« Previous | Contents | Next »
Listen
CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION
Background
1.1 The US Senate designated 6 April as National Tartan Day in 1998 to "honour the outstanding contribution of million of Scottish-Americans to our great nation". The House of Representatives passed a similar resolution in 2004. The significance of 6 April dates back to the 1320 signing of the Declaration of Arbroath, which was the model for the American Declaration of Independence.
1.2 Tartan Day has been celebrated in New York since 1998 and since that time the volume of activities has increased to the extent that the event is now referred to as Tartan Week.
1.3 The Scottish Executive first became involved in Tartan Week in 2000 and since that time its involvement and investment has increased year on year. In 2006, the Scottish Executive funded 15 events during Tartan Week. The events ran from 1 April to 9 April with meetings, events and exhibitions in New York, Boston and Washington DC.
1.4 Scotinform, an independent market research and market intelligence consultancy, was jointly commissioned by the Scottish Executive's Finance and Central Services Department's International Division and Analytical Services to undertake an evaluation of the Scottish Executive funded events to assist in the development and planning of Tartan Week 2007.
The Tartan Week 2006 Programme
1.5 The Tartan Week 2006 Programme aimed to tie in with the Scottish Executive's International Strategy under the general theme of "Promoting contemporary Scotland in the US". It was agreed that all activity relating to Tartan Week should fit into the following objectives:
- Building political ties
- Attracting tourism to Scotland
- Economic growth
- Cementing cultural ties
1.6 Whilst Tartan Week includes events organised by American organisations and entrepreneurs, American-Scottish societies and Scottish public sector organisations, it should be noted that this evaluation only includes those events which were financed by the Scottish Executive and involved a Scottish organisation.
1.7 Table 1.1 below details the events which form part of this evaluation together with details regarding the partner organisations associated with each event and the funding provided by the Scottish Executive. In addition, the table highlights with which Tartan Week objective (noted in 1.5) the event was linked.
Table 1.1: Events, partner organisations and funding
Event | Partner organisations | Funding | Objective |
|---|
Memorial Garden Concert and Lunch | British Memorial Garden Trust | £ 5,000 | Political ties |
Social inclusion programme | City of Edinburgh Council | £12,000 | Economic growth |
"The Scotland Conversations" | Joint Universities Group Royal Scottish Academy Music and Drama | £63,000 | Cultural |
"A Scottish Salon" | National Galleries of Scotland | £64,000 | Cultural |
Scotland 10k Run | New York Road Runners Club | £75,000 | Tourism |
Presence at World Championships | Royal Caledonian Curling Club | £10,000 | Cultural |
"Tartan Bites" | Scottish Book Trust | £84,000 | Cultural |
Find Scotland in New York | Scottish National Photographic Centre | £ 3,500 | Cultural |
"Geordie" | Scottish Youth Theatre | £80,000 | Cultural |
Scotland on Film | Scottish Screen | £20,000 | Cultural |
William Wallace Exhibition | Stirling Council | £10,000 | Cultural |
Scotland Village (Scottish Executive Zone) | VisitScotland | £45,000 | Tourism |
1.8 Table 1.2 below details those events which were also funded by the Scottish Executive but were not included within this evaluation.
Table 1.2: Events not included within evaluation
Event | Partner organisations | Funding |
|---|
Dressed to Kilt | Friends of Scotland US | £ 6,000 |
|---|
Piping at individual events including the Tartan Parade | Inverclyde Juvenile Pipe Band Strathclyde Fire and Rescue Pipe Band | £33,000 £45,000 |
|---|
Post Parade Reception | New York Tartan Day Committee | £ 3,000 |
|---|
1.9 The Ministerial Programme which took place during Tartan Week 2006 did not form part of Scotinform's evaluation.
Costs of Tartan Week 2006
1.10 The Scottish Executive invested £658,500 in sponsoring and marketing the Tartan Week programme of events. Funding for events included flights, accommodation and event management. In some instances significant funding was required to transport valuable items, e.g. National Galleries of Scotland transported the "Skating Minister" to New York for their exhibition "A Scottish Salon".
Table 1.3: Costs associated with Tartan Week
Component | Cost |
|---|
Sponsorship of events listed in tables 1.1 and 1.2 | £558,500 |
|---|
Marketing costs | £100,000 |
|---|
Total | £658,500 |
|---|
« Previous | Contents | Next »