North Ayrshire Council’s Repurposing Property Grant Fund (RPGF) has already provided over £130,000 of funding to help landowners carry out feasibility studies.

This has included community projects in Beith, Largs and Lamlash alongside privately owned sites in Saltcoats, Kilbirnie and West Kilbride.

Now the fund is providing £50,000 to support landowners looking to develop detailed design proposals for their properties.

Stage two funding can contribute up to 50% of grant funding towards the cost of consultant fees for preparing detailed designs, statutory consents, cost plans and exploring funding packages.

This fund is a key strand of the ambitious Community Wealth Building Strategy and Regeneration Delivery Plan – where the council work more closely than ever with community groups to make the most of local assets – and long-term plans to regenerate the area.

Councillor Tony Gurney, cabinet member for economy and climate change, said: “The first phase of the fund proved invaluable and really popular for landowners across North Ayrshire.

“We are now delighted the second phase of the fund is open to allow them to develop their proposals further and put together detailed designs and explore other funding avenues. Derelict land is a blight on our communities and we hope landowners will continue to take advantage of the opportunities that this fund provides.”

Both Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the RPGF are open for applications with further details found here.