Practical guidance for responsible land ownership
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Owning and managing land in Scotland brings opportunities as well as responsibilities.
Decisions about land affect the people who live and work around it, as well as the economy and environment.
The Scottish Land Commission provides clear, practical advice to help landowners and managers make decisions in the public interest and in line with good practice.
Our advice is built on the Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement (LRRS), which sets out what responsible landownership means in Scotland.
We have developed a series of protocols to help landowners and managers understand how these principles look in practice, and to support consistent good practice across the country.
Good stewardship and natural capital
Managing land responsibly to balance economic, social and environmental outcomes.
Opportunities for ownership, use and lease of land
Creating fairer access to land through shared or diversified arrangements.
We publish a range of guidance to help landowners and managers put these principles into practice. Key tools include:
Community benefits are an expected outcome of natural capital investment projects. This Route Map provides a practical guide for landowners, project developers and communities on how to discuss and embed proportionate benefits from the outset.
Route map: Community benefits from natural capital investment
A practical framework to help deliver fair, lasting benefits through natural capital projects.
Across Scotland, landowners and managers are putting the Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement into practice. Our case studies and news posts highlight how good stewardship, community engagement and transparent decision-making work on the ground, and the difference these approaches can make for landowners, communities and the wider public.
Related areas of our work
Good practice in landownership connects to other parts of the Commission’s work:
If you’d like to discuss your situation in more detail, you can speak to one of our advisers.
There are 3 main ways to get in touch:
We handle all conversations sensitively. However, as a public body, we are subject to Freedom of Information legislation. You can read more about how we handle personal information in our casework privacy policy.
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