East Ayrshire Council has been given a Scottish Government funding boost to buck the depopulation trend in the southern part of the authority.
Way back in 1981, the number of people living in what was then the Cumnock and Doon Valley District Council area stood at 45,260.
Detailed figures from the UK-wide census, carried out every 10 years, show that across the 13 communities in Cumnock and the Doon Valley, the total population has fallen by more than one in 10 – 11.69 per cent, to be exact – since 1991.
READ MORE: Cumnock population figures show fall of 20,000 since 1960s
And shock figures reported to East Ayrshire Council earlier this year predict that that figure will drop by a further 7 per cent by 2028.
As part of this funding boost, a launch event was held at Cumnock Town Hall on July 31, attended by people from across the communities keen to share their ideas about how to improve life in the area.
East Ayrshire Council (EAC) will receive funding of £60,000 from the government to devise a plan to halt the decline and get the area's population growing.
And the area's residents, and its young people in particular, will be given a big say on how the money is spent.
Cumnock and New Cumnock councillor Jim McMahon , the local authority's depute leader, was present at the event
He has seen, first-hand how the area has changed over the years, and says he's hopeful that this event can be the first step to solving the solution.
Cllr McMahon said: “The council cannot provide the solutions to these issue on our own, so we need these inputs from different stakeholders who have a range of different ideas.
“This funding is fantastic and it’s great to recognise that. However, it’s not a lot of money, and it won’t address the immediate problems.
“Our communities and young people will have the opportunity to decide what this money can go towards.
“I could accept, on paper, that’s there’s going to be a seven per cent decrease in population. But what I’m not prepared to accept is the reality that it’s going to happen."
When Cllr McMahon left Logan Primary to go to secondary school, there were 32 pupils. When his granddaughter recently left the school, there were 12.
So he admits there is also a natural decrease in birthing rates, but he gave an assurance that EAC will deliver support where possible.
He added: “I need to encourage young people to stay here. But to do that there’s got to be job opportunities, there’s got to be leisure opportunities, there’s got to be housing opportunities.
“There’s a recognition here, now, that we need to stop this.
“As demographics change, we need the right type of housing for those demographics."
Morgan McPherson, who was recently elected as a Member of the Scottish Youth Parliament (MSYP) for East Ayrshire thinks this funding could be the beginning of vital work to encourage young people to stay in the area.
Morgan said: “It almost feels like young people don’t necessarily want to move away from the area, but the lack of opportunities is perhaps making them have to move.
“I feel like I’ve seen a change in the mindset of youngsters wanting and needing to move away.
“Me and my friends used to talk about how we’d all talk about being here forever and getting houses next to each other, but things change as you get older and opportunities differ.
“If youngsters had the leisure facilities here and opportunities here, then they wouldn’t have to go elsewhere.”
East Ayrshire is one of six local authorities to receive funding aimed at turning around population decline, and Kaukab Stewart, the Scottish Government's equalities minister, who also attended the event, says now is the perfect time for this support to be offered.
Speaking at the event in Cumnock, she said: “Why not now? It’s as good a time as any.
“The key point is that there is no quick fix. So, while we’re very optimistic and we’re putting that partnership-first approach across, it has to be local, bespoke, solutions because the demographics are different and the needs are different.
“It’s only right, that as a government, that we are supporting that partnership and handing money over.
“This forum is excellent. Everyone was coming up with innovative ways of working.
“We’re aiming to have stable populations so that we can retain people and we can stay locally and we want to attract people come into the area.”
It’s understood a working group will be set up in the future before further discussions are held which will lead to a decision on when and what the money will be spent on.
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