Giving Voices to Historic Property Owners

[Neil RobbKeymaster]

The University of Edinburgh (UoE) is running a project entitled Giving Voices to Historic Property Owners in collaboration with the City of Edinburgh Council to revise the Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas planning guidance.

This project focuses on improving the clarity of the guidance document and making the content more accessible to all. UoE are currently recruiting focus group and workshop participants for the project.

For more information and to sign up, click this link. For enquiries about the project please contact historic.voices@ed.ac.uk. From Hannah, Community Engagement Administrative Assistant, Edinburgh School of Architecture & Landscape Architecture.

[Neil RobbKeymaster]

BACKGROUND
In 2023, the City of Edinburgh Council launched a public consultation to explore the barriers faced by historic property-owners when adapting their homes. Responses from that consultation were analysed by the University of Edinburgh. The results showed that most homeowners not only strongly desire clear, centralised, neutral, and accessible planning guidance, but they are also keen to be more engaged in planning matters concerning their properties.

PURPOSE
This University of Edinburgh project aims to understand what specific aspects of the Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas planning guidance (Consultation Draft 2024) require further clarification, and to explore possible improvements that will make the guidance more practical and accessible for historic homeowners.

ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS
This project focuses specifically on owner-occupiers (you own the home you are living in) of listed buildings and properties in a conservation area in Edinburgh. You also must be 18 or over to participate.

PARTICIPATION OPPORTUNITIES
If you own and live in a historic home in Edinburgh, there are two opportunities for you to voice your views and participate in this project from January to May 2025:Participate in a focus group (in-person or virtual, ~75 min) to discuss what doesn’t currently work or is lacking in the existing guidance.

Participate in a half-day morning workshop (in-person or virtual) to brainstorm possible ways of improving the practicality and accessibility of the existing guidance.

You are welcome to participate in both. If you are interested, please answer a few questions in this short (~2min) form to check your eligibility and to express your interest to participate in either a focus group, a workshop, or both. This short form will also ask you about your date/time preferences between Jan-May 2025. If eligible, you will be contacted and be given further information. All focus group participants will receive a £10 e-gift card that can be used at a range of high street and online shops. In-person half-day workshops will end with a catered lunch.

GOOD TO KNOW
This is a University of Edinburgh-funded project. At the end of the project, a report will be presented to the Council’s Planning Committee (end of 2025/early 2026) detailing recommended improvements to the Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas planning guidance.

You don’t have to participate unless you want to, and you can withdraw from this sign-up form at any time by closing the browser. Your response in this form will be kept confidential and will NOT be shared with the Council. If you choose to participate in the focus group/workshop, in the final project report to the Council and anything the University might publish, we will NOT include any information that will make it possible to identify you. All data collected in this project will be processed in accordance with current UK Data Protection Law. This project has been given ethical approval by the Edinburgh College of Arts of the University of Edinburgh. If you have any concerns or questions, please write to historic.voices@ed.ac.uk.

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