FRUITFUL collaborations between business, arts and heritage have been celebrated in Glasgow at the annual Arts & Business awards.

The 30th awards including honours for the National Theatre of Scotland, Glasgow City Council and Scottish Ballet, among others, in a series of prizes for enterprising collaborations between businesses and the arts world.

Elly Rothnie and Stella Litchfield, from the National Theatre of Scotland, were and named as first winners of new Fundraising Excellence Award at the ceremony at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall.

The new award, created for the 30th Awards, for which The Herald is a media partner, honours an individual or team that has made a "significant contribution to the fundraising efforts of an arts, or heritage organisation in Scotland".

The Leadership Award this year went to Bruce Minto.

Co-founder of law firm Dickson Minto, Bruce was awarded an OBE in the 2015 New Year Honours List for services to Culture.

He became Chairman of the Board of Trustees of National Museums Scotland in August 2012, after five years as Chair of National Museums Scotland’s Development Board in which he led a campaign that raised around £13 million in private funding from over 1,000 donors.

As Chairman of National Museums Scotland, he helped secure a further £7.8 million to create new ten at the National Museum of Scotland. Mr Minto said: "I hugely enjoy working with the staff and supporters of National Museums Scotland and this award is in fact testament to their energy, drive, expertise and unfailing commitment."

The winners of this year’s awards received an award created by Edinburgh designer Oliver F. Conway, a former student of Glasgow School of Art.

David Watt, chief executive of Arts & Business Scotland said: “The partnerships, projects and individuals celebrated at the Arts & Business Scotland Awards, one of our most diverse to date, illustrate the appetite within the business and cultural and sectors to ensure Scotland is a nation which has creativity and cultural engagement at its heart.

"This year’s winners showcase the very best of what can be achieved through partnership working across the length and breadth of the country and we are delighted to recognise such tremendous achievements."

The Business Creativity category was won by Check-It Scaffold Services, who sponsored Scottish Ballet to work with David Dawson, an internationally renowned choreographer, and his team to create a new version of Swan Lake.

The Enterprise Award, which recognises a partnership that has developed business expertise or entrepreneurial opportunities within the cultural organisation, went to Glasgow City Council and Arts Pistol for successfully collaborating on a project to find a solution to the the issue of graffiti in Glasgow’s city centre.

The People Award went to The National Theatre of Scotland and Deloitte who collaborated on Granite – the largest cultural project ever undertaken in Aberdeen.

The Enterprising Museum Award was won by Auchindrain for The Runrig Project.

Joanne Orr, Chief Executive of Museums Galleries Scotland, said: “Congratulations to Auchindrain on this fantastic achievement. Their project showed real integrity and depth in breaking down the barriers to participation, demonstrating the commitment of museums across Scotland to social inclusiveness."

The Placemaking category was won by the Cumnock Tryst in Ayrshire, curated by composer Sir James MacMillan.

The Glasgow Life Award for Inclusion was won by Indepen-dance, an inclusive dance company for people with disabilities and their carers.

The Innovation category was won by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and partner Right Lines Productions, for Rapid Departure, an interactive comedy theatre show which explored the topical issues of climate change and preparedness for flooding events.

The International Award was won by International Freight and Shipping (IFS) Worldwide and Cultural Documents.

The ceremony was hosted for the tenth year by broadcaster and writer Janice Forsyth.

Fiona Hyslop, culture secretary, said: “I congratulate all those shortlisted in the Arts & Business Scotland Awards 2017. As previous winners show, when culture and business collaborate they can achieve excellent outcomes.

“Arts & Business Scotland are delivering some fantastic work driving successful partnerships between business and cultural organisations and helping our vibrant cultural sector to thrive."