków (Europa Nostra, 9/5/22)
A branch of the Europa Nostra network will be established in Kraków, as the first outpost of this pan-European federation, the headquarters of which are based in The Hague while its European Liaison Office is based in Brussels.

Heritage sector ‘confident about future’ (Arts Professional, 9/5/22)
Survey finds positivity among organisations across Britain and confidence to weather possible future waves of Covid-19.

Fife: Historic buildings ‘deteriorating due to climate change’ are closed (Dunfermline Press, 8/5/22)
A Councillor has criticised the decision to close so many of Fife’s historic attractions at the same time as “short-sighted”.

Two historic Caithness mills showcased at national conference in Perth (John O’Groat Journal, 14/5/22)
Scotland’s first national mills conference was organised jointly by Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust, Historic Environment Scotland and the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) Scotland.

Opinion & Comment

Blog: Conservation in action: Holmwood steps (National Trust for Scotland, 22/3/22)
Louise Rogers, Buildings Administrator, describes repair works to the Holmwood steps to help protect the frontage of Thomson’s beautiful villa. Works included repointing the cracked stonework and improving the foundation of the steps.

Kieran Gaffney: The Burrell Collection renovation: For better or worse? (RIBA Journal, 10/5/22)
Some controversial decisions attended John McAslan and Partners’ renovation of Glasgow’s Burrell Collection. Do the improvements outweigh the perceived drawbacks?

Alasdair Rankin: Rebuilding trust and revitalising communities (9/5/22)
With Community Right to Buy Legislation has enabling communities to regain control of their development, restoring and refurbishing buildings that fall under the ownership of community trusts are becoming an increasingly important part of an architect’s portfolio.

Ramblers Scotland: Radical Road closure – urgent review needed of all options (11/5/22)
Ramblers Scotland and other organisations have written to HES to request a meeting to discuss the future of the Radical Road.

Gregor Kleinknecht: More countries should adopt convention to protect cultural property (The Times, 5/5/22)
Theft of heritage objects continues while key players remain uncommitted.

Patrycja Kaszynska: Valuing what matters about culture (Arts Professional, 11/5/22)
There is long-standing dissatisfaction with how the value of arts and culture has been discussed in policy making. Patrycja Kaszynska explains why the ‘capitals’ framework and the notion of ‘enabling assets’ might help.

Plans for historic Scots properties to go ‘green’ may cost £20m (The Herald on Sunday, 8/5/22)
Demands by ministers for Scotland’s historic properties to be fitted with energy saving measures could cost taxpayers up to £20 million, it has been estimated.

20 Church of Scotland properties currently up for sale – from historic churches to city centre flats (The Scotsman, 12/5/22)
The Church of Scotland is to review its current portfolio of buildings, with a view to closing those little used and now surplus to requirements.

Scotsman comment: Cumbernauld town centre’s fate should be decided by the people who live there (17/5/22)
Surely there is one opinion that really should carry more weight than any other – and that is the collective view of the people who currently live in Cumbernauld.

Parliamentary Questions

Questions marked with a triangle are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6W-08514: Monica Lennon, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 12/05/2022
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to ensure that the decarbonisation of infrastructure will be complete ahead of the 2045 net zero target.

Mark Griffin, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 12/05/2022
S6W-08482: Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland (HEEPS)
S6W-08487: reform of EPC ratings for fabric efficiency standard R
S6W-08488: new minimum energy efficiency standards R
S6W-08489: whether fabric efficiency regulations will require compliance at specified points in the building lifecycle R
S6W-08508: Housing to 2040 – review of adaptations.

Parliamentary Questions and Answers

Questions marked with a triangle are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6W-08303: Fergus Ewing, Inverness and Nairn, Scottish National Party, Date Lodged: 29/04/2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether there is a requirement for local authorities to conduct a statutory consultation in relation to adopting further discretionary powers and conditions under its short-term let licensing scheme.
Answered by Shona Robison (12/05/2022)

S6W-08088: Mark Griffin, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 14/04/2022
To ask the Scottish Government how the effectiveness of the Third National Planning Framework (NPF3) was monitored and evaluated and whether this was done against the outcomes set out in the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997.
Answered by Tom Arthur (06/05/2022)

S6W-08257: Tess White, North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date lodged: 28 April 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6O-00445 by Angus Robertson on 25 November 2021, whether it will provide an update on its work on culture sector recovery and renewal, which was due to be published in early 2022.
Answered by Angus Robertson on 12 May 2022

Other Parliamentary Activity

Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee: Tuesday 10 May 2022
The Committee took evidence on combustible cladding.

Economy and Fair Work Committee: Wednesday 11 May 2022
The Committee took evidence on town centres and retail.

Debates

Historic Environment Scotland (Climate Change)
In the Scottish Parliament on 4th May 2022
Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting Historic Environment Scotland to deliver its inspection programme, and related remedial works, on the condition of, and impact of climate change on, heritage sites. (S6O-01041)
Answered by the Minister for Culture, Europe and International Development

Owner-occupied Homes (Decarbonisation)
In the Scottish Parliament on 12th May 2022
Kenneth Gibson Scottish National Party: To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to the report that was published last Friday, “Owning the Future: A framework of regulations for decarbonising owner-occupied homes in Scotland”, which was commissioned by the Existing Homes Alliance. (S6F-01081)
Answered by the First Minister

Events

For the full list of BEFS Members’ upcoming events see our events calendar.

SLCT, GCHT & Partners: Homeowners Outreach Open Day
Date & Time: 21 May, 10:00 – 14:00
Location: 5 Victorian Circus, Glasgow, G12 9LB
Join the technical team of the Scottish Lime Centre Trust with Stratum Masonry and PM Conservation for a free open day aimed at homeowners. Find out all about traditional stone buildings and the requirements for their care, repair and maintenance, with demonstrations of cutting and dressing sandstone, timber sash and case window repair, and traditional lime pointing.

SURF Awards Shared Learning Workshop: Using artistic approaches to help regenerate communities
Date & Time: 26 May, 10:00 – 17:30
Location: The Playhouse at Websters Theatre, Glasgow
This free half-day SURF Awards workshop event provides an opportunity to explore successful approaches towards linking creative arts and culture into regeneration initiatives. The winning and highly commended projects from the ‘Creative Regeneration’ category highlighted in the 2021 SURF Awards process will provide comment on their experiences and transferable learning.

HTN: Growing Your Community – A Visit to Carluke High Mill
Date & Time: 31 May, 09:30 – 15:00
Location: Carluke, ML8 4BA
Join the Heritage Trust Network, hosted by the Carluke Development Trust team at Carluke High Mill for a day of presentations, networking and tours of the site. The focus for the day will be a look at activities that organisations can undertake whilst they are progressing towards a heritage regeneration project, including meanwhile uses.

SHBT: Ghosts of Strathleven – Colonial History and Approaches to Heritage
Date & Time:  31 May, 18:00
Online
Part of SHBT’s spring lecture series, New Perspectives on the Country House. Esmé Coppock investigates stories of colonial exploitation, and searches for approaches to heritage which recognise this past.

Archaeology Scotland’s Field School – Investigating Cathkin Park 
Date & Time: 15 June – 26 June
Join Archaeology Scotland this summer to excavate one of Scotland’s most iconic sporting sites – Cathkin Park. You will be part of a team of archaeologists and will gain experience in a range of archaeology techniques and skills including community archaeology, excavation, creative interpretation, and digital recording.

Training & Conferences

GCHT: Online CPD: Accessibility in the Historic Environment
Date & Time: 25 May, 12:30
Online
In this CPD, Emily Yates, Head of Accessibility and Inclusive Design at Mima, will discuss disability and the historic built environment, regulations for accessible buildings, what sort of adjustments might be needed in a historic building, and how to make adjustments that don’t cause hardship to the user or exclude them.

A&DS CPD: Roof Slating by Graeme Millar of the NFRC
Date & Time: 26 May, 12:30 – 13:30
Online
Topics covered in the CPD will include:
Properties and supplies of Scottish slate, and alternatives available
When to re-slate and when to repair
When to redress and reuse slate introducing minimum new slates
When to totally strip and re-slate
When re-roofing gives you the opportunity to retrofit insulation to roof voids

PAS: SP=EED Community Engagement Skills training
Date & Time: 26 May, 10:00 – 15:00
Online
Want to brush up on your community engagement skills? Join PAS for their next live ‘SP=EED’ training, Thursday 26 May 2022. SPEED is a unique development programme designed to develop your skills and confidence in designing, delivering and evaluating community engagement.

IHBC Annual School 2022 – Aberdeen
15-18 June
Offering a variety of delegate options:
Heritage MarketPlace virtual: 15 June
Day School hybrid (in-person & virtual): 17 June
Full School includes in-person tours and events: 16-18 June
The IHBC’s 2022 Aberdeen School explores how practitioners in the 21st Century can and should manage conservation and heritage that is, in different ways, ‘on the edge’.

Vacancies

Cupar Development Trust: Development Officer
Salary:  £30,000 per annum, pro rata
Hours:  Part time post, hours to be discussed at interview
Fixed term to 31 March 2023, possibility of extension
Cupar Development Trust is seeking a highly motivated individual for the post of Development Officer.  The postholder will have a crucial influence on the delivery of planning and implementing selected projects, supporting the efforts of groups and individuals to bring about community improvement, building partnerships with agencies able to access resources to intervene in community development, and more.

Closing date: 23 May

National Trust for Scotland: Conservation Maintenance Surveyor (x4)
Pay Band: £36,523 – £40,238
Contract: Permanent / Full Time
The National Trust for Scotland is seeking 4 Maintenance Surveyors to support their work across the country, embedded in regional teams. As the Regional Building Maintenance Specialist, you will work closely with the Regional Building (conservation) Surveyor to advise and support Operations Teams, putting the Trust’s Conservation Principles into practice through planned and reactive maintenance of all built structures.  This is a new role and you will be instrumental in shaping the way the Trust manages the conservation maintenance of its buildings, helping to build maintenance plans for each building and dealing with backlog maintenance projects.
Closing date: 10:00, Friday 3 June

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BEFS News

As Jess Burrows departs for a new opportunity, BEFS is recruiting for a Communications Manager to join our small, friendly team. Join us and help increase understanding of the importance of Scotland’s existing and historic built environment. Find out more details and apply by Sunday 8 May.

BEFS welcomes the Green Recovery Statement for the Historic Environment, published by Historic Environment Scotland on 26 April. The Statement sets out how the historic environment contributes to the national transition to a low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive economy.

The National Trust for Scotland has launched its new 10-year strategy, Nature, Beauty and Heritage for Everyone, which will take the charity up to its centenary year in 2031. The new strategy is centred around the objectives of conservation, engagement and sustainability.

The ‘Surviving to Thriving’ Business Support Programme has celebrated its first anniversary, with participants sharing their stories of resilience on social media. BEFS are proud partners on the programme alongside Museums Galleries Scotland and greenspace scotland. Congratulations to everyone involved!

The results of the first UK Heritage Pulse survey, which ran from 4–27 February 2022, have been released. BEFS has taken part in the survey and looks forward to seeing how it can be developed, noting the importance of disaggregated data for Scotland.

The call for entries is open for Scottish Archaeology Month, a national festival taking place every September, encouraging people to learn and connect with their heritage and archaeology. If you are planning an event, whether in-person or online, you can participate by registering your event by 1 June.

The first rounds of the Small Grants Fund and Museum Development fund opened for applications on Monday 2 May from Accredited museums.

BEFS notes with interest the launch of the Scottish Tourism Observatory. BEFS Vice Chair, Ian Baxter, has previously reflected on the implications of the new resource for the heritage sector – and asked whether this should prompt us to think about developing our knowledge management structures.

The prospectus for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund has been launched. The Scottish Parliament debated the implications for Scotland on 27 April; watch the debate here.

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Consultations

Proposed Domestic Building Environmental Standards (Scotland) Bill: Consultation by Alex Rowley MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife Region
A proposal for a Bill to introduce new minimum environmental design standards for all new-build housing to meet the Passivhaus standard or a Scottish equivalent in order to improve energy efficiency and thermal performance.
Closing date: 27 July

Publications

UK Heritage Pulse Survey 1 – Summary of Findings (Heritage Fund)
Organisations have a positive financial and strategic outlook, but concerns remain over staffing and the uncertainty of the economic climate.

Green Recovery Statement for The Historic Environment (Historic Environment Scotland, 26/4/22)
This Green Recovery Statement supports the green principles set out by the Scottish Government and highlights seven key areas where the historic environment can help deliver an economic recovery.

Video – Community Wealth Building Guidance (Scottish Land Commission, 24/3/22)
A new film from SLC explains the principles of community of wealth building.

Technical Paper 33: Masonry Pointing and Joint Finishing (Historic Environment Scotland, 27/04/22)
This new paper, authored by Tim Meek, presents evidence of the variety of pointing and joint finishing styles found in Scotland from the 17th to the 20th century.

Video – Finding the balance assessing embodied carbon in retrofit projects on church buildings (STBA, SPAB, 30/11/21)
A recorded webinar by the STBA and SPAB for the Church of England’s Environment Programme, considering strategies to reduce emissions that take embodied carbon into account.

RTPI: Unlock the Value of Planning: A Manifesto for the 2022 Scottish Local Government Elections (27/4/22)
The reform of the planning system in Scotland presents an opportunity to re-invest in planning services, re-define our long-term goals, and re-engage with communities.

Blog: Reflections from year one of the Climate Action Towns project (Architecture & Design Scotland)
The Climate Action Towns project is supporting communities to take collective place-based climate action in seven small Scottish towns.

Building for Change: The Architecture of Creative Reuse, ed. Dr Ruth Lang (Gestalten, Pre-order, Oct 2022)
Building for Change explores the architecture of reuse and adaptation.

Scottish Government Publications

Ban on combustible cladding (SG, 22/4/22)
Materials barred from high-risk buildings over 11 metres.

 

News Releases

Windows installed in historic Kilmarnock home given thumbs down by council planners(Daily Record, 15/4/22)
East Ayrshire Council said “to justify replacing the original windows with uPVC windows on energy efficiency grounds is not a justifiable reason.”

Town centres at ‘game-changing’ moment, MSPs told (iNews, 20/4/22)
Phil Prentice, chief officer of Scotland’s Towns Partnership, told the Economy and Fair Work Committee that governments need to tighten up on policy frameworks to give the commercial sector certainty.

Creative Scotland announces new Climate Emergency commitments (21/04/22)
Creative Scotland says it will expect all funding recipients to demonstrate how their work contributes to making the sector carbon neutral by 2045.

Drive for net zero fuels UK boom in retrofitting buildings for new use (The Guardian, 24/4/22)
Reversing a trend for ‘knock it down and start again’, the climate crisis is encouraging developers to rethink.

Dumfries town centre regeneration efforts put under microscope (BBC, 25/4/22)
The Scottish Parliament’s economy and fair work committee visited Dumfries to study the Midsteeple Quarter scheme.

Built environment sector bodies unite to improve diversity and inclusion (RICS, 27/4/22)
Six main professional institutes in the UK construction industry have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to create a more diverse, equitable and inclusive sector.

Solar panels installed at Edinburgh Castle to cut carbon emissions (The Scotsman, 28/4/22)
They have been placed on the building as part of Historic Environment Scotland’s (HES) continued programme to reduce energy use across the historic properties in its care.

Detecting boom puts ancient sites in peril (The Times, 2/5/22)
It is an offence to dig or use a metal detector at a protected site but new data shows that unauthorised digging has more than doubled.

Scottish Community Tourism launched (SCOTO, 04/2022)
SCOTO is a network of community tourism enterprises located throughout Scotland that encourages visitors to make conscious choices and see themselves as a ‘temporary local’.

ARCHEODANUBE: Archaeological Park in urban areas as a tool for Local Sustainable Development
This transnational project will improve and intensify cooperation among relevant actors to preserve, support and valorise cultural heritage through archaeological parks as products in cities for development of archeotourism.

Opinion & Comment

Paul Stallan: Why we won’t be applying to rebuild the Mac under the GSA’s selection formula (Architects’ Journal, 21/04/22)
‘Glasgow School of Art’s search for an architect to rebuild its legendary Mackintosh building favours the cheapest over the most suitable bid. It’s not a formula for success.’

Phineas Harper: Removing benches, blocking cycle paths: why are police interfering in the UK’s public spaces? (The Guardian, 2/5/22)
‘The Secured by Design initiative is damaging British cities, robbing them of greenery and public amenities while promoting fear.’

Podcast: Empty homes with Shaheena Din (Scottish Housing News, 3/5/22)
Scottish Empty Homes Partnership national project manager Shaheena Din joins Jimmy Black and Kieran Findlay to outline why local authorities should have an Empty Homes Officer and empty homes strategy.

Parliamentary Questions

Questions marked with a triangle are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6W-08206: Miles Briggs, Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date lodged: 26 April 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the comments by the Minister for Public Finance, Planning and Community Wealth during the debate on National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) on 19 April 2022, what the timeframe will be for the revised draft NPF4 and accompanying delivery programme.

S6W-08303: Fergus Ewing, Inverness and Nairn, Scottish National Party, Date Lodged: 29/04/2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether there is a requirement for local authorities to conduct a statutory consultation in relation to adopting further discretionary powers and conditions under its short-term let licensing scheme.

S6W-08257: Tess White, North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date lodged: 28 April 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6O-00445 by Angus Robertson on 25 November 2021, whether it will provide an update on its work on culture sector recovery and renewal, which was due to be published in early 2022.

Parliamentary Questions and Answers

Questions marked with a triangle are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6W-07951: Paul Sweeney, Glasgow, Scottish Labour, Date lodged: 8 April 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will introduce a formal requirement in planning (a) policy and (b) guidance that all applications for listed building consent to a planning authority should include supporting evidence from (i) an accredited specialist conservation architect or conservation architect registered on the Royal Institute of British Architects Conservation Register, and (ii) structural and/or civil engineers registered on the Conservation Accreditation Register for Engineers, administered by the Institution of Civil Engineers.
Answered by Neil Gray on 27 April 2022

S6W-07842: Briggs, Miles, Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date Lodged: 5 April 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to meet its renewable energy targets as part of National Planning Framework 4.
Answered by Tom Arthur on 19 April 2022

S6W-07745: Fiona Hyslop, Linlithgow, Scottish National Party, Date lodged: 31 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting the bids from Glasgow and Edinburgh to be part of the European Union’s 100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities mission and NetZeroCities project, and how any lessons learned will be shared among all of Scotland’s cities.
Answered by Kate Forbes on 19 April 2022

Liam Kerr, North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
S6W-07979: plans to establish a Housing Net Zero Technical Steering Group
S6W-07980: response to the Zero Emissions Social Housing Taskforce report
S6W-07981: review of the second Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing
S6W-07982: sector capacity assessment of the estimated net cost of the energy transition in the social housing sector
S6W-07827: technology neutral stance of Home Energy Scotland (homeowner decision making)
Answered by Patrick Harvie on 26 April 2022

Combustible Cladding
S6W-08006: Mark Griffin (Central Scotland) (Lab): clarification of “the regulations are not retrospective”
S6W-07855: Katy Clark (West Scotland) (Lab): whether BS 8414 testing for external cladding systems on buildings is robust
S6W-07853: Katy Clark (West Scotland) (Lab): response to University of Central Lancashire report, A Critical Appraisal of the UK’s Regulatory Regime for Combustible Fac?ades
Answered by Patrick Harvie on 26 April 2022

Debates

Scottish Government Debate: UK Shared Prosperity Fund: Implications for Scotland (27 April) 

Events

For the full list of BEFS Members’ upcoming events see our events calendar.

SPAB Scotland & PKHT: Scottish Mills Weekend
Date & Time: 7 – 8 May 2022
Location: Lower City Mills, Perth
SPAB Scotland and Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust invite you to the first ever celebration of mills and milling in Scotland. Topics covered will include looking after mills as a community trust, heritage grains & breadmaking, micro hydro-power, the Scottish textile industry, looking after mill machinery, and a short history of Perth Lower City Mills.

ICE: Union Canal Bicentenary – 200 years of life!
Date & Time: 11 May, 17:30-18:30
Online
Celebrate 200 years of the Union Canal, which links the heart of Edinburgh with the Falkirk Wheel (where it links to the Forth and Clyde Canal). Chris O’Connell from Scottish Canals will share his knowledge about the engineering heritage of this great canal as well as talk about the destination it is today for leisure activities, boating holidays and the wildlife haven it provides, creating places and spaces that people want to live, work in and visit.

GCHT: From Brides to The Bridewell: Women’s Lives in a Glasgow City Block
Date & Time: 12 May, 19:30
Online
Join Glasgow City Heritage Trust and Dr Nina Baker to look at what a particular street corner in the original heart of Glasgow tells us about the lives of the women who lived, worked and walked around it. Inspired by the redevelopment of a site near the corner of the High Street and Duke Street some years ago, Dr Baker has been investigating the history of this block and the range of buildings and uses it has had over the years, from manufacturing, housing, to commerce and social gatherings.

SURF Awards Shared Learning Workshop: Supporting young people to overcome barriers to employability
Date & Time: 12 May, 10:00 – 12:30
Location: The Pearce Institute, Govan, Glasgow
This free half-day SURF Awards workshop event provides an opportunity to explore successful approaches towards tackling barriers to employment facing young people in Scotland. The winner and a highly commended project from the ‘Youth Employability’ category highlighted in the 2021 SURF Awards process, joined by the 2020 winning project, will provide comment on their experiences and transferable learning.

Historic Houses: The Warwick Vase: Souvenirs of the Grand Tour
Date & Time: 12 May, 18:30 – 20:00
Location: Bonhams, EH2 1JX
With the Burrell Collection re-opening after extensive repairs, it feels appropriate to learn more about what is one of Scotland’s most treasured objects; a work of art that has inspired many inspirational forms in a number of mediums and known throughout the world. Simon Cottle, Consultant for Bonhams, was Keeper of Decorative Arts at Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Museum (1986-1990) before becoming an international auctioneer.

SHBT: Projects, Plans and Politics – A Scottish Tour in 1712
Date & Time: 17 May, 18:00
Online
Part of SHBT’s spring lecture series, New Perspectives on the Country House. Margaret Stewart uses newly uncovered evidence of a Scottish country house tour in 1712 to cast light on the architect James Gibbs.

SURF Awards Shared Learning Workshop: Learning from place-based regeneration initiatives
Date & Time: 19 May, 10:00 – 12:30
Location: Riddles Court, Edinburgh
This free half-day SURF Awards workshop event provides an opportunity to explore successful current approaches towards regenerating Scotland’s places with two winning projects from the ‘Most Improved Place’ and ‘Community Led Regeneration’ categories highlighted in the 2021 SURF Awards process. Guests will also hear from the Scottish Government, Scotland’s Towns Partnership and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

Training & Conferences

RTPI: Scottish Young Planners’ Conference 2022 – Harnessing the new planning system
Date & Time: 12 May, 09:00 – 17:00
Location: Perth Concert Hall
2022 marks another significant year for the Scottish planning system. The draft NPF4 marks a shift in thinking and focuses on the Climate Emergency as well as the Nature Crisis. The NPF4 is now to form part of the statutory development plan and will lead planning decisions until 2045 once adopted. There are challenges to be met, and opportunities to be had. How, then, do we harness the new planning system to ensure we shape places for people and contribute to reducing our impact on the planet?

A&DS CPD: Roof Slating by Graeme Millar of the NFRC
Date & Time: 26 May, 12:30 – 13:30
Online
Topics covered in the CPD will include:
Properties and supplies of Scottish slate, and alternatives available;
When to re-slate, when to repair, and when to totally strip and re-slate;
When re-roofing gives you the opportunity to retrofit insulation to roof voids;
Comparisons of finished roofs with different slates (especially those on terraced/tenement properties where the new slate abuts a roof with Scotch slate, good and bad examples).

PAS: SP=EED Community Engagement Skills training
Date & Time: 26 May, 10:00 – 15:00
Online
Want to brush up on your community engagement skills? Join PAS for their next live ‘SP=EED’ training, Thursday 26 May 2022. SPEED is a unique development programme designed to develop your skills and confidence in designing, delivering and evaluating community engagement.

Archaeological Research in Progress Conference 
Date & Time: 28 May 2022, 9:00 – 17:00
Location: King’s College Campus, University of Aberdeen
Archaeological Research in Progress (ARP) is a one-day conference presenting new research ?ndings and best practice in archaeology covering all periods from across Scotland and beyond. Organised by Archaeology Scotland in partnership with the Society of Antiquaries, this year’s ARP conference will include unique opportunities for all its attendees to network, explore the archaeological work being done around Scotland, and take part in a 45-minute walking tour led by Ali Cameron.

IHBC Annual School 2022 – Aberdeen
15-18 June
Offering a variety of delegate options:
Heritage MarketPlace virtual: 15 June
Day School hybrid (in-person & virtual): 17 June
Full School includes in-person tours and events: 16-18 June
The IHBC’s 2022 Aberdeen School explores how practitioners in the 21st Century can and should manage conservation and heritage that is, in different ways, ‘on the edge’.

Vacancies

BEFS: Communications Manager
Hours:  22.5 hrs per week
Salary: £25,000 – £27,500 (FTE)
Term: Permanent (subject to funding – Organisation funding in place to April 2025)
Join Built Environment Forum Scotland as Communications Manager and help us to increase understanding of the importance of our existing and historic built environment. Working closely with the Board, Director, and team, and communicating with our Member organisations, the post holder will be responsible for managing the breadth of the organisation’s (digital) communications channels. Adopting a proactive cross-sectoral approach, the postholder will play a key role in maintaining and raising BEFS profile with policy makers, the sector and wider stakeholders.
Closing date: 8 May

Cupar Development Trust: Development Officer
Salary:  £30,000 per annum, pro rata
Hours:  Part time post, hours to be discussed at interview
Fixed term to 31 March 2023, possibility of extension
Cupar Development Trust is seeking a highly motivated individual for the post of Development Officer.  The postholder will have a crucial influence on the delivery of planning and implementing selected projects, supporting the efforts of groups and individuals to bring about community improvement, building partnerships with agencies able to access resources to intervene in community development, and more.

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Yesterday (19 April) saw a debate on the National Planning Framework 4 in the Scottish Parliament on behalf of the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee. Many contributions focused on the need for further clarity in both priorities and language. The transcript can be accessed here, or watch the recording.

The Scottish Government has published a joint report alongside COSLA in response to last year’s review of the Town Centre Action Plan.

The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) has announced the two candidates in the running to take over from current President, Christina Gaiger.

Applications are invited by the RIAS to the Charles McKean Memorial Prize, open to all students of Architecture, Architectural Conservation and Architectural History in Scotland. The winning entry will receive a £1,000 prize. Deadline for submissions is 15 September.

The UK Government has announced that it is preparing a new Tentative List of natural, cultural and mixed sites for potential nomination for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The closing date for submitting expressions of interest is 6 May, with applications due by 15 July.

The Institute of Historic Building Conservation (IHBC) is marking a quarter of a century since its incorporation as a professional body in 2022-2023. They have launched a digital hub webpage, #IHBC25.

Booking is open for the IHBC Annual School, which takes place on 17 June in Aberdeen, with tours the previous and following days. In-person and virtual content explores how practitioners can and should manage conservation and heritage that is, in different ways, ‘on the edge’, facing challenges that may be geographical, social, or cultural.

Heritage Digital Academy run free training courses to help UK heritage organisations develop new digital practices and build key skills. Their upcoming course Designing Digital Services is open for applications until 26 April with the course beginning on 6 May. Learn more about the resources on offer, their upcoming courses, and webinars on their website.

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Consultation Responses

Draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) Consultation – Royal Society of Edinburgh response

RTPI Scotland’s response to the National Outcomes Inquiry (19/04/22)

Publications

Great Place Scheme (England & Nations) – final evaluation reports (National Lottery Heritage Fund, April 2022)
NLHF compare and contrast the findings of their two £22m place-based schemes and look at the lessons learned.

Scottish Futures Trust – Business Plan 2022/2023 (11/04/22)
The SFT said it is focused on working with its many key partners from the infrastructure and construction industries to improve the economic, social and environmental outcomes from Scotland’s infrastructure.

Archaeology Scotland Annual Report 2020-2021 (19/04/22)

Mapping Cultural Dispersal: Edinburgh Festivals (The Culture and Communities Mapping Project, February 2022)
In spring and summer 2021 the Culture and Communities Mapping Project conducted research on the role of festivals in Edinburgh communities outside the city centre.

The Object of Conservation: An Ethnography of Heritage Practice by Siân Jones, Thomas Yarrow (Routledge, 14/04/22)

Tyninghame: Landscapes and Lives by Judy Riley (Birlinn, out 5 May)
Tyninghame on the East Lothian coast was once an important monastic site, the burial place of St Baldred and later a bishop’s palace that eventually became the seat of the earls of Haddington.

Scottish Government Publications

Town centre action plan review: joint Scottish Government and COSLA response(13/04/22)
Joint response from SG and COSLA to the New Future for Scotland’s Town Centres report.

National Partnership for Culture: Workshop 1 – culture and wellbeing workshop report

National Partnership for Culture: Workshop 2 – culture and fair work workshop report

National Partnership for Culture: Workshop 3 – culture and education workshop report

National Partnership for Culture: Workshop 4 – measuring change workshop report

UK Government Releases

Communities across UK handed control of £2.6 billion levelling up funding (13/04/22)
Local areas across England will see £1.58 billion, Scotland £212 million, Wales £585 million and Northern Ireland £127 million made available under the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Welsh Government Publications

How can communities save buildings they care about? (Senedd Research, 11/04/22)
Listing systems are focused on the fabric of the buildings or historic interest, and not the value they have to the local community.

News Releases

Inspections start across Scottish heritage sites (Historic Environment Scotland, 11/04/22)
HES has begun an inspection programme to assess the condition of heritage sites around the country following concerns about decaying masonry.

Sector leaders unite on major piece of research (The Landscape Institute, 13/04/22)
The Landscape Skills and Workforce Survey will provide new insights into the economic structures and makeup of the landscape industry.

Pictish stone discovered in Scots field prompts fundraising campaign for conservation (14/04/22)
The stone was unearthed by archaeologists from the University of Aberdeen, in a field near Aberlemno in Angus in February.

Glasgow museums to return 49 looted objects (The Art Newspaper, 14/04/22)
Stolen artefacts will be given back to Nigeria, India, and a Native American tribe in the biggest restitution in Scottish history.

Stow Station House restoration hailed by rail chiefs (The Herald, 15/04/22)
A community trust restoration and refurbishment project that breathed fresh life into a Borders railway station building has won a double accolade.

Iraq’s ancient buildings are being destroyed by climate change (The Guardian, 15/04/22)
Water shortages leading to rising salt concentrations and sandstorms are eroding the ancient sites.

Regeneration: The NI villages bringing new life to old buildings (BBC, 19/04/22)
The Village Catalyst pilot aims to restore historic buildings at risk to the rural community hubs they once were, while tackling rural poverty and social isolation.

Opinion & Comment

Caroline Bressey: Black Victorians and Uncle Tom’s Cabin in Glasgow (GCHT, 31/03/22)
In a new Gallus Glasgow blog, Dr Caroline Bressey charts how black performers were attracted to the city by plays such as ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’, and ponders whether any of them settled here.

Russell Blackstock: Going, going, cone: Is it the end of the road for motorways like the M8? (Sunday Post, 3/04/22)
Some experts say that the bridge and its surrounds, which opened in June 1970 and carries up to 90,000 vehicles a day, is no longer fit for purpose for a modern city.

Vikki Jones: Future of culture in Edinburgh (Arts Professional, 12/04/22)
Recent research urged Edinburgh’s cultural sector to adopt a values-led approach to addressing inequities and precarities. Vikki Jones assesses the implications of the findings for the city.

Karen Anderson FRSE: Wellbeing and the built environment (Scottish Construction Now, 14/04/22)
The built environment impacts hugely on the quality of our lives – and by extension on our health and wellbeing.

The Guardian view on the future of buildings: make do and mend (Editorial, 17/04/22)
The decision by London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, to allow the demolition of a flagship Marks & Spencer store on London’s Oxford Street has caused controversy.

Gabriella Bennett: Church conversions simply fail to inspire (The Sunday Times, 17/04/22)
What is the future for Scotland’s church buildings?

Mike Harrison: Put people first to revive our city centres (The Herald, 18/04/22)
The reason why our high streets are failing is because they no longer seem relevant.

Rob Davies: Where Britain’s journey to insulation went wrong (The Guardian, 19/04/22)
There has been a long-term decline in UK home energy efficiency installations.

Parliamentary Questions

Questions marked with a triangle (?) are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6W-08088: Mark Griffin, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 14/04/2022
To ask the Scottish Government how the effectiveness of the Third National Planning Framework (NPF3) was monitored and evaluated and whether this was done against the outcomes set out in the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997.

S6W-07951: Paul Sweeney, Glasgow, Scottish Labour, Date lodged: 8 April 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will introduce a formal requirement in planning (a) policy and (b) guidance that all applications for listed building consent to a planning authority should include supporting evidence from (i) an accredited specialist conservation architect or conservation architect registered on the Royal Institute of British Architects Conservation Register, and (ii) structural and/or civil engineers registered on the Conservation Accreditation Register for Engineers, administered by the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Parliamentary Questions and Answers

Questions marked with a triangle (?) are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6W-07770: Alexander Burnett, Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date lodged: 1 April 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will confirm how many Historic Environment Scotland properties are currently (a) open to the public at full-capacity, (b) partly open and (c) closed.
Answered by Neil Gray on 12 April 2022

S6W-07503: Alasdair Allan, Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Scottish National Party, Date lodged: 22 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether Historic Environment Scotland (HES) has reported to it any long-term plan for remedial works to Kisimul Castle, and what its position is on whether any agreements undertaken on this subject are being honoured by HES.
Answered by Neil Gray on 12 April 2022

Debates

Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee Debate: National Planning Framework 4 (19/04/22) Transcript, Recording

Events

For the full list of BEFS Members’ upcoming events see our events calendar.

Town Centre Action Plan 2 Series: #6 Digital: Transforming Our Towns
Date & Time: 21 April, 10:00 – 11:15
Online
In this final session in Scotland’s Towns Partnership’s TCAP2 Series, we focus on digital and the potential for transformative change; creating equitable opportunities for businesses, people and places.  Participants will hear from industry experts and exemplars, with ample opportunity for questions and discussion.

Mill Architects and Perth & Kinross Council: Tenement Repair and Maintenance Event
Date & Time: 28 April: 15:00 – 18:00
A K Bell Library, 2 – 8 York Place, Perth
Arranging repairs to a shared building can be a challenge. This Tenement Repair Event will help and assist any property owners looking to repair or maintain their jointly owned tenement. Hosted by MILL Architects in conjunction with Perth & Kinross Council, join us as we present and discuss the practicalities, issues, and available funding, concerning tenement repair and maintenance.

RIAS Bookshop: An evening with Fiona McLachlan
Date & Time: 4 May, 18:00 – 20:00
Location: 15 Rutland Square, EH1 2BE
Free, booking required.
Join us at the RIAS Bookshop for a wonderful evening with RIAS President Christina Gaiger talking to architect and professor Fiona McLachlan about her book ‘Colour Strategies in Architecture’, which explores the potential of colour to modify space and the way in which buildings are perceived.

SURF Award Shared Learning Event: Best Practice Examples of Housing Led Regeneration
Date & Time: 5 May, 10:00 – 12:30
Location: The Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh
This free half-day SURF Awards workshop event provides an opportunity to explore successful approaches to housing led regeneration initiatives providing wider community outcomes. The winning and highly commended projects from the ‘Housing and Regeneration’ category highlighted in the 2021 SURF Awards process will provide comment on their experiences and transferable learning. Guests will also hear from the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations and Urban Union.

SPAB Scotland & PKHT: Scottish Mills Weekend
Date & Time: 7 – 8 May 2022
Location: Lower City Mills, Perth
SPAB Scotland and Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust are thrilled to invite you to the first ever celebration of mills and milling in Scotland, to be held in Lower City Mills, Perth and with visits to mills in Perthshire. Topics covered will include looking after mills as a community trust, heritage grains & breadmaking, micro hydro-power, the Scottish textile industry, looking after mill machinery, and a short history of Perth Lower City Mills. There will also be visits to sites not normally open to the public.

SLE Annual Conference: Homes At The Heart of Rural Communities
Date & Time: 17 May, 09:00 – 17:30
Sheraton Grand Hotel, Edinburgh
Members: £80+VAT; Non-Members: £160+VAT
Sarah-Jane Laing, SLE Chief Executive, Shona Robison, Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Housing and Local Government and Dr Moses Jenkins, Senior Technical Officer, Historic Environment Scotland are keynote speakers, and sessions include a panel session “The Climate Change Challenge in Delivering Housing” and afternoon debate “How do we build more rural homes?”

Training

A&BS: Attracting Sponsorship for Regional & Rural Organisations
Date & Time: 26 April, 10:00 – 12:00
Online
This short session will explore a range of tools and tactics for organisations across Scotland to identify sponsorship opportunities and implement the most effective approaches to attract sponsorship. Corporate partnerships offer excellent opportunities to build and strengthen wider fundraising activities for regional and rural organisations.

A&BS: Developing Creative Partnerships – level 2
Date & Time: 27 & 28 April, 09:30 – 12:30
Online
This two-session course provides a comprehensive training opportunity to deepen your knowledge of corporate fundraising. The course includes practical training on critical skills for sponsorship including effective prospecting, aligning your pitch, and delivering a partnership ready for renewal.

Archaeology Scotland’s Field School – Investigating Cathkin Park 
Date & Time: 15 June – 26 June
Join Archaeology Scotland this summer to excavate one of Scotland’s most iconic sporting sites – Cathkin Park. You will be part of a team of archaeologists and will gain experience in a range of archaeology techniques and skills including community archaeology, excavation, creative interpretation, and digital recording.

Vacancies

Measures and Indicators to Support the National Lottery Heritage Fund’s work on Place
Value of contract: £20,000
This piece of work is a scoping exercise to develop NLHF’s strategic approach to placed based work. The outputs of this project are designed to inform decisions by the Executive and Board about the Heritage Fund’s future role in supporting placemaking work and the strategies for investments that help improve local places.
Closing date: Friday 22 April

Glasgow City Heritage Trust: Heritage Manager (Maternity Cover)
3 days/week starting June 2022
£30,000 pro rata (£18,000)
GCHT seek a part-time Heritage Manager (Maternity Cover) to join our team in the administration, and management of their Grants Programme in Glasgow aimed at historic building repairs, project development and heritage outreach and education work. The 2022/23 Historic Environment Grants budget is just under £620,000. The role will take overall responsibility for the delivery of the new grants process, and management of a small team of Heritage Officers.
Closing date: Monday 25 April

HES: Senior Heritage Policy Officer
37 hours / week, Edinburgh and the Lothians
Salary: £34,303 – £39,873
The Senior Heritage Policy Officer will be responsible for managing and coordinating Historic Environment Scotland’s programme of policy, guidance about how best to look after Scotland’s historic environment. The role will support the directorate’s cross-HES working and work with external stakeholders, as well as help support the development of HES’s high-quality external training programme.
Closing date: Wednesday 27 April

Scottish Civic Trust: Diverse Heritage Events Officer
Fixed-term for 3 years with possibility of extension
£25,000 pro-rata, based on a 21 hour working week.
The purpose of the role is to coordinate the Trust’s Diverse Heritage events and activities, working closely with the Director and Diverse Heritage Strategy & Development Officer. This project involves supporting and developing the Trust’s network of local heritage and community groups, amenity societies and civic trusts through events, including an annual learning event, and promotional material and resources.

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BEFS News

The Heritage Alliance has published an open letter on The Threat to Ukraine’s Heritage, addressed to the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation, Olga Borisovna Lyubimova. Read the European Heritage Heads Forum official statement of solidarity and support here.

31 March marked the end of the public consultation on the draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4). Read BEFS response to the NPF4 Consultation, and our response to the Local Development Planning Regulations and Guidance Consultation, along with responses from BEFS Members on our website.

The Scottish Parliament Local Government, Housing and Planning Committeehas published its report on the draft NPF4, after consultation with stakeholders (including BEFS) through evidence sessions and a call for views. The tight timeline for scrutiny has widely been cause for some concern, and BEFS notes the publication of a joint letter from the UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence calling for a pause on NPF4 to seek further clarification from Scottish Government.

On the BEFS blog, Kathie Pollard, Policy and Practice Lead at the Scottish Land Commission, looks back at Land Reuse Month 2022. Read her recap of the sessions and resources highlighting the role of the public sector in bringing Scotland’s vacant and derelict land back into use.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has released its latest report, Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of climate change. Launching the report, IPCC Working Group III Co-Chair Jim Skea noted that “Action in this decade is critical to capture the mitigation potential of buildings.”

Professionals who are involved in, or work with, the heritage sector are invited to complete a short survey on Barriers to Climate Mitigation in the Built Heritage Sector. The survey aims to achieve significant insight into the current barriers to mitigating climate change in Scotland’s older buildings. Last few days – the survey closes on Monday, 11 April.

Are you part of a local civic trust, heritage group, history society or development trust? Scottish Civic Trust are running a survey to find out how local groups operating in the civic environment across Scotland are faring in a post-COVID, post-Brexit world. Meanwhile, Glasgow City Heritage Trust are seeking your thoughtsabout the current state of Glasgow’s built heritage.

The National Heritage Memorial Fund are highlighting their £40m COVID-19 Response Fund, which is available to support heritage assets that are nationally important in Scotland and the UK and at risk due to the impact of the pandemic.

Historic Environment Scotland has published ‘Heritage For All’ – its new Corporate Plan for 2022 Onwards. HES has also opened expressions of interest for its Heritage & Place Programme, with grants up to £1.5million available for the regeneration of Scotland’s heritage areas.

The prospectus for the second round of the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund has been published.

Booking is now open for the IHBC Annual School 15-18 June 2022 in Aberdeen. A variety of delegate options including hybrid and virtual are available.

Registration is also open for Archaeological Research in Progress 2022; a one day conference hosted by Archaeology Scotland presenting new research and findings covering all periods from across Scotland and beyond.

Call for Papers: Managing Imperial Legacies conference, 22 – 23 June. Managing Imperial Legacies is a 2-year networking project funded by the Royal Society of Edinburgh whose purpose is to highlight how the legacies of white supremacy can be found within the built environment. Submissions are welcomed from those able to attend both in person, and online – with funding for day travel available to community groups and individuals unaffiliated to institutions or without access to funding, who are hoping to present in person.

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Consultation Responses

Draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) Consultation – BEFS Response (31/3/22)

Local Development Planning – Regulations & Guidance Consultation – BEFS Response (31/3/22)

New Realities of Retail and Ecommerce Call for Views – BEFS Response (16/3/22)

New Realities of Retail and Ecommerce Call for Views – Published responses

Heat networks delivery plan – draft: consultation analysis (31/3/22)

Publications

IPCC Sixth Assessment Report: Mitigation of Climate Change
The Working Group III Report assesses the mitigation of climate change, examines the sources of global emissions and explains developments in emission reduction and mitigation efforts.

IHBC Guidance Notes: Design sources for historic building conservation (02/22)
This new IHBC Toolbox Guidance Note seeks to provide guidance and information sources on design concepts and issues in relation to the IHBC Design/Presentation competence.

Guidance for Peatland Restoration and the Historic Environment in Scotland (ALGAO Scotland, 03/2022)
The intention of this Guidance Note is to set out an informed procedure to secure the protection of heritage and historic environment features within peatland restoration projects across Scotland.

Heritage Tourism in 2021: An Overview (Heritage Futures, 21/3/22)
The impact that the pandemic has made on the heritage sector is made clear by visitor figures for 2021.

Community Insights (David Hume Institute, 23/3/22)
Building on DHI’s Action Project and a Scotland of Better Places, DHI embarked on a project with the William Grant Foundation aiming to develop new insights from correlating open data about Scotland’s communities. A summary of their findings and three deep dive insights into Buckhaven, Campbeltown, and Stranraer are now available.

The Cádiz Document: InnovaConcrete Guidelines for Conservation of Concrete Heritage (ICOMOS International Scientific Committee on 20 Century Heritage, 23/3/22)
Guidance for the conservation of concrete heritage with respect to its cultural, historical, aesthetic, social and technological values that define its significance.

The Scottish Third Sector Tracker — Challenges and support for Scotland’s Third Sector: analysis from Wave One’s open questions (SCVO, 28/3/22)
The Scottish Third Sector Tracker is a longitudinal panel survey gathering regular insights from Third Sector organisations (TSOs) in Scotland. The first wave of data collection was completed between June and August 2021.

Vacant & Derelict Land – Community Impact Tool (Scottish Land Commission)
This tool is made up of a survey with a scoring system that has been designed to help understand and collect evidence of how a vacant or derelict site makes communities feel.

Community Wealth Building and Land (Scottish Land Commission)
This guidance sets out actions that can be taken in the short and long term to support an inclusive, sustainable, and empowered local economy, where land is used and managed productively and in the public interest.

Heritage and Climate Change: A strategy for Historic England’s response to the climate, energy and biodiversity crisis (Historic England)

Scottish Government Publications

Getting the Right Change – retail strategy for Scotland (24/3/22)

Heat networks delivery plan (31/3/22)
Sets out how provisions of the Heat Networks Scotland Act 2021 and wider policy will contribute to increasing heat networks in Scotland.

City Centre Recovery Task Force: report (31/3/22)
Co-produced with the Scottish Cities Alliance, this report sets out the specific impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on city centres, and identifies the immediate priorities to support city centre recovery.

Scottish Local Government Finance Statistics (SLGFS) 2020-21
Annual publication providing a comprehensive overview of financial activity of Scottish local authorities in 2020-21 based on authorities’ audited accounts.

News Releases

Fiona Hyslop welcomes Culture Minister to Linlithgow Palace (Edinburgh News, 22/3/22)
Linlithgow MSP Fiona Hyslop welcomed the new Culture Minister, Neil Gray, to Linlithgow Palace, along with representatives from Historic Environment Scotland.

Bringing empty homes back into use ‘could help housing shortage’ (STV News, 22/3/22)
The Scottish Empty Homes Partnership said 43,766 long-term empty properties exist in Scotland.

New land ownership register to launch in Scotland (Farming UK, 28/3/22)
The public register, set to launch on 1 April, is part of the Scottish government’s commitment to improve transparency of land ownership.

Jedburgh youngsters get a taste of construction with traditional skills ‘mini masterclasses’ (Project Scotland, 29/3/22)
The demonstration day was delivered by Build Your Future as part of the Jedburgh Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme.

Concerns raised with Scottish Government about continued closure of Kisimul Castle on Isle of Barra (Press and Journal, 29/3/22)
Western Isles MSP Alasdair Allan has written to the Scottish Government’s constitution, external Affairs and culture minister, Angus Robertson, seeking clarity on the castle’s future.

National Trust for Scotland looks to create 300 jobs with £38m investment (BBC, 31/3/22)

Trade bodies give mixed response to draft national planning 4 framework (Project Scotland, 31/3/22)
Homes for Scotland (HFS) warned that the plans risk making the housing crisis worse, warning that the shortfall is approaching 100,000 homes. However, the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) welcomed the ‘ambitions’ of the Scottish Government.

Historic sites across Scotland open their doors to visitors once more (HES, 31/3/22)
April marks the start of Historic Environment Scotland’s reopening of a number of seasonal sites.

£1.5 million targeted at tackling empty Dumfries town centre buildings (Daily Record, 1/4/22)
The Dumfries Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme (CARS), Dumfries Partnership Action Group (DPAG), Historic Environment Scotland (HES) and the council have come together to develop Dynamically Different Dumfries.

Scottish Government to ban bring in tough flammable cladding ban (The Herald, 4/4/22)
All new residential and “high-risk” buildings above 11m in Scotland will be banned from using combustible materials.

Opinion & Comment

Noella Pio Kivlehan: Buildings that elevated cities: the Pompidou Centre (RICS Modus, 10/3/22)
Does Paris’s innovative ‘inside out’ building provide a groundbreaking arts playground or is it a grotesquely attention-seeking eyesore?

Rowan Moore: Rip it up and start again? The great Cumbernauld town centre debate (The Observer, 3/4/22)
Depending on who you ask, it is either a blight on the landscape or a fine example of 1960s brutalism. Is demolition the right answer?

Leigh Sparks: A Retail Strategy for Scotland (4/4/22)
The Professor of Retail Studies at the Institute for Retail Studies, University of Stirling reflects on the newly published Retail Strategy for Scotland.

Parliamentary Questions and Answers

Questions marked with a triangle (?) are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6W-07194: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date lodged: 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many of Historic Environment Scotland’s properties are being left, as has been reported, to “gracefully die”.
Answered by Neil Gray on 16 March 2022

S6W-06895: McLennan, Paul, East Lothian, Scottish National Party, Date Lodged: 2 March 2022
“To ask the Scottish Government whether the provisions in the UK Building Safety Bill that apply to Scotland will be enacted through a statutory instrument in the Scottish Parliament, and, if so, what it anticipates the potential impact will be on the built environment in Scotland.”
Answered by Shona Robison on 15 March 2022

S6W-07206: Alasdair Allan, Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Scottish National Party, Date Lodged: 11/03/2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will urgently consider revising the criteria applied to insulation installations in the Western Isles, in light of reports that Tighean Innse Gall is no longer able to administer government-funded insulation projects due to the PAS 2035 standards causing demand for such schemes to collapse in the islands.
Answered by Patrick Harvie (24/03/2022)

S6W-07149: Donald Cameron, Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date Lodged: 9 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has cost Historic Environment Scotland to erect and maintain scaffolding at the Dun Carloway Broch site since July 2019.
Answered by Neil Gray on 16 March 2022

S6W-07307: Griffin, Mark, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 15 March 2022
“To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) scope and (b) timeline is of the empty homes audit.”
Answered by: Shona Robison on 25 March 2022

S6W-07359: Griffin, Mark, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 17 March 2022
“To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Homes for Scotland report, The Social and Economic Benefits of Home Building in Scotland.”
Answered by: Shona Robison on 25 March 2022

Stephen Kerr, Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party,
Town Centres:
S6W-06988: developing community enterprises and entrepreneurship that are based around local and circular economies.
S6W-06984: plans to increase number of people living in town centres.
S6W-06987: plans to encourage local small businesses to set up on the high street.
Answered by Tom Arthur

Other Parliamentary Activity

Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee: Tenement property and common repairs
Letter from the Convener to the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Housing and Local Government, 10 March 2022
The Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee has written to Shona Robison to ask if the four-year timetable for the Scottish Law Commission’s work on tenement property and common repairs is appropriate.

Health, Social Care and Sport Committee: Draft Fourth National Planning Framework
Letter from the Convener, Health, Social Care and Sport Committee to the Convener, Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee, 24 February 2022 (published 17/3/22)

Economy and Fair Work Committee 30 March 2022 [Draft]
Meeting date: Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Transcript of evidence session on Town Centres and Retail with Professor Leigh Sparks, deputy principal and professor of retail studies at the University of Stirling.

Motions

Motion ref. S6M-03743
A Diversity and Inclusion Charter for Businesses in the Built Environment
Submitted by: Paul McLennan, East Lothian, Scottish National Party.
Date lodged: Friday, March 25, 2022

Motion ref. S6M-03816
Social and Economic Benefits of Home Building in Scotland
Submitted by: Mark Griffin, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour.
Date lodged: Monday, April 4, 2022 R

Motion ref. S6M-03655
Celebrating 10 Years of the Ridge, Dunbar
Submitted by: Paul McLennan, East Lothian, Scottish National Party.
Date lodged: Friday, March 18, 202

Events

For the full list of BEFS Members’ upcoming events see our events calendar.

AHSS Forth & Borders: The Impact of Enslavement on Scotland’s Built Environment
Date & Time: 11 April, 18:30
Augustine United Church, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh
Drawing on her recent research for the National Trust for Scotland, Jennifer Melville provides historic examples of the acquisition and enhancement of properties in Scotland by Scots living in the West Indies, where a disproportionate number of Scots settled, and shows how wealth derived from the enslavement of people in these far-flung colonies came to have such a significant impact on Scotland’s buildings.

Under One Roof: Beyond the Tenement Acts: Landlords and common legal issues 
Date & Time: 12 April, 12:00
Online
Owners can find reading and understanding legislation to be one of the more difficult parts of tenement flat ownership. However, it is important that powers understand key parts of this legislation, such as the Right of Support; Right to Light; negligence and damage. Join us to learn about the common law legislation that is useful to tenement flats from industry experts.

IHBC Scotland Branch: A Modern Vernacular? Mass Housing as a Place-Specific Global and Local Heritage
Date & time: 20 April, 19.30
Online
A talk by Miles Glendinning, Professor in Architectural Conservation at the University of Edinburgh and Director of the Scottish Centre for Conservation Studies, about High-Rise Tower blocks and their conservation. This is a precursor to June’s IHBC Annual School which will be in Aberdeen, a hybrid in person and online event, as well as forming part of our occasional online CPD series.
Contact scotland@ihbc.org.uk to register.

LIS: The Narrative of Scotland’s Post War Designed Landscapes
Date & Time: 20 April 18:00 – 19:30
The Landscape Institute Scotland Mark Turnbull Travel Award lecture celebrates the profession’s postwar landscape narrative that continues to evolve and inspire as part of Scotland’s Year of Stories. Speakers include Charlotte McLean, Winner of the Mark Turnbull Travel Award,
Dr Julie Candy, Helen Bowman, and Veronica Fraser from Historic Environment Scotland, and Dr Luca Csepely-Knorr of Manchester Metropolitan University.

Town Centre Action Plan 2 Series: #5 Digital: Transforming Our Towns
Date & Time: 21 April, 10:00 – 11:15
Online
In this final session in Scotland’s Towns Partnership’s TCAP2 Series, we focus on digital and the potential for transformative change; creating equitable opportunities for businesses, people and places.  Participants will hear from industry experts and exemplars, with ample opportunity for questions and discussion.

Training

PKHT: Bon Accord Baths – A Conservation Statement
Date & Time: 27 April, 12.30 – 13.30pm
Online
For the first session of Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust’s 6-part Architectural Conservation CPD series, attendees will hear from Ian Davidson of Aberdeen’s Bon Accord Baths about their conservation statement. If you are looking to refresh your conservation knowledge or encounter historic buildings as part of your work portfolio, then this is the CPD programme for you.

A&BS: Attracting Sponsorship for Regional & Rural Organisations
Date & Time: 26 April, 10:00 – 12:00
Online
This short session will explore a range of tools and tactics for organisations across Scotland to identify sponsorship opportunities and implement the most effective approaches to attract sponsorship. Corporate partnerships offer excellent opportunities to build and strengthen wider fundraising activities for regional and rural organisations.

A&BS: Developing Creative Partnerships – level 2
Date & Time: 27 & 28 April, 09:30 – 12:30
Online
This two-session course provides a comprehensive training opportunity to deepen your knowledge of corporate fundraising. The course includes practical training on critical skills for sponsorship including effective prospecting, aligning your pitch, and delivering a partnership ready for renewal.

PAS: Community Engagement Skills (SP=EED Verification Part 1)
Date & Time: Thursday 5 May, 10am – 3pm
Online
SP=EED® is a unique skills development programme aimed at planners and others who would like to develop their community engagement skills and knowledge.  This interactive workshop is an opportunity to deepen your understanding of effective engagement, explore creative tools and techniques, share experiences and learn from others.  ‘Extremely useful for any profession which involves both built environment and people’s opinions’

Vacancies

Under One Roof: Education and Training Officer
Salary: £25,000
Under One Roof is looking for someone from a third sector, housing, or architectural background whose skills will help expand the organisation’s impact with tenement flat owners.
Closing date: Friday 8 April

Fife Employment Access Trust: Silverburn Park Flax Mill Project
FEAT have secured Delivery Phase funding from the NLHF for the renovation and conversion of the B listed Flax Mill at Silverburn Park, a 27-acre public park on the outskirts of Leven in Fife, into a Visitor Centre and Community Hub. The Flax Mill will contain a cafe? and restaurant, meeting and event space, arts and crafts studios, office space, a backpackers’ hostel, and interpretative displays.
FEAT is seeking a full-time employee to run the Activities Programme as well as a consultancy position for Development Officer.
Activities Co-ordinator – Silverburn Park Flax Mill Project
Closing date Monday 11 April
Invitation to Tender: Development Officer for Silverburn Flax Mill Renovation
Deadline for submissions Monday 18 April

Edinburgh World Heritage: Conservation Architect and Grants Manager
Full time, permanent
Salary: £32,960-£36,771
Edinburgh World Heritage is looking to appoint a Conservation Architect and Grants Manager to deliver our Conservation Funding Programme to protect and support the World Heritage Site. The Conservation Architect & Grants Manager leads and provides strategic direction for conservation and enhancement of the built heritage, working with stakeholders and communities to deliver meaningful projects.
Closing date: Monday 11 April

Edinburgh World Heritage: Climate Change Project Officer
Full time for a fixed term to 31st March 2025 (0.8FTE may be considered)
Salary: £28,840-£30,900
Edinburgh World Heritage is looking to appoint a Climate Change Project Officer to help deliver our Climate Emergency programme and to enable Edinburgh’s heritage to be better managed and more resilient. The Climate Change Project Officer is responsible for delivering innovative projects that aim to test technical solutions and define best practice, primarily in relation to sensitive energy efficiency retrofit of historic buildings.
Closing date: Monday 18 April

Fife Historic Buildings Trust: Finance & Administration Officer
Full time or job share, fixed term to 31 March 2024.
Salary: £28,000 – £30,000
FHBT are recruiting for a charity finance professional to co-ordinate the financial activities of FHBT. Sound financial control underpins all the great work we do, and this is an opportunity to bring your experience to join a welcoming and high achieving team, and play your part in our work for people and historic places in Fife.
Closing date: Tuesday 26 April

Scottish Civic Trust: Diverse Heritage Events Officer
Fixed-term for 3 years with possibility of extension
£25,000 pro-rata, based on a 21 hour working week.
The purpose of the role is to coordinate the Trust’s Diverse Heritage events and activities, working closely with the Director and Diverse Heritage Strategy & Development Officer. This project involves supporting and developing the Trust’s network of local heritage and community groups, amenity societies and civic trusts through events, including an annual learning event, and promotional material and resources.
Closing date: Wednesday 30 April

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BEFS News

In changing social and economic times there are ever more pulls on the public purse-strings. Ahead of May’s local elections, BEFS has joined with organisations from across the sector to launch Culture and Heritage: A Manifesto for Local Government, to demonstrate clearly the value of both culture and heritage in supporting recovery from the pandemic and contributing to economic development, health, wellbeing, and education outcomes.

BEFS remains a supporting Member of the Climate Heritage Network, who have published their 2021 Annual Report “Mobilising Culture for Climate Action”.

Work on developing the delivery programme for the draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) is progressing with Scottish Futures Trust.

The Architectural Heritage Fund (Scotland) has announced the continuation of its long-standing partnership with Historic Environment Scotland. AHF will re-launchits Scotland grants programme in April 2022, with financial support for early-stage viability and development projects.

It’s your last chance to enter the SPAB Heritage Awards, which close 28 March. SPAB Scotland are also looking forward to their Milling Matters weekend event in May, with a packed programme held in collaboration with Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust.

Submit your nominations for the IHBC Marsh Awards 2022 by 31 March. Prizes include £500 and a free place at the IHBC’s Aberdeen 2022 Annual School in June.

Finally, applications close on 31 March at the Scottish Civic Trust, who are seeking to help deliver an exciting and sector-leading range of priorities aimed at celebrating Scotland’s built environment, taking action for its improvement, and empowering its communities.

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Consultations

Local Development Planning – regulations and guidance: consultation
Closes 31 March 2022

Open Space Strategies and Play Sufficiency Assessments: consultation
Closes 31 March 2022

Draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) – Public Consultation
Closes 31 March 2022

Publications

Community Heritage in a (Post)COVID World (Scottish Civic Trust, 1/3/22)
Video resources from SCT’s My Place Mentoring programme, which came to a close in February after a successful three year run.

Is Scotland climate ready? – 2022 Report to Scottish Parliament (Climate Change Commission, 03/22)
The independent assessment of the second Scottish Climate Change Adaptation Programme (SCCAP2) finds that more needs to be done to translate ambition into actions that are commensurate with the scale of the challenge.

Climate Heritage Network 2021 Annual Report “Mobilising Culture for Climate Action”(10/3/22)

Caring For Our Vernacular Heritage – Department for Communities (Northern Ireland) and Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Ireland)

Accelerating net zero delivery (Innovate UK, 9/3/22)
New research analyses the economic and social benefits to be gained by taking a place-based approach to climate action in UK city-regions.

Briefing paper: What is open data and why does it matter? (David Hume Institute, 3/3/22)
Despite the benefits demonstrated by those leading the way in open data, Scotland is moving at a glacial pace and the gap with other countries is widening.

Scottish Government Publications

Building standards – verifiers management and training and development recording: review (14/02/22)
A study to investigate how the recording of training needs identified through the Competency Assessment System (CAS) is managed.

Skills: shared outcomes framework (9/3/22)
This framework is the means by which Skills Development Scotland and the Scottish Funding Council will monitor and report on collaborative projects that contribute to overarching skills outcomes, set in the National Strategy for Economic Transformation and the missions of the Future Skills action plan.

Scotland’s Carbon Footprint 1998-2018 (15/3/22)
Estimates of Scotland’s greenhouse gas emissions on a consumption basis for the period 1999 to 2018.

News Releases

Heritage and culture coalition publishes manifesto ahead of Scottish elections (Museums + Heritage Advisor, 7/3/22)
The coalition of ten organisations has outlined the ways local councils could benefit from support for cultural recovery.

Scotland is not yet climate ready, CCC says (15/3/22)
Action to adapt to critical impacts such as wetter winters and rising sea levels has stalled, posing risks to people, infrastructure and business.

Rare Pictish stone unearthed near Angus (BBC, 7/3/22)
The discovery was made by a team from the University of Aberdeen during survey work at Aberlemno.

HES seeks views on listing of St Rollox Locomotive Works in Glasgow (Historic Environment Scotland, 7/3/22)
The consultation will run until Monday 28 March.

Highland Cinema Red Roofs of Scotland exhibition (The Herald, 13/3/22)
Amateur photographers are invited to enter the ‘Red Roofs of Scotland’ photography competition to celebrate the second anniversary of the Highland Cinema.

Vision of Kilmarnock’s future unleashed as radical proposals unveiled for town (Daily Record, 6/3/22)
A revamp of the historic Palace Theatre — the town’s cultural gem — is the focal point of the makeover.

Climate change: First Minister challenged over funding for £33bn retrofitting buildings plans(The Scotsman 2/3/22)
Nicola Sturgeon has been challenged to outline how the retrofitting and decarbonisation of more than one million buildings in Scotland will be paid for before 2030.

Opinion & Comment

Access in Holyrood Park (BBC Radio Scotland Out of Doors 5/3/22, listen from 1:14:00)
Dr David Mitchell, HES Director of Conservation joins a discussion about managing risk versus access to Hutton’s Section in Holyrood Park, Edinburgh.

Paul Sweeney MSP: Glasgow’s historic buildings have been neglected – but we must not repeat the mistakes of the past (The Big Issue, 8/3/22)
The disastrous tearing down of tenement districts in post-war Glasgow should be a lesson for policy makers eyeing up redevelopment.

Cumbernauld town centre demolition: Debate rages over future of Scotland’s new towns(The National, 12/3/22)
NEWS of the planned demolition and redevelopment of Cumbernauld town centre has drawn much debate and attention.

Scottish castles featured in Outlander could be in dire need of repair due to soaring visitor numbers (The Scotsman, 13/3/22)
Historic Environment Scotland has developed a new course to attract more people to gain the skills necessary to survey at-risk historic properties.

Feminist town planning would work ‘hand-in-hand with misogyny report’ (The Scotsman, 13/3/22)
Eilidh Dickson, policy manager for Engender, said she was “really keen” to see feminist town planning being introduced as the Scottish Government welcomed “radical” reforms to combat misogyny.

Barbara Cummins: Advocating for a more understandable and effective planning system(3/3/22)
The Chair of the PAS Policy Group and Vice Chair of the PAS Board outlines the important role of the PAS Policy Group.

City leaders say almost all of Edinburgh’s most important historic buildings have now been saved (Edinburgh News, 11/3/22)
Only two Category ‘A’ listed buildings will remain ‘at risk’ in Edinburgh’s World Heritage Site once current or planned restoration work is complete – down 14 from a decade ago.

Phil Prentice: Communities key to future of city centres (1/3/22)
The Chief Officer of Scotland’s Towns Partnership argues that Scotland’s new Town Centre Action Plan, to be launched in April, delivers a more holistic approach to placemaking.

Caitriona Jordan: Upskilling our existing workforce is key to getting apprentices ready for zero carbon (SCN, 9/3/22)
Scotland will not achieve zero carbon without a focus on upskilling and retraining those already in the sector, according to the head of retrofit programmes at Construction Scotland Innovation Centre.

Scottish planning authorities need support to deliver economic transformation (The Planner, 7/3/22)
The Scottish Property Federation (SPF) has called for additional resources for the planning system to support economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

A tale of two cities: Relevant considerations in appeals against listed building designation(2/3/22)
Cameron Greig of Morton Fraser lawyers reflects on the legal submissions on behalf of Historic Environment Scotland in the recent appealed listing of the Aberdeen tower blocks.

St Andrews: Fears historic cathedral and castle could be closed as tourists flock to town for 150th Open (Fife Today, 2/3/22)
“The ongoing and indefinite closure of both properties – apart from the visitor centre at St Andrews Castle – is causing concern amongst some residents and businesses”

Cultural tourism faces ‘double jeopardy’ in 2022 (Arts Professional, 1/3/22)
MPs warned that, for some attractions, “this year might be more financially challenging than the last two”.

Parliamentary Questions

Questions marked with a triangle (?) are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6W-07194: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date lodged: 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many of Historic Environment Scotland’s properties are being left, as has been reported, to “gracefully die”.

S6W-07206: Alasdair Allan, Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Scottish National Party, Date Lodged: 11/03/2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will urgently consider revising the criteria applied to insulation installations in the Western Isles, in light of reports that Tighean Innse Gall is no longer able to administer government-funded insulation projects due to the PAS 2035 standards causing demand for such schemes to collapse in the islands.

S6W-07149: Donald Cameron, Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date Lodged: 9 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has cost Historic Environment Scotland to erect and maintain scaffolding at the Dun Carloway Broch site since July 2019.

S6W-07282: Miles Briggs, Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date Lodged: 14/03/2022
To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish its response for the consultation, Building standards (fire safety).

Parliamentary Questions and Answers

Questions marked with a triangle (?) are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

S6O-00815: Donald Cameron, Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date Lodged: 23/02/2022
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that Historic Environment Scotland is considering criteria that could be used to identify sites that could be left to managed decline.
Taken in the Chamber on 03/03/2022

Liam McArthur, Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats, Date Lodged: 02/02/2022
S6W-06097: Passivhaus standards for new build housing
Expected Answer date 02/03/2022
Answered by Patrick Harvie (01/03/2022)

Dean Lockhart, Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date Lodged: 25/02/2022
EPC rating requirements:
S6W-06900 Exemptions
S6W-06901 Timeline for introduction of regulations and enforcement
S6W-06902 Total cost for private rented sector and funding available
Answered by Patrick Harvie (07/03/2022)

S6W-06917: Mark Griffin, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 25/02/2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has begun assessing the additional resourcing and skills requirements of the Fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4), and when it will prepare a strategy to address these requirements.
Answered by Tom Arthur (08/03/2022)

Mark Griffin, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 25/02/2022 R
The Housing to 2040 strategy:
S6W-06919: Skills audit and succession planning
S6W-06920: Developing next generation of professionals
Answered by Shona Robison (10/03/2022)

S6W-06589: Craig Hoy, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party Date lodged: 24 February 2022
Projects funded as a result of the 2020 round of the Regeneration Capital Grant Fund across eight local authorities.
Answered by Tom Arthur (08/03/2022)

S6W-06743: Daniel Johnson, Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour Date lodged: 24 February 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide details of (a) how and (b) when the £3 million funding for city centre recovery will be spent, as announced by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy on 10 February 2022.
Answered by Kate Forbes on 8 March

S6W-06776: Pam Duncan-Glancy, Glasgow, Scottish Labour Date lodged: 24 February 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any delays within the construction industry in (a) general and (b) relation to (i) workforce and (ii) material shortages, and what action it is taking to mitigate the impact of any delays on the construction of social housing.
Answered by Shona Robison on 10 March 2022Other Parliamentary Activity

Events

For the full list of BEFS Members’ upcoming events see our events calendar.

PAS: NPF4 Community Group Discussion Events
Tuesday 22 March, 12.30 – 14.00 – Zoom registration
Thursday 24 March, 19.00 – 20.30 – Zoom registration
The National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) will set the direction for planning in Scotland for the next ten years, looking towards 2045. As the deadline approaches for public consultation on the Draft (31 March 2022), PAS want to support as many communities to respond as possible.

Land Reuse Month: Week 4 – Develop a strategy 
Date & Time: 24 March, 09:30 – 12:40
Online
This year, Land Reuse Month is exploring how to support delivery of land reform in the public sector. The final morning of sessions asks: what does taking a strategic approach to land reuse in the public sector and delivering the public interest look like in practice? And how can strategies incorporate land reuse to help deliver benefits for communities, the environment and wellbeing? The sessions will look at community wealth building, innovative approaches to re-imagining our town centres, and what support and funding is available.

Town Centre Action Plan Series #5 – Heritage & Tourism
Date & Time: 24 March, 15:00 – 16:30
Location
Free to STP Members, £45 non-members
STP’s 2021 – 2022 CPD events are centred on the Town Centre Action Plan Review recommendations and in this fifth event in the series, we will focus on the themes of Heritage & Tourism. We will be joined by Historic Environment Scotland and Visit Scotland to discuss the impact of heritage and tourism on our towns and places. The session will provide context, as well as details of existing work and nationwide initiatives that town and place stakeholders can engage with.

RICS: Women in the Built Environment: Diversity, Inclusion, and Breaking Barriers
Date & Time: 28 March, 13:00 – 14:00
GoToWebinar
RICS is delighted to be supporting this important member-led event as part of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month in Scotland. It will give attendees the opportunity to hear from, and ask questions of, experienced members and colleagues on how to support women in the profession, and drive diversity and inclusion across the industry. Discussion will focus on overcoming barriers to career progression, making flexible working work, meeting the needs of new entrants, and creating an inclusive workplace.

A&DS: Public Sector Client Forum – Rural Futures
Date & Time: 29 March, 10:00 – 13:30
Online
As Rural economies emerge from COVID-19 facing a series of challenges, this event looks at how the key institutions that guide our places can work together to solve the issues affecting our local economies. The Public Sector Client Forum is a place for public sector leaders to gather and learn how colleagues across the UK are taking innovative place-based approaches. We look at built environment strategies taking data-led approaches, harnessing investments to transform the local economy into a more equitable, climate resilient place.

SPAB: Milling Matters – Dusty Mill: Dusty Miller
Date & Time: 5 April, 12:00
Online
Our mills should not be old relics, gathering dust in private, they should be alive and gathering flour dust from daily milling activity. Karl Grevatt, talks about how he came to milling and how he proudly maintains and keeps Charlecote Mill running for his customers, the public and for the preservation of these centuries old buildings that for so long have been at the heart of their communities.

Training

HES Engine Shed: An Introduction to Solid Walls, Their Repair and Insulation Options
Date & Time: 25 March, 12noon
Online
In this free livestream session, Historic Environment Scotland experts Lila Angelaka and Roger Curtis will talk about solid walls to help you understand more about your older building. Solid walls are one of the defining features of traditional buildings. And they often need the right materials and techniques for their repair and retrofit. This session will look at the role of lime mortars in solid wall construction, and with the need of energy efficiency on everyone’s mind, discuss how they can be insulated.

A&DS: CPD Series on Traditional Building Maintenance
Lunchtime series; last Thursday of the month
Online
31 March: Roof Leadwork delivered by Steve McLennan of the National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC)
28 April: Stone Repair and Restoration by Graeme Frame and Marcus Paine of Stone Federation Great Britain (SFGB)
26 May: Roof Slating by Graeme Millar of the NFRC
30 June: Climate Change Adaptation for Traditional Buildings

HES Engine Shed: Energy Efficiency Course
Date & Time: 29-30 March, 09:00 – 17:00
Location: The Engine Shed, Stirling
This two-day course on energy efficiency measures for older and traditional buildings is accredited by the National Open College Network (NOCN). This Level 3 qualification provides an overview of older and traditional (pre-1919) buildings, the range of energy efficiency measures available, how to evaluate their suitability and how to recommend their installation.

Vacancies

Archaeology Scotland: Director
Salary: £44,000 to £50,000
Based in Musselburgh, East Lothian
Archaeology Scotland is seeking to appoint a new Director from July/August 2022.This is an exciting opportunity to play a leading role in the ongoing development of archaeology in Scotland. As the leading independent charity working to inspire people to discover, explore, care for and enjoy Scotland’s archaeological heritage, Archaeology Scotland have gained a wealth of experience with community engagement, volunteer management and professional best practice.
Closing date: 4 April

Doors Open Days: Volunteer Regional Coordinator
An enthusiastic volunteer or group of volunteers are sought to help coordinate Doors Open Days in the Highlands, Shetland and West Lothian. Doors Open Days is a cultural heritage festival that provides free physical and virtual access to over 1,000 sites and buildings across Scotland every September.
Commitment: A few hours a week June – October
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.

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BEFS News

The UK Government has published the Pre-Launch Guidance for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) alongside its Levelling Up White Paper. A summary has been produced by The Heritage Alliance.

Historic Environment Scotland has released a blog post introducing the Our Place in Time 2020-2021 Annual Report, outlining the progress made in delivering Scotland’s historic environment strategy across key agendas. BEFS welcomes the comments from Culture Minister Neil Gray on the vital nature of the historic environment, and looks forward to working with the sector in relation to the formation of a new strategy, fit for the future.

A new £80 million Covid Economic Recovery Fund from the Scottish Government was announced by the First Minister on a visit to Essential Edinburgh with Scotland’s Towns Partnership. Meanwhile, members of the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee visited Govan with SURF – Scotland’s Regeneration Forum to hear more about how the draft National Planning Framework 4 might impact the area.

SURF have also announced a series of Shared Learning Events in May, providing an opportunity to explore successful approaches to regeneration with winners and highly commended projects from the 2021 SURF Awards.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has released its new report, Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, which starkly underlines the scale of the challenge ahead just four months on from COP26.

The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) has announced the shortlist of 14 buildings in the running for the 2022 RIAS Awards.

The IHBC Marsh Awards 2022 are now open for nominations. The award is designed to recognise the contribution of an individual for their significant learning in traditional building activities and craft skills. Prizes include £500 and a free place at the IHBC’s Aberdeen 2022 Annual School in June. Nominations close 31 March.

The Scottish Civic Trust  for four new Trustees to help deliver an exciting and sector-leading range of priorities, aimed at celebrating Scotland’s built environment, taking action for its improvement, and empowering its communities.

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Consultations

NatureScot Consultation: Developing with Nature guidance
Closes 4 March 2022

New realities of retail and ecommerce in Scotland – Call for Views
The Scottish Parliament’s Economy and Fair Work Committee is seeking written views to inform its inquiry on town centres and retail.
Closes 16 March 2022

Local Development Planning – regulations and guidance: consultation
Closes 31 March 2022

Open Space Strategies and Play Sufficiency Assessments: consultation
Closes 31 March 2022

Draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) – Public Consultation
Closes 31 March 2022

Consultation Responses

Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee: Scrutiny of the draft Fourth National Planning Framework (23/02/22)

BEFS Response: The Regulation of Energy Efficiency in Existing Non-Domestic Buildings: Call For Evidence (25/02/2022)

Publications

IPCC Sixth Assessment Report – Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability (28/02/22)

Understanding Scotland: A New Survey for Scotland – Environment (Diffley Partnership, Charlotte Street Partners, SRUC, 02/2022)
In the wake of the recent COP26 conference in Glasgow, this report takes the pulse of the Scottish public on fundamental environmental issues and questions.

Rebuilding Heritage – Evaluation Summary
An external evaluation of the Rebuilding Heritage project, finalised in December 2021, has brought valuable insights into the needs of the heritage ecosystem.

20 Minute Neighbourhoods in Rural & Island Scotland: Report from practitioner roundtable(SRA, SR&ITC, SURF, January 2022)
The roundtable found that unintended negative impacts are likely to arise in rural communities when the 20 MN method is applied as part of top-down planning processes.

The economic, social and environmental benefits of stimulating repairs and improvements to the Scottish built environment to aid a green recovery from Covid-19 (Fraser of Allender Institute, 02/2021)

Accelerating the decarbonisation of Scottish infrastructure (Institute of Civil Engineers Scotland 1/03/22)
The report concludes that Scotland is still falling short of targets, and makes five key recommendations to ensure decarbonisation is embedded throughout infrastructure.

Our Place in Time 2020-2021 Annual Report (Historic Environment Scotland, 18/02/22)
Continued progress made in delivering Scotland’s historic environment strategy across key agendas including skills, education, equalities and digital engagement despite ongoing impact of COVID-19.

How Village Churches Thrive: A Practical Guide (Robert Atwell, Gill Ambrose, Helen Bent. Available for pre-order. Publication date: 30/06/2022)

Scottish Government Publications

Scotland’s National Strategy for Economic Transformation (Scottish Government, 1/03/22)
The Strategy sets out the priorities for Scotland’s economy as well as the actions needed to maximise the opportunities of the next decade to achieve our vision of a wellbeing economy.

£300m boost for climate friendly heating (Scottish Government, 21/02/22)
Homes and commercial properties across Scotland will benefit from the establishment of a new £300 million fund supporting the development and roll out of zero emission heat networks.

COVID Economic Recovery Fund (Scottish Government, 21/02/22)
A new £80 million Covid Economic Recovery Fund targeting support for businesses and communities will help Scotland as it moves to a new phase in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Further support for culture recovery (Scottish Government, 18/02/22)
Culture and events sectors to benefit from £16 million.

News Releases

Scottish architects show solidarity with Ukraine and offer help to students (1/03/22)
The president of the RIAS has declared the organisation’s support for all Ukrainian architects and citizens through ‘these tough and uncertain times’

Dundee Repertory Theatre granted A-listed status (Historic Environment Scotland, 17/02/22)
The Dundee theatre has been given a Category A listing following a six-week public consultation.

Glasgow’s Buchanan Galleries could be ‘demolished’ to create urban neighbourhood (The Herald, 21/01/22)
The owner of the shopping centre is launching a public consultation and says the proposals are a response to the disruption facing retail.

Historic England Announces Grants Opportunities to Uncover the Nation’s Hidden Working Class Heritage (21/02/22)
Everyday Heritage Grants: Celebrating Working Class Histories will fund community-led and people-focused projects that aim to further the nation’s collective understanding of the past.

Women in Planning launch central Scotland branch (Scottish Housing News, 25/02/22)
The existing Glasgow Branch will expand to cover Edinburgh and surrounding areas.

New north-east university course will focus on energy efficiency of buildings (Grampian Online, 26/02/22)
The new course, PG Cert Building Retrofit, has been developed to improve the energy performance of the existing building stock and to help decarbonise and deliver a net zero carbon future.

Winners of Scottish Borders Design Awards announced (Scottish Construction Now, 28/02/22)
The Great Tapestry of Scotland building in Galashiels is among the winners.

Opinion & Comment

Not So Pretty Vacant: Transforming vacant and derelict land in Land Reuse Month – March 2022
Kathie Pollard, Policy and Practice Lead at the Scottish Land Commission highlights missed opportunity to address housing, climate and health challenges.

Stirling City Heritage Trust: Celebrating John Allan: A Man of Original Ideas
Lindsay Lennie explores the significance John Allan has for Stirling and explains why SCHT are remembering him on the 100th anniversary of his death.

Intangible Cultural Heritage support for Year of Stories 2022
Peter Hewitt, MGS’s new dedicated Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) Officer, outlines the support available to successful applicants to the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund.

Radio: Planning, Housing and Politics (BBC R4, 21/02/22)
Focussing on the system in England, barrister and author Hashi Mohamed investigates how the planning system can adapt so we can build new homes without alienating voters.

Craig Hoy MSP: Concerned over castle closures (East Lothian Courier, 27/02/22)

Western Isles residents demand answers as popular tourist attraction remains closed three years on (P&J, 11/02/22)
MSP Donald Cameron has written to HES regarding the ongoing closure of Dun Carloway Broch on the Isle of Lewis.

Susan Mansfield: What if…?/Annan – what happened next?
Two years after the initial “What if…?/Scotland” workshop in Annan, the participants talk about how their ideas are moving forward.

Catriona Stewart: Glasgow’s built heritage is suffering from neglect and bad choices (The Herald, 21/02/22)

Liz Hamilton, Homes for Scotland: Scotland’s draft National Planning Framework 4 would likely make the housing crisis worse (The Scotsman, 22/02/22)

Parliamentary Questions

Questions marked with a triangle (?) are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

Dean Lockhart, Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date Lodged: 25/02/2022
EPC rating requirements:
S6W-06900 Exemptions
S6W-06901 Timeline for introduction of regulations and enforcement
S6W-06902 Total cost for private rented sector and funding available

S6W-06917: Mark Griffin, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 25/02/2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has begun assessing the additional resourcing and skills requirements of the Fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4), and when it will prepare a strategy to address these requirements.

Mark Griffin, Central Scotland, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 25/02/2022 R
The Housing to 2040 strategy:
S6W-06919: Skills audit and succession planning
S6W-06920: Developing next generation of professionals
S6W-06924: Affordability of Build To Rent homes in major cities

S6W-06589: Craig Hoy, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party Date lodged: 24 February 2022
Projects funded as a result of the 2020 round of the Regeneration Capital Grant Fund across eight local authorities.

S6W-06743: Daniel Johnson, Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour Date lodged: 24 February 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide details of (a) how and (b) when the £3 million funding for city centre recovery will be spent, as announced by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy on 10 February 2022.

S6W-06809: Paul Sweeney, Glasgow, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 24/02/2022
To ask the Scottish Government what recourse residents have where Residential Amenity Greenspace, as defined by a Local Development Plan, moves into private ownership and is not being maintained.

Parliamentary Questions and Answers

Questions marked with a triangle (?) are initiated by the Scottish Government in order to facilitate the provision of information to the Parliament. Questions in which a member has indicated a declarable interest are marked with an “R”.

Liam McArthur, Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats, Date Lodged: 02/02/2022
S6W-06099: monitoring and evaluation framework for the Heat in Buildings Strategy
S6W-06098: making public sector buildings net zero by 2030
Answered by Patrick Harvie (18/02/2022)
S6W-06096: Islands Energy Strategy (retrofitting)
Answered by Patrick Harvie (21/02/2022)

S6W-06104: Paul Sweeney, Glasgow, Scottish Labour, Date Lodged: 02/02/2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider implementing the high quality shopfront design standards developed in Traditional Shopfront Improvement Grant Scheme (TSIG) areas as a future planning requirement in Conservation Areas and in Listed Buildings, as part of the forthcoming update of the National Planning Framework.
Answered by Tom Arthur (25/02/2022)

S6W-06096: Liam McArthur, Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats  
Date lodged: 2 February 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether the Islands Energy Strategy will take account of the reportedly significantly higher costs of retrofitting in island communities.
Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 February 2022

S6W-06371: Liam Kerr, North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, Date Lodged: 07/02/2022 R
To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of housing stock in the private rented sector it anticipates will not be upgraded to at least an EPC rating of C by the required deadline; whether, as a result, such housing stock will be unavailable to rent, and, if so, what advice it will provide to people about where to find a suitable property to rent.
Answered by Patrick Harvie (21/02/2022)

 

Other Parliamentary Activity

Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee – Meeting 22/02/22
Transcript of the NPF4 evidence session attended by Tom Arthur, Minister for Public Finance, Planning and Community Wealth, Fiona Simpson (chief planner), Andy Kinnaird (head of planning transformation) and Helen Wood (head of planning performance).

Events

For the full list of BEFS Members’ upcoming events see our events calendar.

Draft National Planning Framework 4: Information & Discussion events
Date & Time: Series of events from 10 February to 10 March
Online
The Scottish Government has opened registration for online events during February and March, facilitated by Kevin Murray Associates (KMA) and PAS (Planning Aid Scotland) to raise awareness and share views about the Draft NPF4, in order to inform and support the preparation of responses to the consultation, which closes on 31 March 2022. Each session will focus on a specific action area, or policy theme from Draft NPF4. A full list of upcoming sessions and booking information is available here.
Thurs 3 March, 4.30 – 6pm – Distinctive Places
Tues 8 March, 4.30 – 6pm – North and West Coastal Innovation
Thurs 10 March, 4.30 – 6pm – Sustainable Place

ACHT: Conservation in Traditional Masonry – The Practitioner’s Perspective
Date & Time: 2 March, 19:00
Online
Hans Norling, director of Masonry and Lime Ltd, will discuss his 20 years in the masonry conservation business in general and his company’s work at Provost Skene House, Aberdeen in particular.

RTPI: Draft NPF4 Engagement Events
7 March, 16:00 – Scottish Young Planners
9 March, 16:00 – Central Scotland Chapter
These interactive events will be looking at the draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) which was published at the end of 2021. A panel of speakers will each give a short presentation setting out their thoughts on the draft Framework followed by a panel discussion.

SPAB: Milling Matters – Lifecycles of Textile Mills
Date & Time: 8 March, 12:00
Online
The best use for a building might be its next use, and not the one for which it was built. Textile mills that survive today are almost all in their second or third use, something unimaginable to their builders. Industrial Heritage expert Mark Watson will give his overview of how textile mills can be rejuvenated and put to new purposes.

RTPI: Central Scotland Chapter AGM and Annual Member Meeting
Date & Time: 9 March, 3:15
Online
RTPI members with interests in Central Chapter area are invited to attend the Chapter’s Annual General Meeting 2022. The meeting will provide an opportunity for members to find out more about the role and purpose of the Chapter, forthcoming events and activities and opportunities to help out or join the organising committee.
 
Falkland Society: Working collaboratively with clients, artists and craftspeople: the wonders of Jupiter Artland
Date & Time: 9 March, 19:00
Online
Ben Tindall will talk about the achievements of this contem­porary sculpture park and art gallery (at Bonnington House, 7 km west of Edinburgh) and the threats it now faces.

Scottish Futures Trust: A Place for Everything
Date & Time: 9 March, 10:30
Online
Living well locally is a key ambition of Scottish Government’s Programme for Government. This webinar will help illustrate how the process for improved place-based decision making outlined in the newly-published Place Guide can be put into practice in your own area.

RSA Fellows’ R+EINS Network: NPF4: Any Questions?
Date & Time: 10 March, 18:00 – 19:30
Online
Join a panel including BEFS Director Ailsa Macfarlane and pose your own questions on the draft NPF4. This event, designed and delivered by the RSA Fellows’ Rural + Environmental Issues Network Scotland, is open to all with an interest in any aspect of planning and the NPF4 content, irrespective of their discipline, or immediate professional or personal interests.

SoAoS: Connecting tools and materials in the Dutch Late Neolithic
Date & time: 14 March, 18:00
Location: National Museum of Scotland Auditorium, and live-streamed via YouTube
Archaeological artefacts are frequently studied in isolation and not as part of a toolkit. This lecture will show how a combination of use-wear analysis and experimental archaeology reveals the interconnectivities between different tools and activities, showing details about past human life that otherwise remain hidden.

AHSS: Contrasting Outcomes/Consistent Approach
Date & Time: 14 March, 18:30
Augustine United Church, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh
Join the AHSS Forth & Borders Group for a talk on architecture, sustainability and urban design with Rab Bennetts. Rab will focus on two contrasting projects for the University of Edinburgh – the Potterrow development (2003-18) and the Futures Institute (on going) – revealing a consistent attitude to architecture, urban design and sustainability.

STP: Town Centre Action Plan Series #4 – Climate
Date & Time: 15 March, 14:00 – 15:30
Online
Free to STP Members, £45 non-members.
STP’s 2021 – 2022 CPD events are centred on the Town Centre Action Plan Review recommendations and in this fourth event in the series, we will focus on the theme of Climate. Dr Emilie Wadsworth, Director of Development at the Green Action Trust will provide us with the context around how we work towards achieving Net Zero in our towns and places. We will then get the chance to learn about two real life examples of different models in practice; one urban and one rural.

Training

A&BS: Introduction to Sponsoring Culture – for businesses
Date & Time: 10 March, 10:00 to 12:00
Online
This short session will explore a range of tools and tactics to develop a successful cultural partnership that delivers strong results against business objectives. The session will include recommendations for selecting a partner, ideas for high-impact activation, and tips for structuring your partnership to maximise benefits.

A&BS: Telling It Like It Is – Effective Copywriting
Date & Time: 15 & 16 March, 10am-1pm
Online
This training session is aimed at anyone looking to improve their copywriting skills to support their fund-raising activities. Offering a combination of project-based, hands-on writing exercises with tips, techniques and critical theory, the session explores the five stages of the copywriting process over two half-day sessions. While the training provides a specific focus on writing a case for support, the resulting learning can be applied to all kinds of fundraising communications.

SHBT: Surveying and Inspecting Traditional Buildings
Date & Time: 22 March, 09:30 – 16:00
Location: Jedburgh Town Hall
This full-day working is tailored to industry professionals looking to expand their knowledge of traditional building surveying. Delivered by Frew Conservation for the Jedburgh CARS, the workshop will cover various survey techniques, including structural, high-level and non-destructive investigation methods.

SHBT: Treating Dampness in Traditional Buildings
Date & Time: 22 March, 18:00 – 19:45
Location: Jedburgh Town Hall
This free evening session delivered by Frew Conservation for Jedburgh CARS is ideal for homeowners interested in learning how to identify and treat common problems like dampness in traditional buildings. The session will comprise a 40-minute talk, a 40-minute practical demonstration, and a 30-minute Q&A session.

HES Engine Shed: An Introduction to Solid Walls, Their Repair and Insulation Options
Date & Time: 25 March, 12noon
Online
In this free livestream session, Historic Environment Scotland experts Lila Angelaka and Roger Curtis will talk about solid walls to help you understand more about your older building. Solid walls are one of the defining features of traditional buildings. And they often need the right materials and techniques for their repair and retrofit. This session will look at the role of lime mortars in solid wall construction, and with the need of energy efficiency on everyone’s mind, discuss how they can be insulated.

A&DS: CPD Series on Traditional Building Maintenance
Lunchtime series; last Thursday of the month
Online
31 March: Roof Leadwork delivered by Steve McLennan of the National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC)
28 April: Stone Repair and Restoration by Graeme Frame and Marcus Paine of Stone Federation Great Britain (SFGB)
26 May: Roof Slating by Graeme Millar of the NFRC
30 June: Climate Change Adaptation for Traditional Buildings

HES Engine Shed: Energy Efficiency Course
Date & Time: 29-30 March, 09:00 – 17:00
Location: The Engine Shed, Stirling
This two-day course on energy efficiency measures for older and traditional buildings is accredited by the National Open College Network (NOCN). This Level 3 qualification provides an overview of older and traditional (pre-1919) buildings, the range of energy efficiency measures available, how to evaluate their suitability and how to recommend their installation.

Vacancies

Historic Environment Scotland: Training Manager
Hours: 37 hours a week
Salary: £34,303 – £39,873
This post involves leading the delivery of a range of technical training with a focus on the delivery of the High Level Fabric Project. This project has been established to survey, assess and record the condition of the buildings in our care and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. The postholder will initially focus on establishing the delivery of the Diploma in ‘Surveying, Assessing and Recording the Condition of Built Assets for Conservation’ (a bespoke qualification that has been developed by HES) as well as existing traditional building and memorial repair qualifications and training before taking forward other technical course delivery required for this project.
Closing date: 9 March

Perth & Kinross Heritage Trust: Perth Lower City Mills Development Officer
1-Year Fulltime Fixed-Term Contract
Salary: £30,000 p.a.
PKHT have secured Development Phase funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NHLF), to develop a £2.7 million project to fully restore the A-Listed Lower City Mills, Perth, including restoration of its rare working machinery, afford public access, establish a heritage skills and conservation hub and a centre for Scottish mills and milling. This role will lead on the NLHF Delivery Phase submission, with other staff and Trustees.
Closing date: 18 March

Doors Open Days: Volunteer Regional Coordinator
An enthusiastic volunteer or group of volunteers are sought to help coordinate Doors Open Days in the Highlands, Shetland and West Lothian. Doors Open Days is a cultural heritage festival that provides free physical and virtual access to over 1,000 sites and buildings across Scotland every September.
Commitment: A few hours a week June – October
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.

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