Community projects are invited to apply for grants from Historic Environment Scotland.

Community projects based around Scotland’s coasts and waterways have been invited to apply for funding from a new grant programme.

Historic Environment Scotland (HES) is awarding grants of between £3,000 and £20,000 to initiatives across the country through its new Coasts and Waters Heritage Fund.

While community groups working to protect or promote Scotland’s coasts and waterways are encouraged to apply, the scheme is open to all organisations throughout the country.

All applicants, however, must be able to demonstrate how their project will benefit the local community through developing skills, stabilising historic structures or providing educational programmes.

Applications for the one-off fund, which celebrates Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters, are open until Sunday 31 May. In total, £200,000 will be awarded.

Jane Ryder OBE, HES chair, said: “For thousands of years, communities across Scotland have lived and worked along or near water, and the Year of Coasts and Waters provides an excellent opportunity to engage people with our coastal and waterway heritage.

“Through this new grant programme, we are encouraging communities not only to celebrate our coasts and waters, but also to explore opportunities to adapt to the effects of climate change and help ensure this important aspect of our heritage is protected for future generations.”

The launch of the fund follows the publication of HES’s Climate Action Plan which outlines an ambitious programme of climate commitments over the next five years and beyond, in response to the climate crisis.

Further information, including details on how to apply, is available via the HES website.