Volunteers In Line For 'Angel' Award

A cave preservation society from Wemyss and an archivist group from Dumfermline are in line for an award celebrating Scotland's history.

They are on the shortlist for the Scottish Heritage Angels Award - which celebrates those who preserve the country's old buildings, landscapes and history. The Dean of Guild Court Volunteers have created a searchable archive of Dunfermline's built heritage, while the Save The Wemyss Ancient Caves society safeguard 6 sea caves, which contain Pictish carvings.

Sue Mowat, Dean of Guild Court volunteer and local historian, said: "These records cover a period when Dunfermline was growing rapidly and offer a unique insight into its built heritage.  The detailed plans of single houses and new housing schemes add a lot to the study of our social history. For instance it’s fascinating to see the 1960s’ home improvement trend with the addition of new bathrooms and loft extensions. The vast collection also illustrates what might have been, with plans for new buildings and schemes such as a dance hall and shop complex that were never realised.

"Local history research is a hobby which I find intensely interesting and an award would be an extra cherry in the cake."

David Paterson, Area Services Manager at Fife Council, who work in partnership with the Society, said: "The partnership approach to the Wemyss Caves project, over the last two years, has been beneficial to all stakeholders. While we have seen the capacity of the volunteers increase massively over the period, the process put in place has helped officers of the Council, other statutory bodies and the land owner representatives to join forces with the volunteers and put in place a robust  plan that will secure the future of this historic Fife asset."

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.

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.