As the UK went into lockdown in mid-March, spring blossoms were just appearing on the trees, daffodils were popping up by the roadside and sunshine was filtering weakly into our home offices/kitchens/bedrooms.

Perhaps it was the lack of stimulation from other sources or more time to notice the world around us but nature has provided many people with an essential escape. Now, as the country slowly emerges, the National Trust for Scotland is calling on people to safeguard the organisation’s, and the country’s, natural future.

‘Save Our Scotland’, created by Frame, draws public attention to the reality that, due to the COVID crisis, there is a gaping hole in the charity’s funding. Lockdown measures, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have created a £28million shortfall in the charity’s income for 2020. This means that there will be a limit to the locations they’ll be able to open in 2020 and into 2021, either due to lack of resources or because they cannot be adequately adapted to on-going social distancing restrictions.

This campaign is an urgent SOS to those who love Scotland’s heritage, and who want to help ensure the properties, natural heritage sites, designed landscapes and conservation projects can continue to be open safely to the public.

Stuart Brooks, Head of Conservation at the National Trust for Scotland, explained:  “The Trust touches millions of lives every year and we plan to go on doing that well past our centenary in 2031 and beyond. We exist to benefit everyone in Scotland.”

As a charity, the National Trust for Scotland depends on the support of its members and donors to enable it to care for, protect and restore iconic places around Scotland. As the UK makes moves to reopen these heritage sites, a campaign such as this highlights the power that we all have to support charities in the long-term to carry out their essential work.