EDINBURGH, 2015-8-26 — /Travel PR News/ — Ancient sea caves, a paddle steamer, a listed railway building and a Victorian garden cemetery are amongst 12 heritage projects that will see the ‘Angels’ behind them celebrated as they go up for an award in the inaugural Scottish Heritage Angel Awards.
The shortlist for the first ever Scottish Heritage Angel Awards has been announced today (24th August). The 12-strong shortlist, which spans the length and breadth of the country, from Orkney to Dumfries and Galloway, includes volunteers behind Scotland’s firefighting heritage, a project capturing the history and culture of the Outer Hebrides and a unique biographical project charting the timeline of the 107 houses and their owners, past and present, in the village of Cairndow in Argyll.
The awards, which welcomed well over 80 nominations for ‘Heritage Angels’ highlighting a diverse range of voluntary activities and projects from across the country, will celebrate the contribution volunteers make to Scotland’s historic environment at an awards ceremony to be held in Edinburgh in September.
Funded by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, and delivered via a partnership between several of Scotland’s heritage organisations, this nation-wide initiative, will acknowledge the benefit that volunteers and groups such as those shortlisted have in helping to better understand, appreciate and protect Scotland’s heritage and history for current and future generations.
This awards initiative, which recognises the positive impact that volunteers have on Scotland’s heritage, aligns well with the key underlying principles of Our Place in Time, the first Historic Environment Strategy for Scotland, which places a strong focus on supporting and enabling participation across the historic environment.
Commenting on the shortlist, Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Europe and External Affairs, said: “The Scottish Heritage Angel Awards recognise the work that volunteers and community groups alike, up and down the country, are undertaking to help contribute towards understanding, protecting and valuing our heritage, as an asset for all.
“This shortlist of heritage volunteers and groups reveals the diverse and vibrant cultural heritage that is held within communities across the country, whilst demonstrating the enduring commitment and work that is carried out by them on variety of worthy projects helping to highlight and celebrate Scotland’s wider historic environment.
“My congratulations to all of the ‘Heritage Angels’ shortlisted for these awards.”
The winners across the five categories will be decided upon by a judging panel made up of Scottish broadcaster and writer, Sally Magnusson; Professor John Hume OBE, Chairman of Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland; Dr Peter Burman MBE, Vice Chair of Built Environment Forum Scotland; Harriet Eadie, Chief Executive of Volunteer Centre Edinburgh and Andrew Wright OBE, one of Scotland’s foremost conservation architects.
Andrew Lloyd Webber, whose charity, the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, established the Scottish Heritage Angel Awards in 2014, said: “I offer huge congratulations to all those shortlisted for the inaugural Scottish Heritage Angel Awards. From ancient sea caves to a Victorian garden cemetery, the variety is incredible and demonstrates just how much the individuals and communities in Scotland go above and beyond to preserve their heritage.”
The Scottish Heritage Angel Awards are being delivered in a partnership between the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, the Scottish Government, Historic Scotland, The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, Scottish Civic Trust and Archaeology Scotland.
John Pelan, Director of the Scottish Civic Trust, added: “The response to the first ever Scottish Heritage Angel Awards has been phenomenal. Choosing a shortlist from over 80 nominations was very difficult. Each ‘Heritage Angel’ was a strong contender and demonstrate the extraordinary commitment and passion for local heritage across the whole of Scotland.
“Acknowledging people’s commitment as champions of their historic environment is incredibly important and each of the applicants are to be congratulated on their achievements to date.”
Shortlisted entrants have been invited to attend the first Scottish Heritage Angel Awards ceremony, hosted by Sally Magnusson, to be held at the Royal Lyceum Theatre on Monday 28th September, where the overall winner of each category will be announced.
To view the full details of the official shortlist for the inaugural Scottish Heritage Angel Awards please visit www.scottishheritageangelawards.org.uk
Full shortlist for the 2015 Scottish Heritage Angel Awards
Investigating and Recording:
- Friends of Glasgow Necropolis for the surveying and archiving of graves and monuments, Glasgow
- The Joseph Thomson Group for the establishment of a heritage centre showcasing all aspects of local history and life, Dumfries and Galloway
- Dean of Guild Court Plans Project Volunteer Group for the creation of a searchable resource for Dunfermline’s rich built heritage, Fife
Caring and Protecting:
- Forres Heritage Trust for the restoration and bringing back into community use of two local historic landmarks, Nelson Tower and The Tolbooth, Moray
- Sanday Archaeology Group for their work to preserve archaeological heritage, Orkney
- Helmsdale Station Volunteers for the restoration of Helmsdale railway station buildings, Sutherland
Sharing and Celebrating:
- Loch Lomond Steamship Company for their work on the Maid of the Loch – Loch Lomond’s paddle steamer and the Balloch Steam Slipway, West Dunbartonshire
- Here We Are for the Our Houses: Their Stories project, Argyll
- Scottish Fire and Rescue Volunteers for their Scottish fire heritage project, South Lanarkshire and across Scotland
Capacity Building:
- Hebridean Connections for the creation of an online resource charting local history and heritage, Outer Hebrides
- Scottish Waterways Trust – Canals College for their canal and waterways heritage work, Falkirk
- Save the Wemyss Ancient Cave Society for work on the six ancient sea caves which feature Pictish stone carvings, Fife
Lifetime Contribution to the Historic Environment:
- The overall winner of this category will be announced during the awards ceremony in September.
Notes for editors:
Scottish Heritage Angel Awards Categories
1. Investigating and Recording – Volunteer/community-based projects recording local history and heritage.
2. Caring and Protecting – Volunteer-led involvement in saving/restoring heritage sites and buildings.
3. Sharing and Celebrating – Volunteer-led projects promoting local history, architecture and archaeology.
4. Capacity Building – Projects that demonstrate a sharing of specific skills with volunteers and volunteer community groups.
5. Lifetime Contribution to the Historic Environment – This category is to celebrate and recognise the work of individuals and the lifetime contribution that they have made to the wider benefit of Scotland’s historic environment.
About the Scottish Heritage Angel Awards
The Scottish Heritage Angel Awards are supported by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation. The initiative is a partnership between the Foundation, the Scottish Government, Historic Scotland, the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, the Scottish Government, Scottish Civic Trust, and Archaeology Scotland.
The first such awards in Scotland, the programme supports the delivery of the Historic Environment Strategy, Our Place in Time, with its strong emphasis on community participation in heritage.
www.scottishheritageangelawards.org.uk
Twitter: @ScotAngelAwards
About the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation
The Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation was set up by Andrew in 1992 to promote the arts, culture and heritage for the public benefit; since inception Andrew has been the principle provider of funding for all its charitable activities.
In 2010, the Foundation embarked on an active grant giving programme and has now awarded grants of over £9m to support high quality training and personal development as well as other projects that make a real difference to enrich the quality of life both for individuals and within local communities. Significant grants include £3.5m to Arts Educational Schools, London to create a state of the art professional theatre, £1m to The Architectural Heritage Fund, £1m to The Music in Secondary Schools Trust and over £350,000 annually to fund 30 performing arts scholarships for talented students in financial need. The Foundation owns two important paintings, a Canaletto “Old Horse Guards from St James’s Park”, currently on exhibition at The Holburne Museum, Bath and a Stanley Spencer “The Garage” on exhibition at The Stanley Spencer Gallery in Cookham, Berkshire.
In 2014, the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation awarded 36 new grants to organisations, a third more than 2013, made 15 grants to projects in their second and third year of funding and provided 30 musical theatre scholarships to young performers on the brink of their careers.
www.andrewlloydwebberfoundation.com
Twitter: @ALWFoundation
For further information
Grant Thomson, Communications Officer
Historic Scotland Media Office
0131 668 8074 or 07580 702 611
grant.thomson@scotland.gsi.gov.uk