This app may help saving at-risk historic buildings in Edinburgh

The Old Royal High School in Edinburgh is in the at Buildings At Risk Register (BARR).
The Old Royal High School in Edinburgh is in the at Buildings At Risk Register (BARR). Image: User:Supergolden Wikimedia CC BY SA 3.0

An app namedGrand Bequest’ facilitates creating awareness, having interest groups work together and organize funding so that they can buy and restore the Edinburgh heritage buildings.

This pioneering new historical property website and app could be the key to removing scores of historic buildings from the Buildings At Risk Register (BARR). Grand Bequest is a new social platform created for ‘heritage rehabilitation’ that: “helps homeowners and city councils overcome all the financial and operational obstacles of restoring historical real estate to its former glory.

Community app

“Whether you are an owner, a concerned community member or someone that simply loves old buildings, with the Grand Bequest app, now you can help save historical properties, create jobs, and give these buildings a new lease on life for future generations.” A quick look at the Historic Scotland’s Buildings At Risk register shows that time is running out to save some of Edinburgh’s most magnificent buildings, as well as many beautiful and quirky hidden gems.

All the information in one spot

“There are so many different stakeholders in the heritage sector, so many groups out there doing great work, but with so many charities, trusts and individual groups it can be hard to see the wood for the trees.” Without easy sharing of information between these disparate stakeholders – including the sharing of success stories and hurdles they’ve overcome – things aren’t progressing quickly enough to save many of these buildings.

“Grand Bequest is the perfect platform for community groups who are upset about the condition of a building, and who want to organise, fundraise and buy it back. Of course, this kind of community activism is already underway, but saving historical properties can often be complex, expensive, overwhelming, and marred with regulations.

Read further about the the initiatives taken to preserve heritage in the region at Edinburgh Live. And learn about the Google’s tool showing impact of Climate Change on World Heritage Sites here.

Note from the editor:
Inspiration for other European regions & countries! ‘Digital’ will play an important role in the future of Heritage Protection.

Doneren