OSCR Scottish charity profile

Scottish Vernacular Buildings Working Group

ActiveCharity number SC010835
Registered1 April 1986
Main locationCity of Edinburgh
Legal formUnincorporated association

01 Identity

Scottish charity record

Snapshot 25 August 2026
OSCR charity number
SC010835
Status
Active
Regulatory type
Standard
Designated religious body
No
Geographical spread
Operations cover all or most of Scotland
Volunteers
0 volunteers
Staff
0
Postcode
EH4 2AS

02 Purpose and work

What the charity exists to do

Vernacular buildings are traditional buildings that use local materials and methods. They range in scale from huts to tower houses, and in usage from cottages to tenements and farmsteads to smithies. The Scottish Vernacular Buildings Working Group was founded in 1972 to provide a focus for people interested in these buildings. Our membership is as diverse as the buildings themselves: it includes archaeologists, architects, ethnologists, geographers, historians and surveyors, but especially those who are just fascinated by the buildings and want to know more about them. Membership and meetings are open to all with an interest, and we welcome contributions and suggestions. Vernacular Building is published annually and includes a wide range of short papers covering all aspects of traditional building in Scotland.

Charitable purposes

  • the advancement of education
  • the advancement of the arts, heritage, culture or science
  • the advancement of environmental protection or improvement

Beneficiaries

  • No specific group, or for the benefit of the community

Activities

  • It carries out activities or services itself

Constitutional objectives

The objects of SVBWG shall be: (a) to provide a meeting point for individuals and institutions concerned in some way with the architectural, historical and social aspects of vernacular buildings. (b) to meet at regular intervals in different parts of the country to discuss specific topics within the field of the subject. (c) to diffuse knowledge of the subject through discussions and through publication of information. (d) to stimulate activity in the surveying and recording of vernacular buildings in their regional and social settings. (e) to encourage the study and teaching of the subject in the curricula of Universities and Colleges. (f) to circulate members about work in progress and new publications.

03 Annual returns

Income and expenditure history

5 periods
Year endIncomeExpenditureStaffReturn received
31 January 2025£4,853£4,557012 August 2025
31 January 2024£2,869£4,213030 September 2024
31 January 2023£3,577£3,658019 October 2023
31 January 2022£3,551£3,400028 June 2022
31 January 2021£2,970£2,754011 November 2021

Figures are those reported by the charity and supplied in the OSCR bulk download. Blank facts remain distinct from zero.

04 Contact record

Principal office or trustees address

Address supplied to OSCR
51 Drylaw Crescent, Edinburgh
Website supplied to OSCR
www.svbwg.org.uk
Parent charity
Not supplied

No direct external links on this profile. The official OSCR record and source documentation are available through BritDB’s dedicated source page.

05 Provenance

Source for this profile

© Crown Copyright and database right 2026. Contains information from the Scottish Charity Register supplied by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. BritDB is an independent service and does not claim to be the Scottish Charity Register.