THE chief executive of Creative Scotland has announced he will step down from the role.
Iain Munro will leave the Scottish Government agency at the end of the year after nearly eight years in charge.
Munro’s career spans three decades working in the country’s cultural sector, having started out in the Scottish Arts Council in 1996.
In its announcement, Creative Scotland said the chief executive was “central” to launching National Lottery funding for culture in Scotland and an “integral” part of creating Screen Scotland, which helps to drive the development of film and TV in the country.
Munro also oversaw the introduction of multi-year funding for cultural organisations which the arts body said “transformed the landscape of support across the country”.
However, the organisation was criticised during Munro’s leadership, with an independent review calling for Creative Scotland to be overhauled after becoming too bureaucratic and slow.
The 2025 report found Scotland’s national arts body lacked ambition amid what it described as “crippling bureaucracy”.
The body also faced criticism in 2024 over a decision to fund the Rein project, an art installation which involved non-simulated sexual acts, to the tune of £84,555.
The funding was later pulled.
Creative Scotland said recruitment for Munro’s successor will begin shortly.
The new boss will earn more than £110,000 per year and will be in charge of a roughly £100 million budget in the coming years.
Robert Wilson, chairman of Creative Scotland, said: “Iain has been a tireless champion of Scotland’s culture and creativity for 30 years and his positive contribution to the sector, and to public life more broadly, has been immeasurable.
“We are all thankful to him for everything that he has achieved.
“Looking forward, the Creative Scotland Board has now instigated a recruitment process for Iain’s replacement, and we look forward to a high level of interest in an opportunity of such significance.”
Culture Secretary Mairi McAllan said: “I am grateful to Iain for more than 30 years of dedication and hard work to Scotland’s culture and creative sector.
“That was never better demonstrated than the role he played in supporting Scotland’s creative industries through the Covid pandemic.
“I thank him for his service to public life and wish him all the best for the future.”
Meanwhile, Scottish Greens culture spokesperson Q Manivannan called for grassroots to be at the heart of shaping Creative Scotland's future.
They said: “I want to thank Iain Munro for the work he has done for Creative Scotland and culture across our country.
“When someone who has been in such a crucial post for a significant period of time steps down it is also an opportunity to re-evaluate things and look at how we can do things differently."
Manivannan said it has been "a tough time for Creative Scotland", with artists, performers and other workers across the sector fearful for the future.
They added: “The arts can’t be a nice-to-have or a reward for a functioning economy. They are what makes a community worth building in the first place.
“I hope that grassroots artists and organisations will play an active role in choosing Munro’s successor, shaping the future of Creative Scotland and building a thriving sector across our country.”
