STEERING GROUP STATEMENT

A Steering Group of volunteers - Romano Petrucci, Douglas McMillan, Alex Haswell, Harry Harbottle - brought long experience of government agencies, community activism and enterprise to support the Place Project Manager, along with funding partners from South of Scotland Enterprise and Dumfries & Galloway Council. These are the words of the Steering Group:

“This Place Plan gathers all the strands of locals’ threads of thought and weaves a picture of a bright future. We are very grateful that over the last 6 months the whole town has come together to support this process.

“We, the Steering Group volunteers, need the support of a charismatic, agile catalyst to keep the pot boiling, keep the lines of communication open, and help us to vault barriers - like Stena’s proposed lorry parks - while this Plan progresses through formal funding channels. There is no question that we should look to South of Scotland Enterprise, Dumfries & Galloway Council and Scottish Government for the resources needed NOW to keep up the momentum built over 6 months of Place Planning.

“Borderlands invited the town to bid for a share of its £15 million pot. We’ve secured Levelling Up Funds for two flagship change projects. A dedicated resource is essential not to lose pace on our road to social, economic and physical regeneration of Stranraer. This is not a new ask. It has been on the table for some considerable time.

“Finally, many have been championing change for decades - too many to mention - but let’s acknowledge Councillors Willie Scobie and the late Grahame Forster, authors of Stranraer Tourism, Leisure & Culture paper and Steve Sloane’s Phoenix paper on behalf of the Smart Group, paving the way for this Place Plan. We were delighted that Stranraer born-and-bred Barbara Chalmers led the mission to engage and craft the Plan. A truly community-led Plan.”