Record number of Scottish historic buildings now considered 'at risk'
Scotland’s Buildings at Risk register is expanding as a ‘crisis’ in caring for historic properties emerges, it has been warned
A record number of Scottish historic buildings are now considered to be “at risk”.
Campaigners have claimed that Scotland’s architectural legacy is now under threat due to the neglect and decay of numerous landmarks across the country.
SAVE Britain’s Heritage has added another 42 Scottish buildings to its UK-wide ‘buildings at risk register’, almost doubling the number of Scottish entries.
The rise is down to what the charity is dubbing a “crisis” in the protection of historic buildings, which they say is highlighted by the fire that destroyed Union Corner in Glasgow earlier this year.
Lydia Franklin, conservation officer at SAVE, said: “Scotland’s architectural legacy as a place with a rich and diverse range of historic buildings - and as the birthplace of world-famous architects like Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Robert Adam - is one which deserves fierce protection and thoughtful adaption to modern needs.
“Yet threats to Scotland’s built environment persist - from emergency works that risk flattening more than necessary, to the slower but just as deadly issues of neglect and decay.”
Amongst the buildings added to the ‘at risk’ register are the Category A-listed Lennox Castle in Lennoxtown in East Dunbartonshire, built in 1837 and later used as a hospital and maternity unit where singer Lulu was born, which ha been empty and deteriorating since 2002 .
Two listed Art Deco cinemas in Edinburgh - the former Odeon on Clerk Street and The George in Portobello - are also now on the register.
Meanwhile, the early 20th century Metering House at Lower Glendevon Dam in Clackmannanshire has also been added to the ‘at risk’ list , with the charity recommending that the property could be turned into a visitor centre in an area popular with hillwalkers.
The 1960s Scottish Ambulance Service building Glasgow’s Cowcaddens - a "rare and striking" example of British modernist architecture designed by architects Skinner, Bailey and Lubetkin - is included, alongwith Aberdeen’s Woolmanhill Hospital.
All the buildings added to the list were nominated by members of the public and conservation professionals who are concerned about the future of these landmarks.
SAVE is hoping that adding buildings to the ‘at risk’ list can pressure neglectful owners to act.
Amy Popham, heritage engagement manager at SAVE, said: “As the record number of nominations we’ve received this year demonstrates, these buildings are held in huge affection by the people whose lives they enhance.
“They believe these buildings are worth fighting for and so do we.
“By highlighting these terrific local landmarks we hope people will come forward with creative ideas for their future.
“Buildings like these are what make our towns and villages unique and reusing them is a great starting place for breathing new life into entire communities.”
The new entries to the list comes on the back of SAVE’s campaign to close a “dangerous” loophole in Scottish law which allows listed buildings to be demolished using emergency public safety powers.
Two years ago Scottish Labour MSPs Paul Sweeney and Carol Mochan launched a petition in the Scottish Parliament to demand better safeguards, and it was signed by more than 4,000 people.
The petition was deemed of “enormous public interest” during a Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee meeting, where it received strong support from MSPs and prompted an expert roundtable to discuss next steps. The process was paused by the elections but campaigning continues on the issue.
SAVE's push to close the loophole followed its campaign to protect category B-listed Ayr Station Hotel, which was neglected by an absentee owner but “full of potential to catalyse the renaissance of Ayr town centre”, the charity said.
It was demolished under public safety grounds in 2024 after arsonists damaged a wing. SAVE’s offered to send a specialist conservation engineer to assess what could be retained was never taken up by the local authority, the charity said.
The charity also pointed to “many other examples of loss and decay” across Scotland, including Charles Rennie Mackintosh's world-famous Glasgow School of Art, which remains under scaffolding years after two devastating fires.
Meanwhile, Hillhead Baptist Church, a B-listed landmark in Glasgow’s West End, is at imminent risk of demolition while the “handsome” C-listed India Buildings in the city’s Bridge Street were demolished in 2024 at a cost to taxpayers of £1m. Braemer Lodge in Aberdeenshire was controversially demolished without planning permission after a fire in 2022.
The charity said there were “fantastic examples” of buildings being rescued and reused by community groups, preservation trusts and businesses whcih had pushed forward their own visions for historic buildings. They include the Briggait, Glasgow’s fish market for a century, whicg is now beautifully restored and transformed into a home for creative businesses and events.
Edinburgh’s Granton Railway Station, once an empty, B-listed relic of the Granton gasworks, has been painstakingly restored and adapted into a vibrant creative workspace.
SAVE also highlighted the work of Glasgow Building Preservation Trust, which has converted Gallowgate's Edwardian Whitevale Baths into community spaces and a charity’s headquarters. The trust is also in the process of turning three sandstone school janitor’s houses into homes for homeless families.
In Portsoy Old Harbour in Aberdeenshire, North East Scotland Preservation Trust is working to restore a remarkable collection of listed maritime and industrial buildings including a marble workshop.
Also in Aberdeenshire, the Friends of Tarlair have restored the seawater lido’s Art Deco cafe in the first step to a full rescue.
Jenners, Edinburgh’s legendary department store, is currently being restored after it was devasted by fire.
And this week Alexander “Greek” Thomson’s Egyptian Halls is emerging from 15 years of scaffolding as plans to repair it finally get underway.
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