Scotland’s historic environment
10 Jun 2014 02:43 PM
A
forum has been set up to lead implementation of Our Place in
Time – Scotland’s first strategy for the historic
environment.
Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs Fiona
Hyslop today announced the establishment of a Strategic Forum for
Scotland’s Historic Environment which will facilitate the closer working
of heritage organisations and other bodies to ensure Scotland’s historic
environment is understood, valued, cared for, protected and
enhanced.
The
forum will provide strategic advice and direction on the management and
promotion of our rich historic environment and oversee delivery of Our
Place in Time.
It
will be chaired by the Cabinet Secretary with the following members having
agreed to join the forum:
- Shulah Allan, Convener of the Scottish Council for
Voluntary Organisations
- Petra Biberbach, Chief Executive, Planning Aid
Scotland
- Sir
Kenneth Calman, Chair, National Trust for Scotland
- Stephen Carter, Archaeological
Consultant
- Douglas Connell, Chair, Museums and Galleries
Scotland
- Bill Drummond, Chair, Scottish Council for Development
and Industry
- Councillor Stephen Hagan – COSLA Spokesperson for
Development, Economy and Sustainability
- Professor Emeritus Cliff Hague, Chair, Built Environment
Forum Scotland
- Mark Hopton, Partner, LDN Architects
- Lord David Johnstone, Chair, Scottish Land and
Estates
- Eleanor McAllister OBE, Economist &
Planner
- Maria Perks, Chair, Association of Preservation
Trusts
- William MacLeod, Chair, New Lanark
Trust
- Ian
Ross OBE, Chair, Scottish Natural Heritage
- Chris Stewart, Director, Chris Stewart
Group.
The Chair of Historic
Environment Scotland (the new lead public body for the historic environment
sector in Scotland) will be invited to join as soon as they have been
appointed.
Ms
Hyslop said:
“Scotland benefits from a hugely rich and diverse
historic environment. It is all around us and includes our iconic sites
recognised across the globe and also sites of local interest which contribute
so much to regional identity.
“Our Place in Time set out a
strategy for our historic environment, a first for Scotland, and I am delighted
to confirm that I have set up a strategic forum to oversee and lead the
implementation of that strategy for the benefit of the people and places of
Scotland.
“In inviting members to join the forum, I was
fully aware of the need to ensure that it was widely representative and also
covered those key interests highlighted during the development of the strategy,
as well as key partners such as the natural environment and museums sector. I
was very pleased that all proposed members accepted the invitation and have
shown a huge level of enthusiasm.
“The forum will help to champion our historic
environment and ensure the cultural, social, environmental and economic value
of it is recognised across Scotland. Crucially, it will also work in and
through the wide range of organisations on the forum and in the supporting
groups which have or will be established. I look forward to working with the
members as we take forward this important work.”
The Strategic Historic Environment
Forum for Scotland is being set up to help deliver Our Place in Time – The
Historic Environment Strategy for Scotland.
The
strategy provides direction for the care of our historic environment and is a
response to the growing realisation from stakeholders that Scotland needs a
strategy, underpinned by common goals, to guide our collective efforts and to
maximise opportunities over the long term.
The
members have been invited by the Cabinet Secretary to participate for a term of
not less than two years. This is to ensure sufficient flexibility as the forum
will wish to decide on issues to cover and that might require additional or
different membership. These positions are by invitation rather than through the
public appointments process and are not remunerated.
The
strategic forum will be supported by an operational board which will be charged
with co-ordinating and managing the activities identified across the strategy.
The membership of this supporting board will include representation from
Historic Scotland and the Royal Commission and will link into the working
groups that have already been set up under the new strategic framework.
Membership of the operational board will be announced soon.
There is an accompanying web page for the strategy which
can be found here.