Scotland’s 1,000th croft registered

The Barvas croft was registered this week by Registers of Scotland (RoS) and became public record this morning.

Introduced in 2012, the Crofting Register is the first official register to give crofters legal certainty over their crofts.

Crofting Minister, Aileen McLeod, said: “Registering the 1,000th croft so soon is a considerable achievement, given the original expectation that it might take up to a generation to fully populate the register. Progress with registrations is important as it increases transparency and provides crofters and other interested parties with certainty as to the extent and interests in croft land.”

Janet Egdell, operations director at RoS, said: “There are around 18,000 crofts in Scotland, so reaching the 1,000th registration in such a short timeframe is a remarkable achievement. This demonstrates the positive response we’ve had to the Crofting Register, and the excellent collaboration between ourselves, the Crofting Commission, and crofters.”

Convenor of the Crofting Commission, Susan Walker, said: “This is a significant milestone for the Commission. To have reached 1,000 registered crofts in just over a year of mandatory registration shows the progress the Crofting Register is making.

“The register is vital in securing the future of crofting as it identifies and protects croft land, safeguarding this unique way of life for generations to come. The Commission is working closely with RoS and crofters to ensure the registration process is as smooth as possible.”

More information on the Crofting Register is available at www.crofts.ros.gov.uk.