Annual review, 2022 to 2023, part three

Audience development programme

Our 2020 to 2025 strategy, 'Reaching People', is all about audiences. It details our ambition to take an audience-led approach to the delivery of our services and experiences, reach new and diverse audiences, deliver outstanding engagement and engage communities throughout Scotland and internationally.

To accelerate this work, we commissioned the Audience Agency – a not-for-profit group devoted to helping more people access and influence culture – to deliver an audience development programme for our organisation. This programme includes activities such as audience research. The Audience Agency is helping us get a clearer picture of who we're reaching and, equally as important, who we're not reaching. The team is also helping us to develop our skills in evaluating the impact of our activities on intended audiences.

We are also gaining a better understanding of how people engage with culture through audience segmentation – essentially, breaking the population up into specific groups that do not rely on stereotypes, for example.
This gives us a shared language to better understand audience characteristics and motivations, and tells us where these people are and how to reach them. It helps us in shaping services and activities to ensure we reach those with whom we want to engage.

It means more confidence in what we prioritise, why and for whom. It can mean prioritising activities or services that accelerate our engagement with underrepresented audiences and communities, or activities to reach even more of the people we serve quite well already.

The audience development programme involves a cultural shift in our way of thinking but one that is being embraced as we strive to provide even greater benefit for the people of Scotland.

First copy of 'The Scotsman'

This newspaper first appeared on 25 January 1817, with eight pages and a circulation of only 300 copies. 'The Scotsman' flourished and went on to establish a pioneering distribution network – by 1872, a dedicated morning train was transporting copies to readers outside Edinburgh.

Scheme for Darien, 1700

This document outlines William Paterson's (1658 to 1719) scheme for Darien, a trading colony on the Isthmus of Panama. He had hoped his plan would enrich Scotland but it ended in catastrophe.

Scots raised large amounts of money to fund the scheme but it collapsed amid disease, poor planning and war with the Spanish. The Darien scheme cost Scotland a quarter of its capital and was among the factors that led to the Union of 1707.

Devolution referendum

Material we have from the 1997 referendum includes 'Yes' and 'No' campaign pamphlets, which represent a pivotal moment in Scotland's modern history.

Building the Forth Bridge

Our collection of original photographs offers a glimpse into the construction of this engineering marvel, which began in 1882 and finished in 1889.

Photography was becoming increasingly common as a visual medium at the time, and we have many examples showing the partially completed bridge.

'Rob Roy' manuscript

This is the complete working manuscript for Sir Walter Scott's novel, written in his hand and published in 1817. Until 2022, when it was saved for the nation, 'Rob Roy' was the last remaining novel of Scott's still in private hands.

The manuscript was among the many literary treasures held in a private collection, known as the Honresfield Library, that were due to be sold at auction in 2021. Fearing that these items would be returned to private hands and possibly end up overseas, a UK-wide consortium of organisations, including the National Library of Scotland, purchased them following an international fundraising campaign. The collection was renamed the Blavatnik Honresfield Library in tribute to its majority donor.

Letter of Robert Burns to William Nicol, 1787

Burns's only surviving letter written in Scots was sent to William Nicol (1744 to 1797), a schoolmaster the Bard befriended while he was in Edinburgh from 1786 until 1787.

'The Lyon in Mourning'

The Reverend Robert Forbes (1708 to 1775) risked everything to compile these eyewitness accounts of the 1745 Jacobite Rising. The collection includes interviews, letters, first-hand testimonies and even scraps of fabric to tell the story of the rise, fall and exile of Charles Edward Stuart and his followers.

Calvin's Catechism in Gaelic

This was only the second book in Gaelic to be printed in Scotland and our volume is the only surviving copy.

The title page is missing, so we have no direct information about when and where it was printed, although there are some clues – on page 107 are the letters 'I W P', which stand for John Wreittoun Printer. He had his printing press in Edinburgh.

The translator was probably a scholar or a poet who was trained in Latin and in classical Gaelic. Calvin's Catechism first appeared in Latin in 1545.

Treasures family fun

We launched a Treasures Family Trail to help children and their families explore the exhibition in a fun and interactive way.

A programme of Treasures-related events continues to be delivered to support further engagement with the exhibition.

With special thanks to funders the Garfield Weston Foundation, the Hugh Fraser Foundation, Sir Boyd Tunnock, Dr Jeffrey Jay, Michael A.Lampert.

Curator Treasures online events

Ten curators hosted two online events showcasing items from the exhibition, including:

• The trailblazing work of the explorer, botanist, artist and writer Isobel Wylie Hutchison.
• A 15th century Gaelic medical manuscript, the 'Materia Medica'.
• The medieval 'Iona Psalter'.
• A letter from Charles Darwin to John Murray, from the John Murray Archive, which outlines chapters for Darwin's groundbreaking book on evolutionary theory, 'The Origin of Species'.
• A letter that Robert Burns wrote to Agnes Maclehose, which has the words to 'Ae Fond Kiss'.
• The manuscript of 'The Lyon in Mourning' compiled by Jacobite sympathiser Robert Forbes.

Exhibitions

Pen Names

This popular exhibition ran from 8 July 2022 until 29 April 2023 and explored the use of pen names by authors working in Britain from the 1800s to the present day.

A total of 68,997 people came to see Pen Names during its run. One visitor told us: "Pen Names was a really great exhibition! I really loved it!!"

We put on programme of supporting events, including creative writing workshops, a talk by Jennifer Morag Henderson about Josephine Tey (the pen name of Elizabeth MacKintosh) and a presentation by Alan Riach on Scottish authors who have used pseudonyms.

Collections in focus

The Rankin Files

Our display showcasing highlights from the literary archive of crime writer Sir Ian Rankin drew 1,476 visits in its opening week.

Material on show included personal notes, manuscripts, correspondence, awards, foreign language translations of his books and work written under his pen name, Jack Harvey. To support the display, Rankin gave a public talk at the Library to a sell-out audience. The event was also streamed live to audiences watching online.

Rankin donated his archive to us in 2019, calling it "a pretty complete author's life, late-20th century-style". The archive stretches back to his schooldays in Fife in the 1970s and offers insight into his influences, interests and innermost thoughts.

Supported by the W M Mann Foundation, with thanks.

'Discover' relaunches

Our free magazine, 'Discover', was relaunched last summer and we have had wonderful feedback from readers about both the sleek and contemporary new look and the wide variety of content.

Audience research helped us shape our new editorial policy to ensure that we appeal to readers of all ages and from across the length and breadth of Scotland.

We found that people love learning about the Library's collections, events and exhibitions, and enjoy articles about social history and hitherto untold stories. Readers told us they "love to see Gaelic" articles alongside English translations and like a mix of shorter and longer articles so they can "dip in" to the magazine when they have time. People also told us they wanted more from authors – we were glad to oblige.

Award-winning Scots crime writer Val McDermid was our first cover star and her interview discussed everything from her childhood and hugely successful career to the authors who inspire her and her gigs with the band Fun Lovin' Crime Writers.

Writers' voices have featured in all three new and improved issues of 'Discover' so far, including poet Liz Lochhead, Booker Prize-winning 'Shuggie Bain' author Douglas Stuart and Scots Scriever Shane Strachan.

Copies of 'Discover' are available at our buildings and local libraries around the country. You can also read 'Discover' online.

Scottish myths and legends

To mark Scotland's 'Year of Stories', we worked with Jordan Hunter, a young Glasgow-based illustrator, to share a number of myths and legends on our Google Arts and Culture platform. The 12 stories told are from the Borders, Orkney and Shetland, the Highlands and the Western Isles. Graphic novel-style illustrations, archive collection material and audio narration are used to create an immersive storytelling experience. The series was accompanied by an illustration workshop as part of the International Storytelling Festival.

Discovery room

We were pleased to open our welcoming and inclusive new Discovery room at George IV Bridge in October 2022. Formerly our multimedia room, the space was revamped following audience research, with user feedback shaping the design.

We improved the facilities, with generously sized working spaces, larger microfilm screens, power and data points, task lamps, and a seating area with a selection of 'quick reads' chosen from Scottish Book Trust reading lists.

We introduced a group/family working space for those who want to consult collection items together, or for parents or carers accompanying a child, and this area includes a children's book box and bean bag.

Highlights from our Moving Image Archive are promoted on a screen and can be accessed via a specially curated app. There are also large images of book covers in the wall niches and these can be changed to showcase different themes and collection items.

A visitor to the new revamped space tweeted: "Last week I had to check a book at @natlibscot but I had to have my kid with me. I phoned to check before & thought I'd manage a 15min skim and make do. When I arrived they showed me to a new room with a section specifically for families. It was transformative."

Library's reach

• 245 villages, towns and cities across Scotland
• 113 places in other parts of the UK
• 117 towns and cities in other countries worldwide

'Discover' magazine reaches 223 places in Scotland and 106 areas in the rest of the UK.

Reach across Scotland:

• Discover: 223 areas
• Donors: 213 areas
• Events: 40 areas
• Other (business/ digital): 18 areas

Reach elsewhere in the UK:

• Discover: 106 areas
• Donors: 113 areas
• Events: 4 areas
• Other (business/ digital): 15 areas

Reach elsewhere in the world:

• Discover: 12 countries
• Donors: 19 countries
• Events: 6 countries
• Other (business/ digital): 8 countries

Funding our work

Income 2022/2023

• Grant in Aid: £17,505,000 
• Donations and legacies: £1,091,000
• Charitable activities: £752,000
• Investment income: £222,000

Spending 2022/2023

• Staff costs: £13,639,000
• Depreciation: £3,659,000
• Other running costs: £1,976,000
• Building maintenance: £1,380,000
• Other property costs: £1,087,000
• Other trading activities: £98,000
• Collection purchases: £686,000

Balance Sheet highlights

• Further additions to collections: £461,000
• Library infrastructure: £716,000
• Value of donated collections added in the year: £1,962,000
• General reserves at year end: £597,000

We are grateful to everyone who donates cash or collections to the National Library of Scotland. Those who have made larger donations to the Library in the past year are listed below. We would also like to thank our majority funder, the Scottish Government, for its continued advocacy and support.

Patrons and Benefactors

Mrs Margaret Alcorn
Mr Campbell Armour
Dr Keith Bailey
Mr Geoffrey Bond OBE
Professor Sir Drummond Bone
Mr Richard and Mrs Catherine Burns Professor
Graham Caie
Professor Sir Kenneth Calman
Rt Hon Lord and Lady Cameron of Lochbroom
Lady Coulsfield
Sir Sandy and Lady Crombie
Ms Sandra Cumming
Ms Marjorie Drexler
Mrs Helen Durndell
Professor Sir David and Lady Edward
Sir Charles and Lady Fraser
Dr Robert and Dr Sheila Gould
Dr and Mrs Gray
Ms Dianne Haley
Ms Rosie Hay
Mr Shields and Mrs Carol Henderson
Professor David Hewitt
Mr Edward and Mrs Anna Hocknell
Rt Hon Lord and Lady Hope of Craighead
Mr Charles and Mrs Rosemary Hutchison
Mr Dermot and Mrs Miranda Jenkinson
Dr Richard Kimberlin OBE and Mrs Sara Kimberlin
Professor James Laidlaw
Mr Stuart Leckie OBE
The Leckie Family Fund
Mrs Christine Lessels
Dr John Macaskill
Dr Morag MacCormick
Mr John McAslan CBE and Ms Dava Sagenkahn
Professor Alexander McCall Smith CBE and Dr Elizabeth McCall Smith
Dr Warren McDougall
Mrs Lynda McGrath
Dr Karina McIntosh
Sir Neil McIntosh CBE DL
Professor Keith McLay
Harry and Nicola Morgan
Dr Henry Noltie
Mr James Pirrie
Professor Murray Pittock
Mr Charles and Mrs Ruth Plowden
Professor David Purdie
Mrs Fiona Reith QC
Ms Judy Riley
Dr James Robertson
Sir Muir and Lady Russell
Dr Susan Shatto
Professor Melissa Terras
Professor Sir Iain and Lady Torrance
Sir Boyd and Lady Tunnock
Mr Max and Lady Sarah Ward
Mr Eric Wishart Professor
Charles and Mrs Anne Withers
Alma & Leslie Wolfson Charitable Trust

Donors

Ms Catherine Adair Professor
Michael Anderson OBE and Ms Elspeth MacArthur OBE
Baillie Gifford
Mr John Ballantyne
Mr Andreas Bechtler
Bòrd na Gàidhlig
Lord Lieutenant of Midlothian and Lady Mary Callander
Sir Donald and Lady Cameron of Lochiel
Conference of European National Librarians
Mr Hugh Croll
Dr Neil Dickson
East Kilbride Historical Society Edinburgh Old Town Association
Edinburgh Trades Fund
Miss Julia Elton Ettrick Charitable Trust
Mr Bruce and Mrs Dorothy Field
Sir Charles and Lady Fraser
Mrs Morag Fyfe
Gaelic Language Promotion Trust
Mr Alex Graham
Sir Angus Grossart CBE
Mr Gary Heffernan
Professor William Johnstone
Mr Hugh and Mrs Pippa Lockhart
Professor Emeritus John McCutcheon CBE
Sheriff Norman McFadyen CBE
National Lottery Heritage Fund
Mrs E Anne Norman
P F Charitable Trust
Penpont Charitable Trust
Dr Richard Perren
Mr James Pirrie
Mr Charles Rigg
Mrs Sylvia Robertson
Scottish Genealogy Society
Scottish Library and Information Council
ScottishPower Foundation
Mr Dennis and Mrs Jenny Smith
Mr Ian Souter
Professor Michael Stewart
Stichting Teuntje Anna (TA Fund)
Sir James Stirling of Garden CBE
Mr Stuart Swales
Mr Philip Sykes
Dr Michael Taylor
Ms Susan Tritton
Mr Angus Tulloch
Viewforth Trust
Ms Jane Watkinson
Mr David Watts
Wellcome
Miss Sarah Whitley and Mr Graham Whyte
Mrs Fiona Wild
William Grant Foundation
Ms Martha Young

American Patrons of the National Library and Galleries of Scotland

Dr Hilary Beattie
Mr Patrick Calhoun Jr
Cunning Charitable Fund
Driver Family Foundation
Lady Bettina and Mr Peter Drummond-Hay
Francis K Finlay OBE
Mr James and Mrs Jane Fraser
Mr Martin J G Glynn
Ms Lisa Gold
Mr Michael Lampert
Charlotte Lyeth Burton
Mr John and Mrs Bridget Macaskill
Professor Robert and Mrs Fulvia McCrie
Mr Thomas Richardson
Ciannait Sweeney Tait
K.T. Wiedemann Foundation, Inc.
Ms Jenny Young du Pont
Zachs-Adam Family Fund

And all who chose to donate anonymously