£30,000 Award to Skaill House

By theorkneynews on January 27, 2021

Orkney’s Skaill House has been awarded £30,000 from the Historic Environment Scotland Recovery Fund.

Skaill House is situated beside the Skara Brae Visitor Centre and in ‘normal’ summers a joint ticket gains you access to the iconic Neolithic village and the large house.

The village of Skara Brae is located on the land of the Breckness Estate and inside Skaill House you can view some photographs of the early excavations that took place there.

Skaill House like so many tourist attractions has been hit hard by the restrictions of the Covid pandemic.

Across Scotland over 40 organisations have shared in a total of more than £1.9million in the Recovery Fund. Historic Environment Scotland is administering the fund on behalf of the Scottish Government.

Fiona Hyslop, Culture Secretary in the Scottish Government said:

“Scotland is internationally renowned for the quality and diversity of its historic environment. Our historic environment plays a crucial role in defining who we are as a nation, supporting wellbeing and sustainability within communities and promoting a positive image of Scotland across the world.

“I am pleased that a wide range of projects will benefit from Scottish Government funding as part of the Historic Environment Recovery Fund. The support delivered through this fund will safeguard our shared heritage for future generations, protect jobs and help to strengthen Scotland’s wider economic recovery.”

The £1,916,238 funding has been distributed to a wide range of attractions everything from castles to lighthouses to steam railways.

Alex Paterson, Chief Executive at HES, said:

“While historic sites and visitor attractions have been impacted by the closure of sites throughout the 2020 visitor season and the loss of revenue, other organisations in the sector have also had to adapt the way in which they carry out their work, put crucial traditional skills training and educational activities on hold and look at new ways to generate income, and we hope that this funding will allow the recipients to prepare for the future.

“The historic environment sector provides countless benefits to local communities – including providing jobs and generating tourism spend – and it is vital that we support these organisations and ensure their important work can continue as we face the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and seek to harness opportunities ahead.”