Refurbished Shapinsay Heritage Centre opens its doors

The aspirations of a committed group of Shapinsay folk has led to the opening of a refurbished island Heritage Centre for everyone to enjoy.

There are new interpretive display boards telling the story of farming in Shapinsay, archaeology, the history of the island schools, Helliar Holm and the World Wars to a striking maritime themed mural documenting ships that have served the island over the years and a reconstruction of the wheelhouse of the MV Iona that now lies to the east side of Elwick Bay; opposite Shapinsay Pier.

Stories are also brought to life thanks to QR codes dotted around the centre for folk to scan on their phones and listen to memories and poems.

Residents were given a first look at the new centre on Sunday 30 July, which sits above the new Smithy Café - the first part of the refurbishment to be completed which opened early in June.

The Shapinsay Development Trust purchased the Smithy from the Council in 2022 and has led on the renovation, securing funding from North Isles Landscape Partnership Scheme, Highlands & Islands Enterprise, Orkney Islands Council’s Community Development Fund and the Scottish Government’s Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES).

While renovation works were ongoing within the centre, volunteers from the Shapinsay Heritage Arts & Crafts (SHAC) took the opportunity to examine their collection in more detail and plan how to present the artefacts, photographs and documents in the new space.

Lenka Melon from SHAC said: “As volunteers we gave our time willingly to put together the new interpretive display boards telling the story of farming in Shapinsay, archaeology, the history of the island schools, Helliar Holm and the World Wars to name a few.

“We are delighted with the end result which we feel is a fantastic celebration of Shapinsay’s heritage.”

Valerie Dawson, Project Officer, North Isles Landscape Partnership Scheme, said: “We are delighted to have part-funded this community-led project which is yet another shining example of what can be achieved by a small island with some big ideas.The end result is a credit to everyone involved.”

The Heritage Centre is open 11.30am-4pm daily throughout the summer.

Meanwhile, the Shapinsay Development Trust have been recognised as one of Scotland’s most pioneering social enterprises.

The Trust are up against three other organisations in the running for the Social Enterprise of the Year Award 2023 announced by Social Enterprise Scotland recently.

The awards recognise excellence and outstanding achievements by social enterprises – businesses that reinvest their profits for social and environmental good – that demonstrate they’re improving and building a better economy and fairer society.

The opening of the Heritage Centre and Smithy Café has been the culmination of a lot of hard work by the community, and the social enterprise recognition is the icing on the cake for all those behind the projects, according to Trust Manager/Community Development Officer, Lisa-Marie Muir.

“As a small but vibrant community we are very proud of what we have achieved in terms of the refurbishment and opening of the Café and now the Heritage Centre. The feedback we have received since the opening of the Café has been fantastic and we are confident that it will be the same for the Heritage Centre, which incorporates an arts and crafts shop.

“So much has gone into reaching this stage – and there’s a huge amount of work ongoing in terms of running the business and, hopefully, making it a great success for the island. To be shortlisted for this award is the icing on the cake and receiving local and now national recognition really does make all the hard work very worthwhile.”