A Welcome from the Chair
Welcome back to the SCHA newsletter!
It has been a little while since our last newsletter. Like many organisations, SCHA has been through a period of change, but we are pleased to be finding our feet again – and, importantly, looking ahead.
Our AGM in July was a really positive moment for SCHA. With 22 members joining us, we had some lively and constructive conversations about what matters to our members and what you would like to see SCHA doing next. Your ideas and enthusiasm are at the heart of what SCHA is about, and we want to build on that.
We also said farewell – and a very big thank you – to Seymour Adams and Susan Kruse, who stepped down as Trustees, and to Laura Ferguson, whose work as Project Manager for our Grassroots Heritage Conversations project came to an end when the project finished in April. We are grateful to all three for their contribution to SCHA and to Scotland’s community heritage.
I am delighted that Vicki Anderson has joined the Board as our new Trustee and Secretary. Our current Board is:
Eleni Koumpouzi – Chair
Vicki Anderson – Secretary
Julian Grant – Treasurer
Iain Wallace – Trustee
David Fayle – Trustee
Neil Smith – Trustee
As we move forward, we want SCHA to be a place where ideas are shared, connections are made and the experience of grassroots heritage groups is valued. There is so much exciting work happening across Scotland – often quietly, locally and with enormous commitment – and we want to help bring those stories and voices to a wider audience.
This newsletter is a small step in that direction. We are publishing it as a blog, with the ambition that future editions will become more collaborative and co-created with our members.
So please tell us what you are doing! Whether it is a new project, an unexpected discovery, an exhibition, an anniversary, a community event, a funding success – or simply an idea you think other heritage enthusiasts would enjoy – we want to hear about it.
SCHA belongs to its members. The more we share, the stronger our collective voice becomes.
Here’s to the next chapter – and to all the people across Scotland who continue to care for, question, celebrate and bring our heritage to life.
Dr Eleni Koumpouzi
Chair, Scottish Community Heritage Alliance
Looking Ahead: The Future for SCHA
The conversations at our AGM echoed many of the things we heard during the Grassroots Heritage Conversations project. Across Scotland, community heritage organisations are doing remarkable work, often with limited resources and a great deal of personal commitment. But we also heard clearly about the pressures that make this work difficult to sustain.
Again and again, five issues came up: funding, finding and retaining volunteers, communicating what organisations do, succession planning, and having the right skills and knowledge to keep things moving.
These are not problems that can be solved by one organisation alone, but they do point to some practical ways in which SCHA can help.
We see this happening at three connected levels.
First, practical support. This could include mentoring, focused training and more opportunities for groups to learn directly from one another and share their experience.
Second, sharing what we already have. There is a huge amount of knowledge and expertise within Scotland’s community heritage network. We want to explore ways of making that knowledge easier to find and use – through skills exchanges, volunteer information, funding opportunities and useful digital resources.
And third, making sure the grassroots perspective is heard. Some of the challenges facing community heritage groups need wider change: more support for the day-to-day running of organisations, funding processes that are easier to navigate, better connections across the heritage sector, and greater recognition of the contribution made by local groups.
This gives us a strong starting point for the next stage of SCHA’s work. Our aim is to make connections, share experience and bring the concerns and ideas of community heritage groups into wider conversations about Scotland’s heritage.
Most importantly, we want SCHA to remain useful to the people who are actually doing the work – the volunteers, groups, organisations and communities caring for the places, stories, traditions and collections that make Scotland’s heritage so distinctive.
There is plenty to do, and we would like members to help shape what comes next.
Welcome to Our New Trustee
In August, we were delighted to welcome Vicki Anderson to the SCHA Board as a new Trustee and Secretary.
Vicki brings a wonderfully varied heritage background to the role. She currently works with Historic Environment Scotland at Skara Brae in Orkney, and has previously worked at Edzell Castle and Arbroath Abbey. Before joining HES, she worked with the National Trust for Scotland at the House of Dun near Montrose.
Her experience goes beyond her professional roles. Vicki has been involved in a wide range of volunteer projects, from helping with the restoration of a World War II-era aircraft to collecting and recording information about castles and churches. This has given her experience of heritage from several different angles – from getting hands-on with the physical stuff to thinking about how we record, understand and share it.
Vicki’s interests range from Scottish history and archaeology to folklore and community heritage. She is particularly interested in finding creative ways to make the past accessible and relevant – and, importantly, to make people want to engage with it.
We are very pleased to have Vicki joining the Board and look forward to seeing where her experience, curiosity and ideas take SCHA next.
Welcome, Vicki!
What You Told Us at the AGM
Our AGM was not just about reports and formalities. It was a chance to hear what members would actually find useful from SCHA – and there were some very practical ideas.
One suggestion was to develop a Resources section on the SCHA website, bringing together useful documents and templates to help with the day-to-day administration of heritage organisations. From policies and procedures to the less glamorous bits of keeping an organisation running, we hope this will become a useful shared toolkit.
There was also strong interest in creating a Forum on the website – a place where members can ask questions, share experience, offer advice and perhaps discover that someone else has already wrestled with the same problem. We are currently working with our website developer to explore how this can work, so watch this space!
Two other ideas stood out: mentoring and speakers.
We would like to create a way for members to offer their knowledge and experience to others, while also making it easier for groups to find someone who can help with a particular challenge. Similarly, we hope to develop a simple way for members who are willing to give talks or presentations to connect with organisations looking for speakers. Topics could range from running heritage projects and sharing specialist knowledge to responding to the climate emergency, engaging communities, fundraising and sharing what has worked – or what hasn’t. Successful funding applications, new approaches to volunteering and other practical experiences could all provide useful material for other groups.
Tell us about it. We would love to share your good practice and success stories with other SCHA members – because sometimes the most useful advice comes from someone who has already tried it.
To submit your article, please email info@scottishcommunityheritagealliance.org
A New Directory for Speakers
The idea of helping organisations find speakers is already being put into practice elsewhere. The Scottish Local History Forum (SLHF) has recently launched a new Speakers Directory, connecting local history societies with people who are willing to give talks on a range of subjects (heritage, conservation, local history, family history, social history).
If you have a subject you know well and enjoy talking about, you can create a listing quickly and free of charge. It could be a useful way to share your knowledge with local history groups and make connections beyond your own organisation.
Interested in becoming a speaker?
Visit the SLHF Speakers Directory to create your listing.
And if you know someone who has an interesting subject, project or area of expertise they could share, send the directory their way!
Funding: Scotland’s Places of Worship Fund
There is a new funding opportunity for Scotland’s historic places of worship. Historic Environment Scotland (HES) has launched a £1 million pilot fund, and SCHA attended the consultation meeting to hear more about how the scheme will work.
The fund follows the closure of the UK-wide Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme and will help eligible listed places of worship meet VAT costs associated with qualifying repair and conservation work. It is open to eligible places of worship of all faiths and denominations.
The pilot runs until 31 March 2027, with applications expected to open in October 2026. Funding will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, so organisations should start preparing now.
HES is still developing the detailed guidance and has stressed that it wants to work with groups and communities to get the scheme right. The fund will not support work that could damage historic buildings or their fabric.
A useful tip: make sure your application has a named contact who can respond quickly to any questions, as this could help avoid delays.
SCHA will share further information with members when the full guidance is available.
Find out more:
Historic Environment Scotland – Places of Worship
In the Spotlight
What have you been up to?
This is your chance to tell other SCHA members about your organisation, your projects and the events or activities you have been involved in. It doesn’t have to be a major project – small ideas, interesting experiences and things that worked well can be just as useful to others.
Tell us what you did, how you went about it and anything you learned along the way. We’d particularly like to hear about approaches that other groups could adapt for their own work.
Our first article is from Langside Community Heritage in Glasgow, who participated in an Archaeology Event at the National Museum of Rural Life in East Kilbride.
Local heritage organisations, including ACFA Field Archaeology for All, Clutha Archaeology and the Scottish Stonemasons’ Marks Project took, part in the event which was a great opportunity to promote what we do and to find new members.
We had a display of pottery from a local site, excavated by the construction company in 2012, which they donated to us. We also had copies of our local guides available – the Battle of Langside and guides to local people who lived and died during WWI and WWII.
Hiding in Plain sight
from the Scottish Stonemasons’ Marks Project
Hidden under layers of dirt or limewash, or eroded so as to be almost invisible, our historic buildings are keeping a secret.
Often lost in amongst more recent graffiti, the skilled craftsmen who created our built heritage, left their marks.
These masons’ marks, effectively the signature of the individuals who cut each stone by hand, are the only surviving link to those who constructed our castles, cathedrals and churches.
The Scottish Stonemasons’ Marks Project has been investigating the marks left by our skilled artisan ancestors. So far, 20 medieval buildings have been surveyed and almost 3500 marks identified and recorded.
Do you have a medieval building in your area? Would you like to contribute to the historical record?
This is an ideal opportunity for you to offer your community the chance to get some hands-on experience with your built heritage.
For more details or to discuss organising a survey in your area, email the project at https://masonsmarks.scot
Scottish Heritage Events: September 2026
Entire Month (Ends 16 Sep) Archaeology and Empire Exhibition Venue: Stirling Castle (Historic Environment Scotland) Details: Explores Scotland’s complex imperial past through archives, contemporary art, and historical site connections.
5–6 September Fighting for the Covenant Venue: St Andrews Castle (Historic Environment Scotland) Details: Living history event covering 17th‑century Covenanters and Scottish soldiers.
Scottish Borders Open Days Venue: Various venues across the Borders (Scottish Civic Trust / Council) Details: Free access to historic sites, hidden spaces, and guided heritage tours.
6 September Forest Therapy Venue: Leith Hall, Garden & Estate (National Trust for Scotland) Details: Guided outdoor nature and mindfulness walk through the estate grounds.
12 September Haddo’s Terrace Garden – Then and Now Venue: Haddo House (National Trust for Scotland) Details: Guided landscape and gardening history tour detailing the estate’s restoration.
18 September Hard Hat Tour: Old Home Farm Venue: Fyvie Castle (National Trust for Scotland) Details: Behind‑the‑scenes access to historic farm buildings undergoing preservation work.
19 September Music & Mystery Venue: Meigle Sculptured Stone Museum (Historic Environment Scotland) Details: Special single‑day opening with live music, expert talks, and Pictish carved stone exhibits.
26 September Roman Doors Open Day Venue: Kinneil House (Historic Environment Scotland) Details: Re‑enactments featuring the Roman Antonine Guard and medieval living‑history displays.
26–27 September Edinburgh & East Lothian: Doors Open Days Venue: Various sites (Cockburn Association / Scottish Civic Trust) Details: Free access to historic buildings including Adam Smith’s Panmure House and McEwan Hall.
Additional September‑Long Activities
Guided Ranger Walks – Holyrood Park Arthur’s Secrets & Arthur’s Amble (selected dates) Exploring geology, archaeology, and local wildlife.
Exhibition – Alfred Buckham: Daredevil Photographer Venue: Duff House (Historic Environment Scotland) Runs all month; showcases historic aerial views of Scotland.
Scottish Archaeology Month (1–30 September 2026) Nationwide archaeology events, excavations, and talks coordinated by Dig It! Scotland.