Responsibility for rebuilding the fire-damaged Mackintosh Building should be transferred from Glasgow School of Art (GSA) to a new independent body, campaigners have said.

The Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society said a special-purpose organisation would be better placed to lead fundraising, governance and reconstruction of the landmark, which was devastated by fires in 2014 and 2018.

In July, GSA said the estimated cost of a faithful restoration had soared to £265m and warned it could not proceed without significant extra financial support.

The art school said it would invest insurance settlement funds in preparatory works but full reinstatement would require external partners and funding.

The Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society is an independent heritage charity founded in 1973 to promote the work of the Scottish architect and designer.

Director Matthew Williams said: "The society has plenty of common ground with The Glasgow School of Art and support their first stage of work to stabilise the building and remove the current scaffold which is holding the structure in place.

"This will allow for future phases of reconstruction and the public will be able to see what currently remains.

"However, as an independent critical friend to the Art School, we believe that following that first phase an external body should take on the building and get the project finished in the coming years."

The proposal is set out in a report by the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society.

It said the estimated £265m cost of a full reconstruction would require significant financial support from both the Scottish and UK governments, alongside private and charitable funding.

The campaign group said the building should be rebuilt as it is one of Scotland's most important architectural landmarks.

It also argued that extensive surveys, drawings, archive material and 3D scans created before the 2018 fire, mean an accurate reconstruction remains possible.

The society said eight years of limited progress since then have left the future of the building unresolved and called for a new structure to drive the project forward.

A Glasgow School of Art spokesperson said: "We welcome the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society's continued engagement on the future of the Mackintosh Building and its shared ambition to see the building rebuilt.

"The Society remains an important stakeholder as we continue our discussions with potential funders and partners."