Dunblane High School reveals Purple Plaque to celebrate Jane Stewart, a Women in Innovation Award Winner

Dunblane High School has announced that it has hosted an event to celebrate former pupil and Head Girl, Jane Stewart, by unveiling a purple plaque in her honour on the school site. 

Jane won the prestigious Women in Innovation Award from Innovate UK, the UK’s national innovation agency, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).  Purple plaques are being displayed at schools across the UK to recognise the achievements of the winners of the prestigious national Women in Innovation Award.

Jane Stewart is part of a growing network of over 150 Women in Innovation Award winners involved in inspiring solutions to pressing societal, environmental, and economic challenges; from multi-grip bionic arms for amputees, an AI that curbs your unhealthy cravings, satellite data to detect long-lost archaeological sites and data solutions to bring visibility and value to waste resources.  She was the sole Scottish winner of the 2021/22 awards.

Jane has been at the forefront of transformative change in recycling and resource management for over 20 years and understands first-hand the opportunity for innovative technology and data solutions to unlock environmental and social challenges.  Through these awards, she has been recognised for her efforts in the sector, pioneering technology and data solutions to change the fate of waste.  Jane holds several positions as Non-Executive Director/Chair across a portfolio of companies including Topolytics, a data analytics company making the world’s waste more visible, verifiable, and valuable.

Mr Stuart MacKay, Headteacher at Dunblane High School said: ‘We are delighted that Jane has received this award and we are very proud to display the Purple Plaque in Dunblane High School reception. Jane is an inspiration and role model to all our young people and we are honoured to have such a fantastic ambassador for our school.”

Jane Stewart said: “I am humbled and honoured to receive this plaque in the company of such an amazing group of young people.  Huge thanks to Mr MacKay, the school and parent council for their warm welcome and support. I’m proud to be an alumni of Dunblane High, an incredible school which played such an important part in shaping the person I am today – as much for the values it instilled and the lifelong friendships as the academic learning. 

Innovate UK’s support has played a vital role in enabling Topolytics to solve technical and data challenges as it developed WasteMap®, a data analytics platform for waste producers. I’m passionate about changing the lens on waste as a resource and the impact of technology and data to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges.  We need a far greater pace of innovation and investment to develop new business models, processes, skills and infrastructure as we move towards Net Zero and beyond waste. Ultimately enabling the materials revolution where resource efficiency is maximised and negative impacts of waste on our environment and communities are eliminated.  Diversity of thought is needed – if we think and act the same we’ll not get there fast enough.  

The purple plaque initiative helps to provides visibility for women actively trying to be the change they want to see and hopefully inspires and encourages the next generation to play a vital part in such evolution, to make their own positive impact on society.

Historic Environment Scotland has awarded £188,000 to help secure future of Dunblane's Leighton Library

Scotland's oldest purpose-built library is set to benefit from funding from Historic Environment Scotland (HES).

The category A-listed building, near Dunblane Cathedral, dates from the 17th century, and was commissioned through the will of Robert Leighton, a former Principal of Edinburgh University, Bishop of Dunblane, and Archbishop of Glasgow, who died in 1684.

In bequeathing a sum for a building to house his books, Robert Leighton gave his collection to the clergy of the Cathedral of Dunblane. The oldest book dates from 1504. Beyond the Bishop's personal collection, the Trustees added to the collection from 1701 with many important books from the Age of Enlightenment.

The building and collection has remained in use as a library and, unusually, the books and many of the original library fixtures survive intact, including six Jacobean chairs and the original book presses that line one wall.

The HES funding will go towards a programme of restoration that includes repairs to the walls, stonework, chimneys, and roof to ensure the collection of rare and antique books can remain housed in their original building.

Central to the project is work to remove modern cement-based harling and replace it with a lime-based material, closer to that used on the original 17th-century exterior. The project will also restore the marble cartouche ordered by the Bishop's executors, his sister and her son, a wealthy City of London brewer.

The restoration project, started earlier this year, has already unearthed some unexpected finds. A fireplace and press, still with its original lime plaster, were discovered after the removal of harling applied around 1990. One notable find was a finely carved stone with the initials 'MGK' which had been reused to bolster a chimney, identified as those of a Dean of Dunblane in the 1680s. One replaced crow-step stone was found to have carving beneath it suggesting it was reused from another building nearby, possibly the (then) ruined Cathedral or Bishop's Palace.

Dr Susan O'Connor, Head of Grants at Historic Environment Scotland, said, "We're thrilled to award funding to this project and to play a part in the incredible history of the Leighton Library and, by extension, Scotland's world-renowned history of libraries and learning.

"Not only does this project conserve a historic building, but, through the care and patience of those involved in the work, we now know more about the library's history and have a further insight into the centuries of change witnessed by this building."

Alastair MacDonald, Restoration Lead from the Leighton Library Trust said, "We are very grateful for the significant support HES has given to our wonderful library. The restoration work has revealed that the repairs we have now been able to undertake are in the nick of time, as the fabric had deteriorated badly over the years. This grant, and other generous donations, have made a significant difference to the project. There's still a long way to go to ensure the collection and its unique building are saved for future generations."

The Leighton Library Trust hopes that, following repair works, the library will offer increased opportunities for tourists and locals alike to visit and experience the remarkable building and collection for themselves.