The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland hosted the fifth annual Scottish Shows Forum earlier this month at the Royal Highland Centre in Ingliston.

Established in 2016, the Forum provides a free platform for Scottish agricultural show organisers to come together, share best practice and learn from one another. RHASS facilitate the Forum to share best practice, enable knowledge transfer among local show teams and support their common goal of educating the public about the origins of their food.

The 2020 programme, chaired by RHASS competitions manager David Tennant, saw talks from key industry speakers, including Mags Clark of the Association of Show and Agricultural Organisations and Holly Byron-Staples from Perth and Kinross Association of Voluntary Services, and covered topics such as improving the show experience, the impact of unforeseen event cancellations and accessing third sector support.

Delegates discussed the relevance of the Forum and how as a collective the organisation could improve and grow, with show representatives encouraged to spread the word and become more involved.

Commenting on this year’s Forum, RHASS chairman Bill Gray said: “We were delighted to host another productive Scottish Shows Forum this year, welcoming a record 90 delegates from 40 shows across Scotland. Sharing insight and knowledge benefits everyone in these challenging times, and this event is a great example of the cooperative spirit that prevails throughout Scottish agriculture.”

Alan Thomson of the Haddington Show team commented: “To be able to share best practice and on-the-ground experiences with like-minded colleagues is an invaluable tool and encourages development throughout an ever-increasing sector of the Scottish economy. It is an annual reminder of not only RHASS’s accessibility to all of Scotland’s agricultural societies, but also of the importance of our agricultural shows within our local communities and indeed the wider area.”