The taskforce has made a series of recommendations to Scottish Government to transform Scotland’s approach to tackling the legacy of derelict land and ensure that it is no longer acceptable to allow land to fall into long term disrepair.

The Vacant and Derelict Land Taskforce was created in 2018 by the Scottish Land Commission and SEPA to transform Scotland’s approach to tackling the legacy of vacant and derelict land which has existed for more than 30 years.  The legacy of Scotland’s industrial past means that almost a third of the Scottish population lives within 500 meters of a derelict site.

Scotland has almost 11,000 hectares of vacant and derelict urban land. These sites blight communities, harm wellbeing, and limit opportunities – but they could be so much more: they could help solve some of society’s biggest challenges.

In 2018 the Scottish Land Commission and SEPA established a national taskforce to help realise this opportunity. The taskforce brought together senior representatives from around 30 businesses, public bodies and third sector organisations. They set out to:

Transform Scotland’s approach to tackling vacant and derelict land, create the conditions necessary for eradicating persistent dereliction in urban communities and realise the social, economic and environmental benefits of returning unloved derelict urban land back to productive use.

Read the recommendations