The first public culmination of Caring Scotland, a three-year listening project documenting the lives of Care Experienced people in Scotland, has launched. The Sound Collection, an oral history archive has been launched at the National Library of Scotland, and Ten Portraits, a photographic exhibition featuring ten care experienced individuals, is set to tour Scotland this year.

Caring Scotland is led and inspired by the practice of playwright and socially engaged theatre-maker, Nicola McCartney. The project is a unique partnership between National Theatre of Scotland, Who Cares? Scotland and the National Library of Scotland and is funded with an award from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.  

Ten Portraits is a touring photographic exhibition of photographs captured by Chris Scott, inspired and informed by the Caring Scotland listening project. The exhibition will be presented at venues across Scotland. It will open at the Inverness Museum on 05 May ahead of touring to Shetland, Aberdeen and Edinburgh.  

Chris Scott, photographer, said    

“I hope this exhibition, using my own personal experiences in the care system, will help shift the narrative around care experience from one of deficit to one of strength. Too often, our stories are told through statistics, news articles and case studies that strip away our humanity. This project has the potential to show the world that we are not broken people who need fixing - we are survivors, creators, leaders, and storytellers in our own right. I want the public and young people currently in care to see these images and recognise their own potential reflected back at them”.

For full touring dates of the Ten Portraits exhibition, visit here. 

The Sound Collection brings together all stories gathered from the listening project and have now been safely deposited in a new Caring Scotland oral history audio archive, housed in perpetuity at the National Library of Scotland for public access as well as excerpts being made available online via our website. You can listen to them here.  

Nicola McCartney, Caring Scotland lead artist, said  

"It has been an honour and a challenge to lead such a large project, documenting the lives of Care Experienced people in Scotland in their own words.  We look forward to now sharing these stories with the nation in many different and innovative ways. The testimonies we have listened to of how the Care system has impacted on people’s lives are a vital and often overlooked part of what Scotland's story was, is now and what we can become."  

Alison Stevenson, Director of Collections, Access and Research at the National Library of Scotland, said:  

“The National Library collects and preserves voices, letters, recordings, footage and diaries covering as many perspectives of Scottish society as possible. We are honoured to be the custodian of the Care Experienced voices who contributed to this project.”  

Jackie Wylie, National Theatre of Scotland Artistic Director, said  

“As a national theatre, we have a responsibility to reflect the many voices that make up Scotland and to create space for stories that are not often heard. I am proud that National of Theatre Scotland has spent the last two years working to this principle through the Caring Scotland project. I hope people spend time with these portraits and their accompanying audio and connect with the humanity behind each photograph. They invite us to slow down, to look closely, to listen, and to meet each individual on their journey.”  

Beth-Anne McDowall, Care Experienced campaigner and contributor to Caring Scotland project, said  

“The Caring Scotland project matters because care-experienced people, from all walks of life have come together and shared their stories, told their truths, in their own voice. It’s raw. It’s unfiltered and at points uncomfortable. As it should be.  I think the fact our stories will live in the archive forever matters because it will allow people to stay connected to care, map progress that has been and will continue to be made, and to ensure accountability. 

I hope the Ten Portraits and then the One Hundred Voices later this year will inspire current and future generations of care-experienced people to never stop chasing their dreams, never stop speaking their truths. And never stop fighting for what they deserve. To be safe, to be respected and, to be loved. And, to strive to be the person we needed when we were younger.”  

The final outcome of the Caring Scotland project, One Hundred Voices is an interactive, audio-guided installation, bringing creative insight into living in the care system. The installation will tour in summer and autumn 2026. It will serve as an artistic act of recognition and celebration of the one hundred testimonies recorded through the Caring Scotland project. This project will be launched in May 2026. The exhibition will be presented alongside this installation.

Full information on the Caring Scotland project can be found here.