Public investment in historic places often turns into real work on real walls, and Historic Environment Scotland’s latest grants funding report puts numbers behind that impact. In the past financial year, HES spent £10.77 million on behalf of the Scottish Government, supporting communities and historic places across Scotland. Demand outpaced supply, with applications totaling £49.4 million, roughly two-thirds more than HES awarded.
HES reports 33.8% of its funding went to Scotland’s most deprived areas. It also estimates that for each person in Scotland, the investment equals £1.95 in heritage, and that every £1 of HES investment leveraged a further £5.94. A new 100% funded pilot scheme starts in 2026-27 and is designed to remove barriers for applicants. Looking ahead, at least £33 million has been committed over the next five years.
For mason contractors and restoration teams, several funded examples tie directly to masonry scope. HES backed the repair and preservation of Glasgow’s Citizens Theatre, a project shaped by COVID delays, inflation, resourcing pressures, and unforeseen repairs. In Kintyre, emergency stabilization of three scheduled monument church ruins at Killean, Kilchenzie, and Kilkivan included masonry stabilization, information boards, and the relocation of 10 carved West Highland grave slabs so a stone conservator could access them.
Smaller “stitch in time” work shows up, too. On the Isle of Mull, a £14,573 grant supported urgent repairs to masonry and timber lintels at the Old Corn Mill in Bunessan, along with interpretation panels and volunteer vegetation clearing. Elsewhere, interim roof repairs at Gracemount Mansion focused on stopping water ingress after lead theft, buying time for a phased restoration strategy. And at the B-listed John O’Groats Mill, a £4.9 million community-led restoration completed in 2025 included extensive masonry repairs and internal lime plastering, and the project is now shortlisted in the conservation category at the Scottish Design Awards 2026.
Read the full, original article from Historic Environment Scotland here.