The Scottish Government has published a consultation paper on how the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2025’s community engagement obligations should work in practice, alongside draft guidance to help landowners identify whether their land falls within the scope of a large land holding.
In our previous update on the implementation of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2025 (the “Act”), we flagged that an autumn 2026 consultation on community engagement obligations was expected. That consultation has now been published, bringing greater detail to a new framework that is set to reshape how owners of large land holdings engage with communities over the management and use of their land.
These proposals form part of the wider changes introduced by the Act, which span community engagement obligations and the transfer of large land holdings under Part 1, and reforms to agricultural tenancies, small landholdings and rural leasing under Part 2. The current consultation concerns only Part 1’s community engagement obligations and guidance on identifying large land holdings. It does not cover Part 2 or Part 1’s pre-notification and lotting provisions, on which separate consultation is planned.
Land Management Plans
One of the central elements of the new framework is the requirement for large land holdings to be covered by a Land Management Plan (“LMP”), reviewed at least every five years. The Act already establishes the broad content of these plans, from ownership arrangements and long-term management objectives to community and tenant engagement, and how the land is managed to contribute to climate and biodiversity goals.
Much of the practical detail, however, remains to be developed through a mixture of regulations and guidance. The consultation therefore seeks views on how these requirements should operate in practice, including where the balance should lie between legally binding regulations and guidance. A key consideration is how to make community engagement meaningful, including which communities should be involved, how they should participate in developing an LMP and what practical barriers may need to be addressed.
Alongside this, views are sought on the level of detail landowners should provide and how they should demonstrate compliance. Examples include maps, information regarding ownership and control, contact details of those responsible for management, as well as evidence relating to access and deer management. The consultation also considers how existing plans and publicly available information could be used to avoid unnecessary duplication of information.
Looking beyond the preparation of an LMP, the consultation further explores how plans should be published and kept up to date, including how five-yearly reviews should work and when a significant change should prompt further community engagement.
Requests from community bodies
The community engagement framework also extends to how landowners respond to proposals from community bodies. Owners of large land holdings will be required to consider reasonable requests to lease land or buildings, or, where the land is within a crofting county or designated area, to apply to have it constituted as a croft. Importantly, this is a duty to consider a request, rather than an obligation to agree to it.
The consultation seeks to give both landowners and community bodies greater clarity about that process, from the information needed to make a reasonable request through to the response and any subsequent steps. It asks, for example, whether there should be enforceable deadlines for acknowledging and responding to requests, and what a landowner should explain to demonstrate that a proposal has been properly considered. As with LMPs, an overarching question is which elements should be prescribed in legally binding regulations, and which should be determined by guidance only.
Bringing the new requirements into effect
Recognising that landowners will need time to prepare, engage on and publish their LMPs, the Scottish Government proposes a grace period before enforcement begins. Its length has not been determined yet; however, the consultation has invited views on periods ranging from 6 to 24 months. Views are also sought on whether implementation should be phased across different groups of holdings and what transitional arrangements should apply in cases where ownership changes or an acquisition brings land within scope.
Checking whether you have a large land holding
For landowners, the starting point in understanding how these obligations may affect them is establishing whether their land forms part of a large land holding. The accompanying draft guidance aims to help answer that question. Broadly, a large land holding comprises more than 1,000 hectares of land, including qualifying land held by connected persons. Different parcels of land will be considered part of one holding if their boundaries are within 250 metres of one another.
The guidance takes landowners through that assessment step by step, using worked examples to explain how ownership arrangements and connections between owners can bring land within scope. The consultation invites views on how clearly it explains this process and whether further guidance is required, particularly for complex or overlapping holdings.
What happens next?
The outline timetable, which remains indicative, anticipates further consultation on community engagement obligations in winter 2027–28, regulations being laid in winter 2028–29 and commencement in spring 2029, which would also mark the start of the enforcement grace period. Consultation on pre-notification and lotting is scheduled for spring 2028, with those provisions expected to come into force in autumn 2030.
Although implementation remains some years away, this consultation offers an opportunity to shape the practical requirements. We encourage those who may be affected, particularly owners of, or those connected to, large land holdings, to consider responding by the deadline of 26 January 2027. Responses can be submitted through the Scottish Government’s Citizen Space consultation hub, by email or by post. Respondents need only answer questions relevant to their interests.
If you have any questions about the consultation or how the proposals may affect you, please get in touch with a member of our Rural Business and Natural Capital team or your usual Brodies contact.
Contributors
Senior Solicitor
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