East Ayrshire town to benefit from multi-million pound regeneration scheme

Over a million pounds of Historic Environment Scotland money is going to Mauchline

Published 5th Apr 2019

Mauchline is one of four Scottish towns set to benefit from a multi-million pound regeneration project.

The East Ayrshire town will receive £1,119,800 from Historic Environment Scotland to renovate and repair some of the village's traditional buildings - many of which have links to Robert Burns.

It’s part of the group’s Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme, which will also see funding awarded to Inverkeithing, Hawick and Lochgilphead.

CARS is a regeneration initiative designed to direct funding to town centres that would benefit from heritage-led redevelopment.

Since its inception, £43 million has been awarded to communities across the country, resulting in more than 140 new businesses and more than 460 jobs created in areas of high unemployment.

HES chairwoman Jane Ryder said: “One of the great merits of the CARS scheme is that it is locally led and allows local authorities to invest in priority properties they have identified and help communities to unlock the potential of their historic assets.”

Culture Minister Fiona Hyslop said: “This grant funding has been protected by the Scottish Government and supports towns and cities across Scotland to regenerate and improve their built environment benefiting Scotland's diverse heritage assets and communities.

“This contributes to their social fabric and community cohesion.

“It also boosts the economy as the funding supports local businesses in carrying out repairs and improvements.”

The announcement comes as HES launches its new corporate plan for 2019 onwards, Heritage For All, and a new historic environment policy, which sets out how areas will be managed for current and future generations.

Alex Paterson, HES chief executive, said: “Heritage for All sets out a new way of looking at our historic environment reflecting the voices of people across Scotland, what that means to them and setting out a collective vision for the historic environment. This is a new plan, developed in a new way, with new perspectives.