THE Wee County's cultural and historical hotspots opened their doors to the public over the weekend – giving people a chance to discover more about local heritage.

The Doors Open Days scheme, which began in Glasgow and Ayr in 1990 and now runs across Scotland, aims to help people discover more about Scotland's incredible architecture.

In Clacks, the scheme is organised by Clackmannanshire Heritage Trust, with support from the council.

Venues which opened their doors on Saturday and Sunday, September 29-30, included Alloa Tower and Fire Station, Tullibody Heritage Centre, Sauchie Tower and churches across Clacks.

The Advertiser spoke to managers at several venues who all reported satisfied visitors who left knowing more about their local towns than they ever thought they would.

Alison Fraser, property manager at Alloa Tower, said: "The Doors Open weekend is something that we've done for a number of years now, and it's a great opportunity for people to discover the local heritage on their own doorstep.

"We had 300 visitors over the two days, and staff were dressed up on the days to add to the atmosphere.

"We had some great feedback. Visitors didn't know they had such rich history on their doorstep."

Chris Calder, chair of the Tullibody Heritage Centre, added: "It was very good. I think we had about 19 people on Saturday and 21 or 22 people on Sunday.

"We also did the historic walk around Tullibody and got ten people on that one.

"It was a real mixture; we had some small children and some people in their 40s, 50s and 60s.

"They all really enjoyed it, and in the feedback one lady said she has seen and heard things about Tullibody she never even knew existed.

"Tullibody's history goes back to 4,000BC, it's not just a 1960s mining town. Not a lot of people realise."

Alex McCutcheon, manager at Alloa Fire Station, said staff were "delighted" to welcome more than 200 people as part of the event.

He added: “It gave us a chance to show the public first-hand what we do, and how we work with our partners to help support our local communities.”

Doors Open Days are run across Scotland every year.

For more information about the scheme, visit: doorsopendays.org.uk