annual review 2025/26
Your impact across Scotland Lighting up Scotland, one young life at a time
Who is SU Scotland? Our vision is to see every child and young person in Scotland exploring the Bible and responding to the significance of Jesus. We are a Christian charity with over 2,500 volunteers and 140 staff working in four contexts: schools, holidays, community-based missions, and training and equipping. We work in partnership with churches, Associate Trusts and others, offering safe places where young people can have fun, meet new challenges, feel valued, accepted and free to express their views and consider their own beliefs as they engage with peers and Christian leaders. We aim to focus on the needs of those from priority areas in all our activities. Our outdoor centres—Alltnacriche, Gowanbank and Lendrick Muir— welcome thousands of young people every year. Our campsites at Kingscross and Scoughall are particularly popular in summer. Magnitude events take place year round, with a focus on our annual summer festival.
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CEO Welcome
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Schools & Local Ministries
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Holidays
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Young Leaders
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Community
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Magnitude
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Centres
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Resources
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Ministry at the Margins
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International
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Prayer & Church Partnerships
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Volunteers
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Fundraising
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Partners
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Charity Information
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Finance
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Looking Ahead
SU Scotland, New Olympia House, 13 Olympia Street, Glasgow, G40 3TA 0141 332 1162 | info@suscotland.org.uk suscotland.org.uk facebook.com/suscotland youtube.com/suscotland instagram.com/suscotland tiktok.com/suscotland Editor: Sarah McPhie, Head of Marketing Design: innovivid.co.uk, Print: Johnston Mailing © Scripture Union Scotland, 2026 Scripture Union Scotland is registered in Scotland as a charity (no. SCO11222) and as a company limited by guarantee (no.SC54297). Registered office: New Olympia House, 13 Olympia Street, Glasgow, G40 3TA. ISSN 1357 - 7171
A large print edition is available on request.
SU Scotland’s vision is to see every child and young person in Scotland exploring the Bible and responding to the significance of Jesus.
Our review covers the year to August 2026. Financial info is for the year to 31 March 2026.
SU Scotland Annual Review 2025/26 | 3
Our goal is to reach 10% of Scotland’s 705,000 school-age children by summer 2027
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Welcome to our Annual Review for 2025/26 The past year has been marked by continued encouraging growth in pursuit of our vision to see every child and young person in Scotland exploring the Bible and responding to the significance of Jesus.
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ur Local Ministries team has expanded to deepen relationships with schools and increase our ministry reach across Scotland. There are now 400 SU Groups meeting regularly, 202 of 360 high school clusters served by Local Ministry Hubs, and Bible Alive programmes running in the majority of local authority areas, reaching over 4,570 pupils. • Numbers attending SU Holidays reached a record high for recent times, with over 2,300 places taken. • Our Young Leader Development programmes and events are in high demand, continually reaching capacity, with room for expansion. • 35 church-based missions and holiday clubs took place around the country.
• Magnitude Festival reached an all-time high in attendance with 2,700 people from over 150 churches on site at Lendrick Muir across the five days, many encountering God in life-changing ways. • As well as welcoming guests to SU Holidays and weekend groups, our outdoor residential centres, Lendrick Muir, Gowanbank and Alltnacriche, hosted over 4,300 school pupils on residential stays during this academic year and continue to receive investment to enhance their facilities. As part of this, we kick-started an ambitious £7 million project to redevelop and expand Lendrick Muir to accommodate many more children and young people and ensure it remains fit-for-purpose for generations to come. •O ur digital resources are broadening our reach beyond those we can meet in person. Curriculum-based resources—such as those based around The King of Kings, the highly impactful animated movie of the
life of Jesus—are bringing the Bible into classrooms throughout Scotland. • We are also focusing on going deeper with new projects being developed in Merkinch, Inverness and the East End of Glasgow to support young people who experience life at the margins. Thanks to the faithful prayers and generous financial support of our SU Scotland family, together with the dedication of our committed volunteers and talented staff team, we are getting very close to our goal of reaching 10% of Scotland’s 705,000 school-age children by summer 2027. We want them to discover God’s love, explore the Bible, respond to Jesus and flourish in confidence and discipleship. We are deeply grateful for your part in helping light up Scotland, one young life at a time!
quote_open_roundel Robin MacLellan CEO, SU Scotland
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'It’s a safe quiet place with people who also love Jesus, away from the noise at school.' (SU Group Pupil)
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Schools & Local Ministries Schools remain one of SU Scotland’s key contexts of service, providing opportunities for children and young people to encounter the Christian faith through SU Groups, RME lessons, Religious Observance and chaplaincy support.
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ver the past year our capacity to serve schools has grown significantly. The Local Ministries team has expanded to include 28 Regional and Schools Workers, supported by specialist and administrative staff, enabling deeper relationships with schools and greater ministry reach across Scotland.
This impact is strengthened through partnerships with 13 Associate Trusts, two Local Youth Projects and more than 825 volunteers from local churches who faithfully support SU Groups, Bible Alive and curriculumbased schools' work. A newly appointed Associate Trust Network Lead will help deepen these partnerships and create new opportunities for collaboration. Our large-scale schools' ministries continue to reach
thousands of pupils. Through Christmas lessons and assemblies, we made 13,381 pupil connections across 113 schools, while Easter lessons reached a further 15,641 pupils in 144 schools. These engagements provide accessible and curriculumaligned opportunities for young people to engage with the Christian story. Bible Alive continues to grow as a significant discipleship resource within schools. Delivered in 85 schools during the last academic year, it reached 4,570 pupils through a series of sessions that encourage deeper exploration of faith and the Bible. We are also seeing encouraging growth in SU Groups. 80 new groups were launched this year, bringing the total weekly number to around 400 groups, where 5,009
children and young people gather each week around God’s Word. Alongside this, 66 pupils attended Equip Pupil Leader Training, equipping them to lead and share their faith within their schools. Looking ahead, we continue to pursue our vision of a Local Ministry Hub at the heart of every high school cluster in Scotland. Currently, 202 clusters, representing more than half of Scotland’s high school clusters, are being prayed for and served through these developing hubs.
Together with local churches and Christian partners, we pray that every school across Scotland will be prayed for and will experience meaningful and ongoing Christian contact.
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'The Bible teaching was good as the leaders made it fun and exciting and helped me get closer to God more than they will ever know!' (LM1 2026 Camper)
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Holidays This year was another landmark for SU Holidays, with 2,300 bookings made for 1,839 children and young people. That means around 250 more young people had the opportunity to encounter Jesus, make lasting friendships and discover a place where they belong.
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further 1,021 bookings were made for Regional Weekends. These weekends are often a springboard into SU Holidays; this year we saw 67 young people who had previously attended a weekend coming on an SU Holiday for the first time. Altogether, 728 young people came on an SU Holiday for the first time. Even more encouragingly, well over half of those who came for the first time last year returned this year—showing that, for many, one holiday is just the beginning.
Behind the scenes, investment in our campsites continued throughout the year with results including: • new Facilities Assistants' cabins • new solar panels • a new AV system Overall occupancy across SU Holiday’s programme was 83.7%. While this means our holidays were well-attended, it also reminds us that there is still room to welcome more children and young people in the years ahead.
As always, none of this would have been possible without our volunteers. From leaders and cooks to activity instructors, maintenance teams and those serving behind the scenes, hundreds of people gave their time, skills and energy to create holidays where young people could be loved, challenged and invited to explore the difference Jesus makes.
Removing financial barriers remains a vital part of the ministry. Thanks to the generosity of supporters, 570 young people were able to attend a residential through the Holidays Sponsorship Fund. >> Cosplay at NerdCon SU Scotland Annual Review 2025/26 | 9
'Basecamp has been a powerful and encouraging week for me and my fellow trainees. A big reason for this has been the leaders and team leaders, who have demonstrated Jesus through their actions.' (Basecamp trainee)
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Young Leaders Over the past year, young leader discipleship and training events have continued to grow in popularity, with attendance increasing year on year.
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e continue to be encouraged by the way God is at work within this age group. Demand for GO Conference exceeded capacity for the second consecutive year, with space allowing 114 young people to attend. Many GO Conference attendees signed up for Equip Pupil Leader Training, and we hope this will equip them to start new SU Groups or support groups within their schools. A total of 115 young people engaged with the COmMISSION programme in 2026, an increase of four from last year. The programme included one weekend Basecamp, two week-long Basecamps and the LeadUP event, preparing young people aged 16+ to serve in placements within their local church, at SU Holidays and Missions, Weekends and the Magnitude Festival. LeadUP reached full capacity, with many of the 36 attendees
having completed Basecamp in 2025. We continue to see a strong progression through the programme and a genuine sense of community. All COmMISSION events continued to offer SCQF Level 5 and Level 6 qualifications through Qualifications Scotland. The majority of trainees returned for the review weekend in late August after completing placements throughout the summer and successfully achieved an award.
Six young people participated in the SU Scotland Gap Year Programme from August 2025 to August 2026. Three participants successfully met all the requirements for the Qualifications Scotland, SCQF Level 7 award. We were also excited to welcome this year's cohort of five students, serving across the Gap: Church, Local and Centre placements from August 2026 to August 2027.
The number of Connect Groups, for secondary school pupils to engage with the Bible and pray together, has remained steady at 19. The Glasgow Connect Group, established last year, gained significant interest from attendees of Young Leaders training events and now runs more frequently.
We are excited to see how these young people continue to grow in faith and use their gifts to make a difference in the lives of others.
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'When you volunteer for something like this, you can naively think you’re there to teach the children, which is true, but God is also teaching you.' (Mission Volunteer)
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Community It has been a year of continued growth, with partnerships between SU Scotland and local churches going from strength to strength.
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confidence, and establish new outreach initiatives.
The North Berwick Mission demonstrated the strength of these partnerships and their impact within the local community. One local shopkeeper said:
An increasing number of young leaders serving on missions and taking on new responsibilities. Churches consistently comment on their enthusiasm, faith, and willingness to serve. During the Mure Memorial Mission, one church member remarked, "We simply couldn't do it without them—they are such an inspiration."
ocal Ministry Hubs have played a key role in working alongside churches to identify the most effective ways to engage with their communities and to pursue our vision of reaching every child in Scotland.
'A huge thank you to the Holiday Club team at the North Berwick churches for my gorgeous sunflower I was gifted! It completely made my day, and I haven't stopped smiling since. It's lovely when the community comes together!' Some of the highlights from across the year include: Growing interest in missional opportunities lasting three days or less, including activity days. These shorter events provide an accessible way for churches to explore mission, build
More churches seeking support and advice in developing mission opportunities. SU Scotland has responded in various ways, as appropriate, from providing guidance and encouragement to helping to lead local mission events. Our digital youth work stream has continued to integrate with the Local Ministries department. Our online community is steady, with around 60 young people active online. The last year has been a time of refining and strategising for the
future, with mission and scalable local youth work initiatives a priority over the next three years. This has involved a series of pilots, including a gaming-focused outreach. This outreach grew from eight young people at launch to 25, many of whom have never been to church. The local church we partnered with has now launched a permanent gaming ministry for P6–S6s. We continue to look at how we can resource the local church with technology and 'how-to toolkits' to empower innovation in mission. Our residential programme brought in brand-new creative elements and Equip Online is moving into its second year, with a new Connect Group added. Across our missions, we have seen children and young people, including three who first encountered SU Scotland in our online community, progress from local mission events to residential camps and COmMISSION training.
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'You could feel the young people’s level of excitement to share Jesus when they left the festival.' (Kirsty Haxton, Event Manager)
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Magnitude Magnitude, Scotland’s Christian youth festival, drew 1,763 full-time attendees and 661 day visitors this summer for a week filled with worship, community, and deep encounters with God.
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upported by 155 churches and over 200 volunteers from across Scotland, the Magnitude Festival remains a life-changing space where young people are discipled, encouraged, and equipped to follow Jesus. The main teaching this year focused on some of the Bible’s Old Testament characters highlighted in Hebrews 11: Abraham, Moses, Enoch, David, Noah, Rahab and Sarah. This brought out a strong theme of faith and trusting God in every situation, for which each of these historical figures was commended. The speakers in both the Big Top marquee and Wee Top alternative worship space were incredibly engaging as they unpacked how we can choose to walk by faith in our daily lives.
The roof of the marquee was raised with the sound of powerful worship as young people responded to what God was saying to them, with over 90 New Christian Packs given away. Event Manager, Kirsty Haxton said, 'Magnitude 2026 was an incredible experience. The highlight for me was seeing the huge response to a call to be bold in sharing your faith. You could feel the young people’s level of excitement to share Jesus when they left the festival, so we know the impact will pour into schools, homes, churches and communities across Scotland.' Over the year, Magnitude also held 10 Worship Night events in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen, gathering 3,439 people across the events to worship God and explore the Bible.
‘My time at Magnitude was such an amazing experience, it was so special making so many new friendships with God being at the centre of it all. Seeing so many people give their life to Christ is a memory I will never forget. 'Not only was the worship incredible but there were loads of activities during the day where I met new people and even met up with people I already know. Magnitude is amazing; all the laughs, cries and friendships are something I will always cherish.' (Young person)
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'Investing in Lendrick Muir is investing in the spiritual wellbeing of Scotland's children and young people.' (Robin MacLellan, CEO)
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Centres Our residential centres at Lendrick Muir, Alltnacriche and Gowanbank are open year-round and welcomed over 17,000 visitors this academic year.
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he centres are a vital resource for SU Scotland ministry with children and young people—whether SU Holidays, school residentials, training events or Local Ministry weekends. Throughout the year, centres are busy with direct SU Scotland ministry that gives children and young people opportunities to discover, explore, respond and flourish in their faith. School residentials and day visits are a key component of term-time ministry, with over 4,100 pupils and teachers from 124 school groups staying at one of our Classroom Outdoors residentials, and a further 400 on day visits. This is a drop on prior years, mainly related to smaller numbers attending in the school groups. School residentials have high educational value as well as ministry value, and it was encouraging to see the Schools (Residential Outdoor
Education) (Scotland) Act 2026 enacted, which will come into effect in 2028/29, supporting greater future participation. Once again, our school bursary fund has been well used, with almost £40,000 disbursed and over 350 pupils receiving financial support. This is in addition to the discounts we give to schools from priority communities, or with a focus on Additional Support Needs (ASN), as we look to embed what we do and how we support those at the margins. The growth of longer-term work with pupils in partnership with local schools providing alternative curriculum or bespoke programmes with those on the margins with ASN, at both Alltnacriche and Gowanbank, has been of particular encouragement. This is small scale but vital for those who attend.
As a result of significant support from development appeals, we have been able to continue to invest in our facilities at the centres, benefiting every child and young person who comes, as well as making our centres a better place to work. We installed a new heating system at Gowanbank. At Alltnacriche we have improved access and prepared the ground for a new ASN hub, and at Lendrick Muir significant progress has been made on our Development Project to replace sections of the building that are approaching end of life.
This transformational project will mean a temporary drop in capacity at Lendrick Muir for 2027, with a view to a long-term increase in capacity when the doors of the contemporary new wing are opened.
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FREE RESOURCES AVAILABLE FOR SCHOOLS, CHURCHES & FAMILIES!
Watch it on all Digital Platforms NOW.
Resources Digital resource creation has continued to accelerate, reaching over 66,900 children and young people in Scotland in the last school year.
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n 2025 we entered a major partnership with Kova International and Angel Studios around The King of Kings animated movie, enabling us to create highquality resources for schools, churches and families using official film clips and branded assets. To date this has resulted in 712 registrations across Scotland, with a projected reach of around 32,281 children. Alongside this, we have continued developing youth and children’s resources and short-form Bible engagement tools, including Shine Films: Hope; Source—Phase 1; Bible Shorts 2 & 3; and ongoing partnership work with the Scottish Bible Society on our Bible magazines. Our priority remains Scotland, in line with our vision, but we are delighted that the nature of digital also allows resources to travel beyond our borders when shared by partners.
Meanwhile, our Youth Comms channel continues to engage young people with weekly content on Instagram, leading to strong engagement levels and an increase of over 100% in followers from this time last year, to 4,950. Looking ahead, here are a few of the key resources planned: • Shine Films: Way, Truth, Life Part of a youth film series that makes faith conversations possible
• Must Know Bible Stories Refreshed series of early year and primary school resources in partnership with the Scottish Bible Society
As we continue to develop new resources, our focus is on creating engaging and accessible ways for children and young people to explore the Bible and encounter the Christian faith.
• Hall of Faith Devotionals to go along with the Spoken Word videos shown at the Magnitude Festival featuring actors playing some of the Old Testament characters commended for their faith in Hebrews 11 • Source—Phase 2 An expansion of our Source Bible engagement tool with genre-specific symbols SU Scotland Annual Review 2025/26 | 19
'My children had an amazing time and tried activities they had never done before and loved all the outdoors time. They met other adopted children too. Our children could be their quirky selves without anyone judging them. They came home feeling special, unique and loved.' (Adoptive parent on Chosen)
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Ministry at the Margins We continue to seek to align ourselves with Scripture’s focus on the poor and marginalised, not only in what we do, but crucially in how we do ministry with children and young people for whom this is their lived experience.
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wo Project Development Workers have been appointed in Merkinch, South Kessock and Inverness High School Catchment and Bridgeton, Dalmarnock and Parkhead, Glasgow. Both will engage young people in and out of schools, seeking to grow ministry with volunteer teams, enabling the development of Local Youth Projects. Rooted in Christian faith and values, our workers will support and enable young people to make positive, healthy, responsible choices, and explore the Bible and respond to the significance of Jesus. We have also been delighted to see: • A new weekend event for 14 young people from two Additional Support Needs (ASN) schools in Glasgow
• Assembly opportunities in two Glasgow ASN schools for learners with more complex needs • A Religious and Moral Education (RME) resource, ‘Who is Jesus?’ launched for secondary ASN schools with a projected reach of over 700 young people to date • A new weekend event, ‘Chosen’, for seven families with adopted children, partnering with Safe Families/Home for Good •A new partnership with Christians Against Poverty (CAP) debt centres •A fourth SU Holiday for Ukrainians currently living in Scotland • The number of young people attending MOTIV8 events grew by 35%, with partner churches/youth projects and volunteer teams growing too
'This year we have been very fortunate to link with SU Scotland who has been coming into school to use the resources they have created and piloted with us called ‘Who is Jesus?’. 'Our young people struggle with R.E. because it’s a difficult concept for them. The resources have brought R.E. to life for them—they are accessible, enjoyable and the young people have been extremely well engaged.' (Patricia McGowan, Headteacher, Abercorn ASN School)
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International SU Scotland is part of a global family of Scripture Union movements seeking to make God’s Good News known to children, young people and families, and encouraging people of all ages to meet God daily through the Bible and prayer.
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cripture Union operates in over 120 countries around the world. SU Scotland is partnered with the Scripture Union movements in Ukraine and Belarus, supporting ministry in prayer, funding, and visits from staff and volunteers. We also pray for a restricted country and support Scripture Union ministry in Rwanda.
floorball ministry, enabling them to supply appropriate kit to their teams.
Since 2023, the SU Scotland Gap Year team have travelled to Budapest for their international mission trip, working with SU Hungary to help lead Englishlanguage camps in different communities.
Every Thursday: Oksana
The SU Holidays and Missions International Project raised funds for SU Ecuador’s
A smaller project has also taken place at the COmMISSION events to help subsidise transport costs for young people from the Pacific Islands attending a leadership training conference in December 2026.
November: We continue to support the Scripture Union Global week of prayer, organising a variety of opportunities to gather in prayer for volunteers and staff
April: Grigori Stupak, Director of Open Bible Ukraine, visited Scotland and met with a variety of individuals and groups who pray for the work of Open Bible
Khimich of Open Bible in Ukraine hosts a weekly prayer Zoom. She is very thankful for the support and fellowship of those who join from Scotland
July: The SU Scotland Gap Year team served in two communities in Hungary to help lead English-language camps
September: The SU Global
August: We hosted our
Team held their meetings in Scotland at Gowanbank, after which Oksana Khimich spent some time with us
fourth Ukrainian Family Holiday at Lendrick Muir. Around 30 attended, including mothers, grandmothers and children.
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Prayer & Church Partnership Prayer and strong church relationships remain at the heart of SU Scotland’s ministry.
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rayer remains central to SU Scotland’s work,
supported by a growing network of churches, Local Ministry Hubs and SU Ambassadors. Together, they are helping to strengthen prayer for schools, build connections within local communities and create opportunities for churches to engage with children and young people. These relationships continue to play an important role in supporting SU Scotland’s wider ministry and extending its reach across the country. • Over 67% of schools in Scotland have one or more people praying for them, and new registrations are received each month.
• Local Ministry Hubs are bringing Christians together to pray for schools • Approximately 245 SU Ambassadors serve their church and SU Scotland • Over 450 churches from Scotland, around the UK and beyond registered to use Back to School with God resources. This resource was used with over 3,231 young people in Scotland alone. One church leader shared, 'We find Back to School with God resources invaluable every year. Not only do I use them, but I feel they are so good I can hand them over to a team to lead the service and they feel confident to do so, which is fab.'
'The church was full, which was fabulous to see and most people stayed for brunch afterwards. We had two young teenagers taking part. It was the first time these young girls had done anything like this and they did really well. We found the material really good to use.' (Church Ambassador)
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Volunteers This year over 2,500 people have been part of an SU Scotland team. It is so encouraging to see the year-on-year growth in volunteer partnership with SU Scotland.
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hen volunteers are asked what encourages them most, recurring themes include relationships with other team members, engaging with young people, seeing their response to the gospel and teaching, a growing interest in the Bible—and plenty of fun! Across the breadth of SU Scotland’s ministries, volunteers bring enormous diversity, creativity and commitment. Thank you for making young people feel welcome and cared for, and giving them the space and time to explore the Bible and respond to the significance of Jesus.
'I feel like this might have been my favourite camp yet—though I’m starting to think I think that after every camp.' (Volunteer)
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Fundraising We want to express our deepest thanks to all our wonderful supporters. Your generosity is making a lasting difference in the lives of children and young people across Scotland.
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ecause of your support, more young people are encountering Jesus, growing as disciples, and being encouraged to live out their faith. We are profoundly grateful for your partnership, and continually thank God for his provision through your faithful giving. Supporter appeals Thank you to everyone who responded so generously to our appeals during the 2025/26 financial year. Your support has made a significant contribution to
Total Donation Income for the financial year to 31 March 2026 Includes Gift Aid
three designated appeals that reflect key strategic priorities for our ministry: Local Ministries, the Holiday Sponsorship Fund, and our Christmas Appeal. Through your generosity, we are able to invest directly in ministry with children and young people, create more opportunities for them to encounter Jesus, and help ensure that financial circumstances do not prevent anyone from participating in the lifechanging experiences we offer.
TOTAL:
£4,861K
We are deeply grateful for the faithful partnership, encouragement, and commitment of our supporters. Your generosity continues to make a lasting difference in the lives of children and young people across Scotland.
Donations
£1,958K
Legacies
£720K
Appeals
£216K
Fundraising events
£15K
Grants & trusts
£1,952K
How we fundraise responsibly... Fundraising activities follow the guidelines issued by the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, which include standards to protect vulnerable people during fundraising activities. SU Scotland applies principles so that appeals to supporters, applications to trusts and related fundraising activities are legal, open, honest, respectful and accountable. No official complaints were received during the year, and SU Scotland did not appoint any third-party professional or commercial fundraisers. Where possible, guidelines are issued to individual volunteer fundraisers to ensure their activities (for example sponsored events or bake sales) are carried out safely and appropriately.
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Partners A massive thank you to the many individuals, churches, other organisations and trusts who supported us between April 2025 and March 2026, including: • The Aitchison Trust SCIO • Baptist Union of Scotland • Caring and Sharing (SCIO) • Charnwood Trust • Criffel Charitable Trust • Door Trust • Durris Charitable Trust • Esther Hennell Charitable Trust • Hope Trust • Jennifer’s Fund • Kenneth Barge Memorial Trust • The Kola’a Trust • Margaret Douglas Trust • Micah Fund • Ardbarron Trust Limited • Benefact Trust • Challenge Trust
• Christian Education Association Scotland • The Cruden Trust • D S Stewart and FE Stewart Charitable Trust • The Energy Saving Trust • Generation Trust • J & C Fleming Charitable Trust • Jonthree Trust Ltd • Kilravock Christian Trust • Life Trust Limited • Mary Brown Memorial Trust • The Milne Family Foundation • Noble Resolve Gospel & Temperance Mission • The Paristamen Charity • Paterson Family Foundation • Roy Miller Charitable Trust
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• Shalimar Trust • Sporos Trust • St Ternan Charitable Trust • Petty Trust •S cott Thomson Charitable Trust • Souter Charitable Trust • Springboard Charitable Trust • Tabeel Trust • Tannery Trust • Tillyloss Trust • Westhill Endowment • The William Scott SCIO • TBF & KL Thompson Trust • The Vardy Foundation •W hole Family Wellbeing Fund •W ilson Distributors Charitable Trust
Charity Info • Robin MacLellan
Trustees who served from 1 September 2025 to the publishing of this report were as follows:
Executive Officers
• Angus Allan (retired 26 Mar 2026)
Company Secretary
• Robin MacLellan Chief Executive Officer • Paul Bayton Director of Centres
• Samuel Barge • Stephen Bell, Chair (retired 22 Aug 2026) • Dr Audrey Chalmers (retired 18 Jun 2026) • Rachel Cooney • Pamela Fulton
• Jackie Ringan
• Jonathan Gwynne (appointed 19 Feb 2026)
Director of Development
• Jonathan Innes, Honorary Treasurer
and Holidays
• Paul Johnston
• Mike Kurtyka Chief Operating Officer • Jenny Hamill Creative Director
• Martyn Link, Vice-Chair • Adom Otoo (appointed 19 Feb 2026) • Charlene Petersen • Tim Record (appointed 19 Feb 2026) • Dr Jo Rose (appointed 19 Feb 2026)
• Zonya Bewick
• Colin D Sinclair
Director of Local Ministries
• Rev Cara Wightman
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Finance The finances for the year to 31 March 2026 reflected the ongoing growth in activities and God’s provision for our ministry. We are truly thankful for the many individuals, churches, trusts and other organisations who have supported this ministry during the year.
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here was a net surplus for the year of £912,000, mainly as a result of £950,000 of grants awarded but not yet received at the year end date (these are required to be reported in this year’s results). The grants will fund specific costs that are planned to be incurred in the next and following financial years. Our unrestricted fund balances at the end of the year were within our target range of 3–6 months’ worth of costs, with enough held in free reserves to cover 4.7 months’ worth of budgeted costs. Donation income from individuals, churches and trusts grew significantly in the year, including £400,000
towards the initial costs and professional fees for the planned Lendrick Muir building project. Legacy gifts continued to be a significant part of our income, though lower than last year’s exceptional high. Income from charitable activities rose by £127,000, reflecting significant growth in numbers attending the Magnitude Festival, as well as growth in Holidays and training events. Other income was boosted by a £355,000 one-off gain on sale of the Edinburgh office. Costs continued to increase over the year due to inflation, growing capacity at our
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events and growth in the staff team. Staffing costs are a key area of spend, reflecting our core value of Deepening Relationships. New staff roles included strategic priority areas such as Local Ministries and Ministry at the Margins, as well as expanded support roles including HR, Marketing and volunteer support. With ambitions to sustain our growing ministry with the children and young people of Scotland, we continue to work towards increasing our regular income while carefully managing costs. This is in addition to seeking significant one-off funding for the exciting plans for the development of Lendrick Muir.
The financial information presented here is based on figures from the Trustees' Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2026. All figures are rounded to the nearest thousand pound. The accounts received an unqualified report from Forvis Mazars LLP, our auditors, and signed copies have been lodged with OSCR and the Registrar of Companies Download the full document at:
suscotland.org.uk/ annualreview
2025/26 Income
TOTAL:
£7,977K
25/26
24/25
£4,142K
£2,959K
Donations Legacies Charitable Activities Gains Interest
£720K
£1,817K
£2,630K
£2,503K
TOTAL
£356K
£0K
£130K
£112K
£7,977K
£7,391K
2025/26 Expenditure
TOTAL:
£7,065K
25/26
24/25
Residentials & Centres £4,363K Local & Nat. Ministries £2,095K £136K Equipping £116K International Support £356K Raising Funds
£3,878K
TOTAL
£6,104K
£7,065K
£1,715K £114K £86K £311K
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As we look ahead, we are excited about what God will do and hope to see the following progress in the coming year: • All secondary school clusters will be served by a Local Ministry Hub • Connect Groups established in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Ayrshire • Construction beginning on the Lendrick Muir Development project • More Bible engagement resources in the hands of young people throughout Scotland • Established Local Youth Projects in priority communities • Growth of Associate Trust partnerships • Links strengthened between ministries to support children and young people effectively through their faith journeys
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SU Scotland, New Olympia House, 13 Olympia Street, Glasgow, G40 3TA 0141 332 1162 | info@suscotland.org.uk facebook.com/suscotland youtube.com/suscotland instagram.com/suscotland tiktok.com/suscotland
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