The charity
Friends of Broughty Castle is a Scottish charity (SC054928) founded in 2025 by the Broughty Ferry Traders Association with the local Rotary and Community Council, to support Broughty Castle and its museum. The castle was built around 1496 by Andrew, 2nd Lord Gray, and has been a museum since 1969.
Where it started
The charity's first website had only two real pages. The rest, including About and FAQ, was still the filler text from the template it was built on. For a charity asking people to join and give, that undermines trust at the first click.
What we built
- Emotion before information. The site opens with the castle and why it matters, then the history, then how to help.
- Every word real. All the copy came from the charity: the history, the membership tiers, the chairman's biography and the words of its patrons, Brian Cox and Lorraine Kelly.
- Membership and events set out clearly, with planned events shown as "dates coming soon" rather than invented dates.
- Enquiries to the right volunteer. Membership questions go to the membership secretary and everything else to the secretary, automatically.
- Visiting information linked, not copied. Opening times and admission come from the castle's operator, so the site links to them rather than risk showing out-of-date times.
- Photographs credited. Alongside the Friends' own photos, the site uses historic paintings and photographs under open licences, each credited as the licence requires.
A place for real stories
Instead of testimonials, the site invites people to share a memory of the castle. Real stories from real people, or none at all. See websites for charities and our work in Broughty Ferry.