The Scottish Civic Trust is the national voice for Scotland’s civic and heritage groups
The Trust was founded in 1967 to help people connect to their built heritage and countryside, preserve the uniqueness of their locality and appreciate how this connects to the wider unique character of Scotland. Our formation was a result of a wider civic movement that dates back to the 18th century.
We have successfully campaigned for the restoration of Edinburgh’s New Town, were instrumental in the revitalisation of New Lanark and can also claim credit for bringing Doors Open Days to the United Kingdom.
The Trust’s founding aims were to encourage and promote:
• Attractive, healthy and stimulating conditions of life and work
• High standards of architectural planning
• The preservation of buildings and features of artistic merit or historical interest
• The protection of the countryside
• Excellence in architectural design
• A sense of civic pride in all of our communities
• An appreciation of the beauty, history and character of Scotland
While the intervening years has seen the Trust develop in new ways, we are still working towards the same objectives today.
Our Mission
Our mission is to work in partnership with all communities to preserve the uniqueness of their place, promoting access to the historic environment and its stories to ensure its relevance in contemporary Scotland.
Our Vision
Thriving, beautiful and well cared for places and buildings, which help to support and sustain a high quality of life.
We have a small staff team that works hard to achieve our mission, working under the guidance of our Board.
Everything we do centres around the following core values:
• We are robust and independent in advocating for Scotland’s places and buildings
• We are positive about the future of the built environment
• We lead thinking on Scotland’s civic spaces
• We collaborate across the heritage sector and beyond to develop ideas that tackle exclusion
• We support community groups looking after their locality
We are proud to represent Scotland’s civic sector and strive to ensure our amenity groups are active, empowered, and educated to make a difference in their locality.
You can read more about our work in our Strategic Plan and learn about our recent activities in our Annual Reports.