Funding to restore the historic Mavisbank building

This this House welcomes the £5.3 million from the National Heritage Memorial Fund to restore the historic building of Mavisbank in Loanhead, Midlothian; congratulates the campaigners who have strived for more than 50 years to save this 18th century building, the Landmark Trust has worked with Midlothian Council, Historic Environment Scotland, the Mavisbank bank Trust and other to identify a viable solution for this property; and notes Mavisbank was built in 1723, in a pioneering neo-Classical style which William Adam’s son Robert Adam and others would develop for Edinburgh’s New Town a generation later, set in 70 acres with a walled garden, canal and Palladian influences, it would become a blueprint for countless other country villas across the country, in the 19th century Mavisbank became a ground-breaking hospital where reforming Doctor John Batty Tuke developed compassionate approaches to mental illness, including through exercise and gardening, Mavisbank House is a building of outstanding importance to Scottish and UK national heritage and this funding will enable the Landmark Trust to acquire Mavisbank House and safeguard the historic fabric of the Category A building, laying the foundations for a sustainable and brighter future.