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Independent Journalism from across Scotland.

Scottish Beacon is a collaborative
network of independent local and hyperlocal newsrooms serving urban and rural communities.

Together we’re working to strengthen the voice of the community-based media sector and bring to light real stories from Scotland’s communities.

Photo: Two high-rise buildings. Source: Nothing Ahead

Slow progress on cladding in Edinburgh and Leith

The Housing (Cladding Remediation) Scotland Act 2024 was passed in May last year and came …
Illustration by giacinta frisillo

Plant Grow Share: Don’t let it go to waste

It is an event, each weekend in the long days of summer, to see two …
Illustration by Brian Palmer

Is Islay’s whisky boom about to hit a snag?

Is the golden goose on a break? The last few years have seen plans for …
Photo: Edinburgh City Source: The Edinburgh Reporter

Edinburgh city agrees details of new visitor levy

The meeting was held online due to Storm Éowyn but all councillors had ample opportunity to …
Tom Wood with the wartime archive pictured at the site of one of the unexploded bombs in Portobello. Photo by Stephen Rafferty

Explosive discovery in wartime bombing archive

Details contained in the valuable archive were known only to a small circle of officials …
Marischal-College-Aberdeen-City-Council

£1 million fraud at Aberdeen City Council sends a warning across local government

All Scottish councils must learn from the weaknesses that allowed an Aberdeen City Council employee’s …
Photo: Marianne Brown. Source: Shetland News

How do we reconcile change? Viking wind farm and the consequences

When Shetland embarked on that protracted Viking wind farm journey more than two decades ago, …
Photo: Patrick Harvie, leader of the Scottish Green Party. Source: The Edinburgh Reporter

Greens renew demand over Trump ahead of his inauguration

The party says it does not want Scotland to welcome President Trump if he visits …
Photo: Local resident holds up Glasgow-Roma solidarity poster against backdrop of Govanhill tenements. Source: Photo by Tommy Ga-Ken Wan

New research finds Roma are being denied decent housing in Glasgow’s Govanhill

A research project by Roma rights group Romano Lav and Poverty Alliance, Scotland’s anti-poverty network, …
Photo of Rhoda courtesy of The Orkney News

VisitScotland to close 25 of its iCentres

There seems to be a complete lack of accountability from the Scottish Government over VisitScotland’s …

Wrapped: 100 Days of the Green Transition

Recently, we reached the end of our 100 Days of the Green Transition project, which …
Photo: Close-up of stacked coins with a blurred clock. Source: Pixabay (stock)

Significant challenges ahead for local services in Orkney

COSLA, the organisation which represents Scotland’s local authorities, has welcomed the Draft Scottish Budget published on …

Our latest project…

In this project, we aim to shift the dial on how issues relating to the green transition are covered. It follows our Citizens Agenda project, which asked people to define the issues that mattered most to them in the run-up to the General Election. Climate change and green energy were the top two issues that emerged. Over 100 days, we aim to collectively publish more than 50 stories that highlight community solutions that are already making a difference in this area.

scottish beacon 100 days of the green transition

Real stories from across Scotland.

Scottish Beacon is a collaborative network of independent local and hyperlocal newsrooms serving urban and rural communities. Together we’re working to strengthen the voice of the community-based media sector and bring to light real stories from Scotland’s communities.

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