Galston Town Centre is currently undergoing many positive changes, with the advent of the Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme Funding and the work being carried out by the Galston Community Regeneration Trust (GCRT) to restore many of its historic buildings using sympathetic materials and methods and make them fit for modern use. East Ayrshire Council has teams working to create a vibrant, safe and economically viable centre for businesses to thrive and people to prosper.
Monitoring the effectiveness of this work is an important part of Scottish Planning Policy, which states that town centre health checks should be prepared by Local Authorities with the involvement of community planning partners, businesses and community groups. It is recommended that these are carried out every two years.
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Announcing the first health check, Councillor Elena Whitham, Cabinet Member for Economy, East Ayrshire Council, said: "People have always been at the forefront of our planning. With all the changes we've made, and have still to make, we need to consult with, listen to, and take heed of the opinions of those who use our town centres to live, work and shop.
"So that's why we're now running Town Centre Health Checks, part of which takes the form of a survey, which we'll be repeating every two years so we can monitor and hone our performance.
"We've already run one in Kilmarnock, which gave us a great baseline of information for future use. So now we're asking everyone who uses Galston town centre to take a few minutes to fill it in, either on paper, or online, so that we can gauge how well the town is doing in terms of its identity, accessibility, environment, attractiveness and sense of comfort and wellbeing."
The survey can be completed online or by collecting a form from the Galston Community Regeneration Trust Office. The deadline for the survey is 21 December 2016.
(MH/CD)
