BEFS Bulletin – A Culture & Heritage Manifesto for Local Government

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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