Outreach 

Our vision is a space that would dramatically transform the ability of the Society to engage with Fellows and the public. Harnessing digital and physical resources, Scotland’s Heritage Hub would deliver a tangible means for everyone to engage with Scotland’s story. Examples of potential activities include: 

• providing training reflecting the needs of the 21st -century workplace across the heritage sector, such as finds conservation and social media strategy 

• acting as the first stop for those wanting to explore the heritage offer in Scotland, whether they are international museums, local grassroots projects, visiting researchers or “staycationers” 

• facilitating activity to provide opportunities for marginalised communities to continue to meaningfully engage with Scotland’s past by providing event space, staff and volunteers 

• enhancing knowledge exchange between organisations and the public through accessible projects and amenities, including the physical space and equipment required to deliver these activities 

• reducing the digital skills gap, especially among the older generation, through specific training and volunteer projects 

• presenting the latest advances in digital heritage to the public which could include virtual reconstruction technology, holographic projection and enhanced reality 

Space and Opportunities 

Redeveloping the property would transform the current commercial premises of the ceramics shop and one floor of flats through a major internal restructuring around a single staircase and lift, amounting to about 386m2.  The remaining four flats would provide residential rental opportunities. 

A combined flexible exhibition, event and reception space would provide direct public access to view, learn about, engage with and appreciate Scotland’s past; with the added value of having expert advice and information on-hand from the various building occupants, including the Society.  

Scotland’s Heritage Hub would encourage greater interaction between heritage organisations and the public, as well as their respective memberships where applicable. This would provide a front-of-house environment offering face-to-face and online education and engagement, while creating opportunities for volunteer-generated projects. This in turn would facilitate the development of more community-based research and introduce greater potential for increasing voluntary activity and co-production projects that enhance our understanding of Scotland’s past. 

By actively seeking out and bringing new audiences to the building, the building occupants could engage them in Scotland’s past in ways they have not previously been able to. Creating trust between new audiences and organisations and experts in their fields would encourage a much wider range of stories about Scotland’s past to be sought, researched, taught and promoted, more accurately reflecting the realities of life in Scotland. 

The building would provide a physical locus for activities, including educational events and training, volunteer experiences, exhibitions, meetings and workshops and space for members from a range of organisations based within Scotland’s Heritage Hub which would help build successful collaboration across the heritage community. 

The hub would build on the success of the Society as a trusted leader in the heritage sector – evidenced through the development and delivery of Dig It! and the Scottish Archaeological Research Framework (ScARF) – and provide a neutral space where the Society as an independent organisation can continue to effectively support the sector and address current and future challenges. 

Collaboration 

We aspire to create a space that will fill a gap in the heritage, culture and creative industries sector by bringing the Society together with a range of other organisations under one roof and create a productive collaborative atmosphere that would generate greater creativity and research exchange amongst employees, volunteers and members. 

Scotland’s Heritage Hub would also provide subsidised space for charitable organisations in the historic environment sector and the wider community to use, including at-cost competitive office and meeting space rental rates for like-minded organisations and individuals.   

Provision of shared IT and other crucial services would provide additional resource savings for individual organisations, who can then be more responsive and provide better value outcomes for the historic environment and the public. 

Community involvement in Scotland’s Heritage Hub would encourage better communication of the aims and aspirations of resident and other organisations, as well as promoting the understanding and stewardship of Scotland’s heritage. Community involvement has been embedded from the outset of the project – asking the public what they would want from such a space and getting them to help deliver it – and would continue in the ethos of the opened venue. 

Income Generation 

Renting the residential flats and various spaces would provide income to the Society to offset expenditure on maintaining the building, including ensuring the IT is kept up to date and providing sustainability. All profit would go to the Society for its charitable purposes. Initial estimates suggest that this could amount to over £100,000 a year. 

Leadership 

The Society would benefit from a fit-for-purpose building that further promotes its independence from government or agency and allows growth aligning with the Society’s aspirations in its Strategic Plan. Combined with a central Edinburgh location, this would help cement the Society’s role as a leader in the sector. 

A key goal of Scotland’s Heritage Hub would be to ensure delivery of the Society’s vision and Strategic Plan and securing its sustainability and that of other similar organisations through this fit-for-purpose building. This would have the added benefit of enabling embedded research-based knowledge exchange across the sector, making heritage information accessible to anyone. 

Conservation 

A B-listed building, it has clear heritage value and its redevelopment will lead by example. Conserving a building and providing it with a new life would underscore the heritage values of the Society, and the works would not only include cutting-edge technology which could include everything from high-tech meeting facilities to a virtual reality space, but would be designed with accessibility, sustainability and carbon-neutrality built in. 

The project would look to involve training for craft skills and historic building expertise during the redevelopment of the property, helping to ensure a new generation of skilled persons are available to maintain and conserve our fragile and unique Scottish heritage. 

Image Credit: Benjamin Tindall Architects

Improve outreach, space and opportunities, collaboration, income generation, leadership and more