Participate
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​Festival Week: 13th-19th September 2021

We are now accepting expressions of interest to take part in the 2021 event, you will find information on how to apply below.
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Now in its 32nd year, Glasgow Doors Open Days Festival is an annual programme of open buildings, guided walks and talks, delivered over 1 week in September, for free.

​Participants take part for different reasons, from wanting to raise the profile of their building or organisation, to wanting to attract new members to doing it purely for fun! With the event attracting a large audience each year, the festival is a fantastic opportunity to engage with new people.

Glasgow Doors Open Days Festival in 2021...
​In 2021, we hope we will be able to get back into buildings but we must be prepared for any eventuality, and so many elements from the 2020 digital festival will return. Set out below are the three categories that you can participate in. We’ve made a few changes to the festival format to ensure the most accessible and safe event possible, so make sure you have all the up to date info before applying.

Our 2020 digital event was a great success, with participants working hard to take their usual event online. In 2021 we are keen to continue to support participants in realising their digital ambitions so please do get in touch if you’d like to discuss your event.
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Buildings
At heart of the Glasgow Doors Open Days programme are buildings, open to the public for exploring, tours and exhibitions. Over the years we have had a huge variety, from the grand Clyde Port to the humble Police Box and private residences, we are always interested in new and unusual spaces.

You can enter your building for digital and in person visits:
Digital visits
  • Live tours on social media channels such as Facebook and Instagram.
  • Digital resources which can be hosted on the Glasgow Doors Open Days website. This could be a film, a written resource, an image gallery, a zine, a virtual environment or something else - we’d love to hear your ideas.
In person visits
  • Our ability to operate an open buildings programme will depend on social distancing guidelines from the Scottish Government later in the year. If it is possible to open buildings for visits in September, this will happen at the weekend of the festival only, the 18th and 19th of September.
  • Bookings are likely to be mandatory.
NB - You are welcome to apply to participate in the festival with a digital offering only, but if you are participating with an open building for 'in person' visits you must also have a digital offering of some kind and we will be glad to discuss this with you.
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​Trails
Every year we host around 50 trails led by passionate locals, taking members of the public on tours of the city.

​Trails are hugely popular every year, the festival audience is always curious to find out more about the rich heritage on their doorstep.
Some trails, are staples of the programme, always popular, other newer entries give our returning audience something new to discover. Whether you are a returning trail leader or brand new to Doors Open Days - we want to hear from you!

Are you a young person who would like to lead a trail?
Want to tell the story of Glasgow as you see it? We will be running workshops for young tour guides who want to take part - get in touch with you ideas!

You can enter as a Digital or In Person Trail:
Digital Trail
  • A digital trail is hosted on the Guidigo platform and allows Doors Open Days visitors to get out and about in the city in their own leisure time. Digital trails are hosted by GBPT on Guidigo and GBPT will be offering training sessions to get you up to speed if you're not familiar with the platform. You can find last years trails here.
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In Person Trail
  • The guided walks programme will go ahead, depending on social distancing guidelines from the Scottish Government later in the year.
  • The guided walks programme will take place at the weekend of the festival only, the 18th and 19th of September.
Digital Events
Talks, seminars and workshops are an integral part of the programme. In 2020, thousands of people logged on to hear talks on varied topics, from the Glasgow garden festival to commemorating difficult histories. These events are a great way to reach your community and find new audiences too.
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It's very unlikely that we will be able to hold events which draw a crowd in September so our events programme of talks and and workshops will be taking place online, using Zoom or a similar platform. 

You could present a:
  • Webinar
  • Workshop
Festival Theme:​ Sustainable Communities
With the COP-26 conference coming to Glasgow in November, the theme of this year’s Glasgow Doors Open Days Festival is 'Sustainable Communities' and we are asking our participants what sustainability means for built heritage and their community.

While it may not be immediately obvious how you can contribute to this discussion within the context of your heritage project, this is an opportunity to get creative and reach out to your community to get their ideas. 

For information on the festival theme, and ideas on how you can take part, click here. 
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Creative Planning Zoom Session 
Tuesday 23rd March @ 11am

This will be an opportunity to find out more about this years event, the festival theme and an opportunity to ask questions.

Sign up here!

Submitting an Expression of Interest
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In a change from previous years, in 2021 we are inviting expressions of interest, detailing your plans for your open building, trail or digital event.

In no more that 250 words, tell us what you plan to do. Make sure you make it's clear if its an open building, a trail or a digital event. We are particularly interested to hear from folk who's event is in line with the festival theme, 'Sustainable Communities'.

You are welcome to submit more than one expression of interest for various events.

Click here to submit your expression of interest.

Deadline for submissions is Wednesday 21st April.

Remember...
- For open buildings, remember you must have some kind of digital offering.
- Keep it simple - bullet points are great!
- Not sure about something? Get in touch with the coordinator for help at doorsopendays@gbpt.org.
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​More Information

Download our participants handbook which has all the information you will need to get the most out of your event. Click here to download.
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