8. Conclusion and thanks

This has been an energetic, collaborative process. The community has united around One Vision, One Plan… a shared ambition and collective understanding of opportunity that has emerged through this Place Planning approach.

Acknowledging the decades of neglect, broken promises and under-investment in Stranraer, we look to Government and its agencies - national, region, local - to get behind our ask. We are in desperate need of the capital funds promised a decade ago (and now worth a fraction of their value then) to transform the town and its hollowed out infrastructure.

We need revenue funding to develop and deliver our plans. We flag this as the most significant issue facing us beyond the lack of capital investment. Council community development posts have disappeared over the years. The current short-term, piecemeal project funding environment pits neighbouring organisations in our small community against each other. It’s not conducive to partnership working. It’s exhausting and drains the limited resources in the town. It’s not sustainable for a town like Stranraer. We need a longer term, more robust base for growth.

There’s a conflict in the Borderlands process. On one hand, the Plan is community-led. On the other, Borderlands retains control of the purse strings and determines how and with whom any money is spent by controlling procurement. This level of patronage seems at odds with building ownership, skills, experience, responsibility and accountability within the community.

Stranraer is a town facing multiple deprivation and has been for some time. It’s unrealistic to expect to build an arts centre or community centre and hand it over to the community to develop and run as a cost-neutral operation. It will take years to stabilise and work into profit. These and other points are covered in Appendix: Insights.

The real deal

“This Place Plan is the real deal. This is our chance to change the story of Stranraer, and change it together. We have understood the importance of speaking to everyone, listening to everyone. It’s not about what others think Stranraer could have or should have, it’s what locals want and need. We are grateful and delighted to have this invitation to unite as a community behind one vision, one plan. It is our absolute intention to deliver for local people.”

Romano Petrucci, Chair, Stranraer Development Trust & Steering Group member