Forestry and Land Scotland - draft corporate strategic plan 2026-2030: consultation

2. Introduction to Forestry and Land Scotland

Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) is a strong organisation with an enduring mission working for Scottish Ministers “to look after Scotland’s national forests and land, for the benefit of all, now and for the future”. We are proud of the contributions that we make to our society, environment and economy. These include supporting rural jobs and the economy producing 40% of Scotland’s timber; boosting the green energy transition by hosting 14% of Scotland’s onshore windfarms; welcoming people through over 10 million visits per year and supporting 100 community projects; and conserving and restoring iconic landscapes and nature within the 9% of Scotland in our care. We are here for good … in the service of Scotland ... as one FLS.

We have achieved a great deal in over 100 years and looking ahead we want to deliver even more for the people of Scotland. We currently raise around 80% of our funding from commercial sources and receive the remaining 20% from public funding. We are working towards being financially sustainable by 2029 by making a surplus in our commercial activities (timber, estate development, renewables and commercial aspects of visitor services) to enable us to invest in our estate and the communities and public services that we provide (visitor services, community empowerment and nature). We also want to work even more in partnership with both the public, private and communities to deliver those services.

This Corporate Strategic Plan sets out the broad framework of how we will deliver for Ministers for the Scottish people, for this and future generations. It outlines:

• our core activity that which enables us to steward Scotland’s national forests and lands, and work in support of the Scottish Government’s (SG’s) Net Zero ambition.
• how we will look to go beyond this to achieve more in response to wider SG objectives subject to available resources; and
• how we will explore new opportunities and meet new challenges whilst being strategic and selective in making any new commitments.

Our rolling three-year Business Plan 2026/27 to 2028/29 will set out in more detail how we will deliver Scottish Ministers’ ambitions in this Corporate Strategic Plan.

Kevin Quinlan

Chief Executive, Forestry and Land Scotland