Huntly Project Wins Top National Award for Community Placemaking

The Scottish Civic Trust My Place Awards 2025 have named Number 30, The Square in Huntly as this year’s winner, recognising it as an outstanding example of community-led regeneration that has made a lasting impact on its town centre.
Led by Huntly Development Trust, the project was honoured at Scotland’s Civic Celebration in The Merchants House of Glasgow on July 30th, held as part of the national launch of Doors Open Days, Scotland’s largest free festival of architecture and heritage.
 

A New Heart for Huntly

Once a prominent 19th-century department store, Number 30 stood empty after closing in 2018, ending over 140 years of continuous service to the community. Its decline mirrored wider challenges facing Huntly - rising vacancy rates, declining footfall, and economic strain.
Instead of letting the building deteriorate, Huntly Development Trust, in partnership with local residents, schools, and organisations, led a £4 million transformation. Reopened in 2024, the building now offers a cinema, café, gallery, co-working space, enterprise hub, learning zones, meeting rooms, a travel hub, and an accessible Changing Places facility.
The revitalised Number 30 is now seen as the spark for wider regeneration, breathing new life into the town centre.
“Number 30 is a brilliant example of what happens when a community reclaims its high street and reimagines it for the future. It’s a low-cost, high-impact model that’s already loved and used by locals - a place with purpose and pride. Huntly’s heart is beating again, and it starts at The Square.”
- Thierry Lye, Chair, My Place Awards 2025 Judging Panel

 
Delivering a Shared Vision Against the Odds
The project stems from the Huntly 2030 - Room to Thrive strategy, first developed in 2018 and refreshed in 2022. It champions place-based investment, sustainability, and community empowerment, with Number 30 as its centrepiece.
Pupils from The Gordon Schools helped shape the project’s identity, with the name “Number 30” originating from a student geography project. Community volunteers contributed throughout development and continue to support its operation.
Designed by LDN Architects, the retrofit tackled major challenges - hidden structural damage, decades of poor alterations, budget pressures, contractor delays, and even ecological constraints protecting nesting swifts. When SSE revealed the local substation couldn’t meet the new power needs, the Trust co-funded infrastructure upgrades to move forward.
Despite the obstacles, Number 30 now offers a sustainable, accessible, and heritage-sensitive facility that delivers real impact. Highlights include:
  • Cinema attendance rates of 35-40%, well above the UK average for independent venues
  • Energy-saving measures that cut carbon emissions by 89 tonnes annually
  • Full accessibility, including a new disabled parking space, lift access, and hearing loops
  • A design that preserves the building’s historic character while supporting modern uses
 
Praised as a Model for Community-Driven Change
Culture Secretary Angus Robertson said:
“The projects recognised through the My Place Awards demonstrate the transformative power of people and place. Number 30 is an inspiring example of how communities can shape their local environment, preserve heritage, and deliver meaningful change. Everyone involved should be immensely proud.”
Since reopening, Number 30 has exceeded expectations. Local businesses report increased footfall, and renewed confidence is already encouraging investment in other vacant town centre properties.
Against financial and technical challenges, Huntly Development Trust has delivered a lasting asset rooted in local vision - a community space that will serve the town for generations.