Scottish Pagan Federation

The Pagan Federation was founded in 1971, and Scotland became a district within it in the early 1990s. Jean Fowler and her husband were the first District Managers. At this time, Scotland and Ireland were overseen jointly. John and Kitty Macintyre became the District Managers in 1997 and became active campaigners for improving the understanding and recognition of Neopaganism in Scotland. Under their leadership, the Scottish Pagan Federation was founded as an independent organisation in 2006. After the Macintyres announced their retirement in 2017, Steffy Von Scott and Jennifer Connolly took over as District Managers. == The Three Principles ==

The SPF is organised around three core principles. These principles are designed to be compatible with the Scottish Government's legal recognition of Paganism as a religion within Scotland and with their strong interfaith engagement. • Love for and Kinship with Nature. Reverence for the life force and its ever-renewing cycles of life and death. • A positive morality, in which the individual is responsible for the discovery and development of their true nature in harmony with the outer world and community. This is often expressed as 'Do what you will, as long as it harms none'. • Recognition of the Divine, which transcends gender, acknowledging both the female and male aspect of Deity. == Services ==

Public education to NGOs, civic society, the media and the general public is a core function of the SPF. Pagans still face prejudice in Scotland, so the SPF works to counter what they see as misrepresentations of their faith. Engagement with interfaith groups has formed a key role in the SPF's outreach strategy. They also provide chaplains for people in hospital, university students, and prisoners. Every year they organise a conference which includes talks, workshops, discussion groups, entertainment, healing therapies, and market stalls. Their annual summer camp is targeted towards families and takes place in Clatt Village Hall. == Activism ==

Leaders in the SPF have long campaigned for improved recognition and treatment of Neopagans in Scotland. One of their most notable campaigns has been to achieve census recognition for Paganism on the Scottish Census. Campaigning began in 2001 to get a Pagan tick-box in the census after numbers for small religious minorities were not released. They hope that getting a more accurate count will enable them to better campaign for including Paganism in Religious Education curricula in the UK. The Scottish Census has confirmed that there will be a Pagan tick-box in the 2021 Census. Leaders within the SPF have also been supportive of efforts to recognise the many people, mostly women, who were killed for witchcraft throughout Scotland's history. Many within the organisation are activists for environmental and ecological causes as they see protecting the environment as a religious duty. The SPF is also committed to creating a welcoming space within Scottish paganism for LGBTQIA+ people. The first pagan same-sex wedding in the UK was conducted in 2015 by Louise Park, the presiding officer of the SPF. == References ==