Progress on our Equality Outcomes

Our Society – Making a Real Difference in People’s Lives 

We've worked tirelessly to foster inclusion, accessibility, and representation in Scotland’s historic environment. Over the past year's we've achieved many things, including: 

• Increased Youth Engagement: 56,543 young people visited our sites with a £1 entry ticket through our Young Scot Partnership 
• Improved Accessibility for Disabled & Neurodiverse Visitors: We introduced sensory backpacks for neurodivergent visitors at key historic sites as well as autism-friendly, BSL, and audio-described tours for our Edinburgh Castle flagship event Castle of Light
• Strengthened Community Engagement & Inclusion Initiatives:  We've built partnerships with LGBT+, disability advocacy groups, ethnic minority organisations, and socio-economic diverse communities, gypsy traveller groups, women`s aid groups, mental health organisation and refugee communities.

Our Services – We deliver responsive services to meet the needs and expectations of diverse groups

We've worked towards delivering services that are responsive to the needs of Scotland’s diverse communities. Our key achievements include: 

• Free & Inclusive Entry Programmes: Our Historic Sundays provided free visits to our sites for underrepresented groups. 
• Researching Marginalised Histories: We identified 126 historic sites with colonial ties through our Properties in Care & British Empire Project
• Inclusive Learning: We co-designed learning experiences with Gypsy and Traveller groups and and minority ethnic communities.  

Our People – We attract, recruit and develop a diverse Board, workforce and volunteer base

We've focused on inclusive recruitment, workplace wellbeing, and leadership diversity. Some of our achievements in this area include:

• Inclusive Recruitment & Workforce Development: We developed an inclusive recruitment toolkit and training for hiring managers. 
• Workplace Wellbeing & Equity Initiatives: We established a Mental Health First Aiders Network for and with our staff
• Expansion of Employee Networks & Diversity Training: We strengthened our staff-led forums like our LGBT+ Network, Youth Network, Disability Forum and Global Diversity Network, and hosted events such as the HES Pride March, talks with Black History Month speaker Sir Geoff Palmer, and the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence

What's next?

Over the last years, we have built strong connections with our communities and listened to their advice on how we can do things differently to empower our communities and remove barriers to access. This inspires our Equality Outcomes for the coming years:

• Our Society: We empower underrepresented communities in shaping change and create opportunities promoting equality and justice.  
• Our Services: We work to remove barriers to access, creating meaningful engagement opportunities for everyone, regardless of who they are  
• Our People: We continue to strive for a truly diverse and inclusive culture where people feel valued and can be their true self 

Our Actions

We've co-created our outcomes through meaningful partnerships with underrepresented community groups and developed a people-centred approach to ensure heritage benefits all:

• To empower communities, we will develop a Community Engagement Framework for meaningful participation, expand funding opportunities for underrepresented groups, strengthen partnerships with grassroots initiatives, and implement research projects highlighting marginalised voices.  
• To remove barriers and expand access, we will improve site accessibility through digital tools, multilingual resources, and inclusive design, expand free and discounted entry programs, develop learning resources tailored for marginalised communities, strengthen youth and school partnerships, and introduce sensory-friendly programs at heritage sites.  
• To foster a diverse and inclusive workforce, we will conduct an Equality Audit of recruitment and workplace policies, establish Equality Ambassadors to champion inclusion, expand unconscious bias training, strengthen mentorship and leadership programmes, and enhance career pathways for professional growth. 
• Additionally, we will focus on socioeconomic diversity through an intersectional lens, exploring how the historic environment can enhance wellbeing and foster social cohesion. 

Our Equality Progress Report 2023-25

Find out more about how we've promoted equality, diversity, and inclusion in the last years

Our report relied on the data we collected on protected characteristics (like gender, race, disability, etc.) to identify potential inequalities and ensure fair and equitable practices and outcomes.

Read our progress & monitoring reports