People across Orkney are being invited to help shape the future of the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site as a major programme of community engagement gets underway this month.
Four public sessions will be held in Kirkwall, Stenness, Stromness and Sandwick from Monday 21 September as plans are developed around access, interpretation and a potential new orientation centre.
The Orkney World Heritage Site programme is a partnership between Orkney Islands Council and Historic Environment Scotland and forms part of the wider Islands Growth Deal.
Work is currently underway on a draft Programme Business Case which will help secure investment for the programme and determine how future proposals are taken forward.
Three areas will be at the centre of discussions with communities over the coming weeks.
The first will examine how people travel to and from the World Heritage Site and Stenness village, including the movement and management of pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles.
The second will explore options for a potential orientation centre in the Stenness area, while the third will consider interpretation across the World Heritage Site as a whole.
Alongside the public sessions, the engagement programme will include themed workshops, meetings with residents, activities involving schools and discussions with stakeholders.
Inga Burton said:
“UNESCO recognises that local communities are key partners in the stewardship of World Heritage Sites, with community participation being essential to the long-term conservation and sustainable development of heritage assets.
“The work being taken forward through the Orkney World Heritage Site programme links with other key documents such as the Heart of Neolithic Orkney Management Plan and provides an opportunity for the wider community to engage and participate in shaping how we protect and connect with the World Heritage Site moving forward”
The first public session will be held at the Old Library in Laing Street, Kirkwall, from 5pm until 7pm on Monday 21 September.
Stenness Community Hall will host a session from 6pm until 8pm on Tuesday 22 September, followed by the Warehouse Buildings in Stromness from 5pm until 7pm on Wednesday 23 September.
The final scheduled drop in session will take place at Sandwick Hall from 5pm until 6.30pm on Thursday 24 September.
The Heart of Neolithic Orkney has held UNESCO World Heritage status since 1999 and includes some of Scotland’s most remarkable prehistoric monuments.
The World Heritage Site encompasses Skara Brae, Maeshowe and the Barnhouse Stone, the Stones of Stenness and nearby Watch Stone, and the Ring of Brodgar alongside neighbouring mounds and the Comet Stone.
Its World Heritage status recognises the exceptional international significance of the monuments and brings a responsibility to protect them for future generations.
The programme sits within the £100 million Islands Growth Deal funded by the UK and Scottish Governments, covering projects across Orkney, Shetland and the Outer Hebrides.
The coming engagement will now give Orcadians the opportunity to influence how one of the world’s most important Neolithic landscapes is experienced, understood and protected in the years ahead.
