Heritage sites fail to break even

Two years after we revealed that just six of the then 66 properties were performing in the same manner, the charity has only managed to increase the number of its attractions which produce enough revenue to cover their costs by three, a mere 4.4 per cent of their total.

At the annual general meeting of the trust today, Dr Robin Pellew, the chief executive, will tell members that "only nine are fully or largely endowed" and the remaining 59 properties either have "inadequate endowments or no endowments at all". The most successful properties include Crarae Gardens near Inverary, Newhailes House in Musselburgh, Mar Lodge estate near Braemar, Fyvie Castle in Turriff and Threave Gardens near Dumfries.

Almost three years ago Dr Pellew ratified a radical management shake-up in an effort to contain a cash crisis and stem falling visitor numbers.

The far-reaching reforms focused on devolving more power to individual properties and regional offices for marketing and visitor management as well as the implementation of ambitious conservation programmes. At the time, staff morale, particularly in offices remote from the trust’s Edinburgh headquarters was said to be low and staff turnover had increased significantly.

In the five years leading up to the implementation of the reforms in 2001, tourism in Scotland had declined by 20 per cent and numbers of visitors to NTS properties had fallen by as much as 15 per cent. It all contributed to a deficit of some 2.5 million when the trust closed its books at the end of 2001, which Mr Pellew acknowledged looked on the verge of "getting alarmingly out of control".

However, despite the current paucity of properties in the black, the news is not all bad.

The reforms have already reduced the gap between its operating costs and income from the low of 2.5 million to just over 500,000, with expectations that it will be out of the red by this time next year.

Membership now stands at an all-time high of 285,000 - a significant improvement on the quarter-of-a-million members two years ago.

Dr Pellew will tell the meeting: "Of course, we have to remember that the trust is a charity and not a commercial organisation - clearly it would be unrealistic to expect all our properties to run at a surplus or even to break even.

"However, even a charity must operate in a financially prudent way." "

Dr Pellew last night told The Scotsman: "It is important to remember that those properties running at a deficit are balanced by the income from our 285,000 members together with retail and rents and grants that we receive.

"We have clawed a deficit back from about 2.5 million three years ago to around 500,000 now. Next year we intend to be back in the black. Our financial troubles are not totally resolved, but we are looking very much healthier than we were."

On the subject of morale within the charity, Dr Pellew was also positive.

He added: "I think morale is a lot better than it was a few years back. It was very low two to three years ago. We turned it upside-down and head office became the focus of our plan to supply services to support the properties. They are the core of what we do and are ultimately what we are judged upon."

In addition to the improved financial situation, the NTS has managed to make great leaps in its conservation programme.

It has recently completed the Hugh Millar Museum in Cromarty, and has made "considerable progress" with the restoration of Broughton House, the 18th-century town-house in Kirkudbright where the renowned artist Edward Hornel set up his studio in the early 19th century.

Other projects which have seen success include the restoration of Dymock’s Building in Bo’ness, and the launch of the ambitious initiative to repair Scotland’s upland footpaths under the banner of ‘mountain heritage’.