Town centre projects on track

A meeting of West Lothian Council Executive was given an update on the progress of projects allocated money from the £1.826 million Town Centre Fund Capital Grant fund for 2019/20.  109 projects have been awarded funding with council officers working with applicants to help them deliver the projects with all currently on schedule.  In February 2019 the Scottish Government announced a new £50million for a Town Centre Fund for 2019/20. The funding is aimed at towns of 1,000 or more. 484 towns and villages across Scotland are eligible of which, 23 are in West Lothian. This resulted in an allocation of £1.826 million to West Lothian.

  The purpose of the grant is to enable local authorities to stimulate and support placed based economic investments which encourage town centres to diversify and flourish, creating footfall through local improvements and partnerships. Investment decisions should be made in the context of national and local commitments to town centres linked to the themes of the Town Centre Action Plan the full plan can be viewed on the Scottish Government website (opens new window).

Leader of West Lothian Council, Lawrence Fitzpatrick said: "The Town Centre Fund provides an opportunity for local projects to utilise funding to the benefit of our local communities.  "A significant amount of money is going to each ward to be shared out among local projects and we look forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on our towns and villages across West Lothian."  A full breakdown of how funding has been allocated across West Lothian can be viewed on the .