The shortlist for the annual Scotland's Most Beautiful High Street has been revealed by organisers, Scotland's Towns Partnership and Keep Scotland Beautiful.

Scotland's Towns Partnership is the national body for towns in Scotland, and Keep Scotland Beautiful, the environmental charity which campaigns to keep Scotland green, clean and sustainable.

The towns shortlisted by the judging panel are: Ayr; Innerleithen; Kirkwall; Lerwick; Linlithgow; Lanark; Milngavie; Rothesay.

The public will have until Sunday 10 November to cast their vote online, with the winner to be announced on Monday 18 November at the beginning of Scotland's Towns Week.

Entries were judged on factors including horticultural achievement, environmental responsibility, and community participation.

Votes can be cast here.

The 2018 winner was the Aberdeenshire town of Turriff. Turriff's entry, submitted by the Turriff Business Association, highlighted the town's numerous heritage sites, horticultural beauty, and community initiatives, including the emblematic 'Turra Coo' sculpture.


Marj Chalmers, Chair of 2018 winners Turriff Business Association, said: "Entering and winning the title of Scotland's Most Beautiful High Street last year was a great honour for us. Winning overall was fantastic and a great boost for Turriff.

"We had lots of press coverage and TV crews visiting Turriff and doing a report. The footfall was increased greatly and it certainly put Turriff on the map with the businesses in Turriff benefiting from the extra trade."

Phil Prentice, Chief Officer of Scotland's Towns Partnership, said: "This competition is about celebrating the incredible work of people up and down the country, who give up their time to improve their local places. We've been blown away by the strength of the entries this year which goes to show that town centre revival is on the up, and it's driven by local people.

"Our high streets and town centres are the beating hearts of communities and local economies, and each has its own unique identity and experience to offer for both residents and visitors. I would urge people to get online and vote for their favourite entry and help us celebrate the success of our thriving town centres."

Katie Murray, Communities and Place Manager at Keep Scotland Beautiful commented: "Congratulations to all eight shortlisted High Streets – it is always inspiring to see communities and businesses working together to help the places they care about thrive.

"For over half a decade we have celebrated the success of communities, through our Beautiful Scotland competition so we know how important competitions such as this are. I'd urge everyone to vote - working together we can all enjoy and celebrate cleaner, greener and more beautiful High Streets."

(MH/CM)