Grangemouth residents quiz council chiefs on investment and refinery closure

A packed meeting of Grangemouth residents took their chance to ask tough questions of Falkirk council chiefs on Thursday evening.

More than 100 people attended the meeting in Grangemouth High School which Grangemouth Community Council had called.

The topics raised were wide-ranging, but there was a clear focus on the need for better housing in the town and the hope that some of the investments coming Grangemouth’s way would benefit the town as a whole.

Facing the audience were Falkirk Council’s chief executive Kenneth Lawrie, head of housing Kenny Gillespie and head of investments, assets and climate change Falkirk, Paul Kettrick.

Also in attendance were the leader of Falkirk Council, councillor Cecil Meiklejohn, and her deputy, Councillor Paul Garner.

Community councillor Walter Inglis was in the chair and tried to fit in as many questions as the two-hour time slot permitted.

Grangemouth Community Council public meeting LDRS

Several speakers from the floor agreed that on the need to build better housing, including private housing, in Grangemouth.

Community councillor Adam Gillies was applauded when he said: “We need private housing in the town so that the people who get the high-skilled, well-paying jobs actually stay in the town and benefit our town.

“I believe that if you clear a site and have some of it council housing or affordable housing and some private, it will generate money and kick off a just transition for our community.”

There was also a demand for fewer HMOs (Houses of Multiple Occupancy), which have transient residents who don’t put down roots in the community.

Some were frustrated that the council’s Community Action Plan, created after extensive consultation with residents and other partners, had not brought about the change they had hoped for.

Those attending also wanted to find out what difference the residents will actually see, amid the huge investment that has been promised to the area over the next ten years.

When questioned about the Falkirk and Grangemouth Growth Deal – which will get £90 million investment from Scottish and UK governments – there was applause when an audience member asked why the port town was only getting 60 per cent of this?

“We’re the ones who live with the industry, the smell, the noise, the pollution – so why are we not getting all of the benefits?”, she said.

There was particular criticism that Falkirk’s railway station will be upgraded as part of the Growth Deal, with many believing that a railway station in Grangemouth would be key to regenerating the town.

Chief executive Kenneth Lawrie told the meeting that the Growth Deal had been agreed after “years of negotiation and work” with both UK and Scottish Governments and ultimately they decided which projects would be supported.

He said that there are some positive ideas for the future of Grangemouth but he also admitted that the £90 million “isn’t going to cut it”, in making real change.

He told residents the council would continue to lobby the Scottish and UK Governments for more investment and changes in regulation.

Mr Lawrie added that he shared the residents’ concern about the need to bridge the gap between the closure of the traditional industries and the opening of the new ones.

While the focus now is on the refinery’s closure, the meeting participants felt that the town’s decline started many years ago and that more action should have been taken long ago.

While the new projects promised to bring jobs and investment to the town, residents were keen to know how this would help local young people, in particular.

Head of investments, Paul Kettrick, said he was confident that leading, international firms are looking to come to Grangemouth, although he admitted that even projects that are already committed to start will take time to develop.

He acknowledged the many problems that beset the town: a town centre in decline, high levels of inequality and housing issues and accepted that there has been “a disconnect” between the industry and the community.

But he said the community would see benefits through the Greener Grangemouth part of the Growth Deal, which has £12 million to invest in projects that will improve wellbeing of local people.

Other skills programmes based in Grangemouth, he promised, “will provide more opportunities for the local community to get these jobs.”

Mr Kettrick also told the meeting that a new masterplan for the town centre is being drafted which builds on the work that was done for the Community Action Plan and ties it in with the newer projects.

And he added that industries that use new, greener energy could mean an end to the ‘blast zone’ that has restricted building, including homes, over many years.

While the council officials were listened to respectfully there was some challenge from the floor that what they were being offered was “just words”.

The council bosses promised to investigate personally some of the individual issues raised by residents and Mr Lawrie offered to organise a similar meeting concentrating on issues that residents are facing accessing health services.

“The message about the importance of Grangemouth has come across really clearly tonight and I’ve really appreciated hearing it,” he said.

“I think we need to continue to say to the UK and Scottish governments that this area is essential to the future of Scotland’s economy and we need to get the town right as well.”