Falkland Estate

Falkland Estate sits at the very heart of Fife on the outskirts of the beautiful conservation village of Falkland just a short journey from Edinburgh and Dundee.

Archaeological evidence of hill forts pays testament to the fact that settlements have been here from at least the Iron Age. It was a favourite royal hunting ground of the Stuart monarchs and home to Victorian leaders of rural development and architectural style.

Today, it is a place of thoughtful stewardship and education, organic farming alongside a stunning space for community recreation, volunteering and enjoyment.

At the heart of Falkland Estate is a spirit of care – care for the earth and care for each other. We want to be one of Scoland’s fairest estates – a beacon for the future. Our activity is shaped by three themes:

Place: Stewarding a good place of the future

Folk: Hosting each other and fostering connection

Work: Learning to work together and to value good work.

Our Environment

The Estate covers some 1900 hectares, just under one-fifth of which is wooded, with the rest divided between arable farmland on the low ground and rough grazing on the hills.

More than a third of the Estate is an important ‘designed’ landscape, much of it established in the 19th century. This can be enjoyed using a network of walks that help visitors explore and safely navigate the estate, with its wide range of natural and built wonders – from red squirrels to the Tyndall Bruce Monument.

We have a café, gallery and venue facilities at The Stables and offer some self catering accommodation. We have a sawmill, Woodland Hub and are developing a ‘Field of Learning’. Each week we host a range of recreation activities in our grounds including running, cycling, cricket and football.

Initiatives and learning

As a centre of stewardship we are actively exploring how we can best enable health and wellbeing – of people and the earth. This directs the activities we do here, how we learn and the new models of ownership we are exploring. We want to have a positive impact locally, across Scotland and in the wider world.

This is a snapshot of some of the initiatives we are involved in:

Deepening our understanding of stewardship: what is is, why it is needed and how we can become better stewards

Engaging children to help us shape our vision for the future so that we are better equipped to address the climate crisis and wider injustices. A partnership with the Children’s Parliament.

Resourcing leadership and team development focused on participatory approaches

Exploring a new model of ownership to underpin and advance our social and environmental vision. From April 2022 we are looking forward to engaging our local and wider communities more deeply on questions around the future ownership and stewardship of the estate.

Helping to resource and empower young people with rural skills and employment opportunities – recently leading Fife’s ‘Our Bright Future’ programme supporting both young people and the green economy.

Integrating our organic farming activities with an online shop that serves local people and also provides an opportunity for other local producers to reduce food miles

Creating a ‘Field of Learning’ – a physical hub delivering a broad range of training and education including in sustainable building practice. These skills are supporting the growing demand for green construction and refurbishment (such as Thousand Huts and traditional craft) and support planetary health and environmental action. The work here will contribute to a number of Fife- and Scotland-wide objectives related directly to community wealth building, employability and enterprise.

Ensuring our spaces are as welcoming as possible and are a safe place to meet – especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hosting opportunities for people to volunteer on the Estate (including on conservation or archaeology projects) – actively helping to preserve our heritage and learn together.

Heritage Sites

Throughout the estate, buildings and evidence of great history and heritage present themselves around every corner. Whether the original House of Falkland (now operating as a school for pupils with additional support needs); or the fallen Temple of Decision designed by Alexander Roos in 1849. Get up close to the roofless Memorial Chapel still used today by the Stuart Family; and walk out to the Tyndall Bruce Monument standing on the Black Hill, built to commemorate Onesiphorus Tyndall Bruce, the Laird of Falkland Estate who died in 1855. Onesiphorus married the wealthy heiress of Falkland Estate, Margaret Stuart Bruce in 1818.