Build Scotland Construction Directory
Time and date
CONSTRUCTION DIRECTORY
Share this page
Construction News
22/02/2017

West Lothian Council To Invest £123m In Housing

Construction News Image
West Lothian Council has unveiled plans for a major housing investment across the region.

At a meeting earlier this week, Councillors agreed over £123 million will be spent on delivering a housing service and improving council homes next year.

This includes a £77m investment in the local authority's housing capital programme, which is delivering 1,000 new homes across all nine council wards.

Planned improvements in existing housing will total over £6.7m, while investment in major refurbishment and repairs will total over £5.3m, including a £1.2m investment at Mayfield in Armadale.

Major works will also take place at Bathville Flats, Armadale and at Harrison House, which forms part of the Loch Scheme in Whitburn.

Planned programmes include an energy efficiency measures and replacing central heating systems to help reduce fuel poverty. Further works will be carried out in addition to planned maintenance programmes, as well as kitchen and bathroom replacements and window refurbishments.

A £100,000 fund has also been set aside to trial a District Heating project in Westfield for a Heat Exchange Pump system.

In addition, housing tenants will see a freeze in both their rent and garage rents for 2017/18, remaining at 2016/17 levels. Service and support charges for Sheltered Housing properties and rent and support charges for Homeless properties have also been frozen.

-- Advertisement --
NorthernAsbestosServicesLtd

Cllr George Paul said: "The freeze on council rents will help many of our tenants who are experiencing tough times in terms of their finances, with prices rising and below inflation increases in their pay packets.

"We are also investing an unprecedented amount to build 1,000 new council homes in West Lothian. The £77 million of spending on new homes for rent planned for 2017/18 is the largest ever investment in our housing stock in a single year.

"This continuing investment allows us to provide excellent value for money and meet the needs of existing and future tenants. The council is committed to providing new, affordable, high quality council homes in West Lothian and we are already starting to see the positive impact of our new build programme on communities across West Lothian."

Also at the meeting, the council unanimously approved to invest £50m in local services this year through its capital programme.

Key highlights include:

• £2.5m to be spent on improving the school estate, with a further £6m on general school projects including work on the new £32m West Calder High School and extensions to Torphichen Primary, St Mary's Primary, Bathgate, new nursery accommodation at Mid Calder Primary, and £600,000 to extend Boghall Primary nursery.

• £4.1m to improve West Lothian's roads

• Over £3m to be spent on flood prevention and drainage works, as well as £1.2m to be invested in the Broxburn Flood Prevention Scheme.

• Over £550,000 is being invested in cycling, walking and safer streets projects with £270,000 being spent on road casualty reduction schemes.

• £2.3m to be spent on improvements to bridges and £1.5m invested in improvements to West Lothian's town centres and villages.

• Over £3m to improve open spaces, sports facilities and children's play areas including Drumshoreland Park, Craigspark and Marrfield Park.

• £6.3m investment to upgrade the council's Information Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure, including £1.3milllion in school ICT infrastructure, improving connectivity within schools and upgrading ICT hardware.

• Over £12m to be invested in community buildings and council depots, including ongoing delivery and development of Partnership Centres throughout the area (Linlithgow, East Calder, Whitburn, Armadale and Blackburn) and completion of a new service centre at Whitehill, Bathgate.

Council Leader John McGinty said: "The council has invested over £207 million in Capital investment over the past four years and this additional £50 million for 2017/18 will ensure that our ambitious and exciting capital investment programme will result in more improvements to important local services."

(LM/MH)

Latest Construction News

22/11/2024

SP Energy Networks has announced a major investment in Britain's electricity grid, selecting 19 preferred partners to deliver a £5.4bn supply chain programme. This significant initiative aims to meet increasing energy demand and facilitate future growth. The selected companies, many of which are ...
22/11/2024

Edinburgh City Council has launched a 12-week public consultation on a new strategy to revitalise Princes Street and the wider Waverley Valley. The vision aims to create a more vibrant and welcoming city centre, attracting investment, supporting businesses, and enhancing the visitor ...
22/11/2024

Ener-G Services Limited, a leading UK electrical engineering company specialising in renewables, marine, and offshore sectors, has expanded its operations in Westhill, Aberdeenshire. The company has leased Unit 6E at Kingshill Commercial Park, a 2,500 sq ft space, on a 5-year lease. This new ...
22/11/2024

A consortium of leading scientists, industry experts, and academic institutions has joined forces to accelerate Scotland's offshore wind sector. The £2.5 million project, led by the University of Edinburgh in collaboration with the University of Dundee and the Forth and Tay Offshore cluster (FTO), ...
22/11/2024

The Port of Aberdeen and Turner & Townsend were highly commended in the 'Engineering, Construction & Infrastructure Project of the Year' category at the APM Project Management Awards 2024. The award recognises excellence in project management and the positive impact on end-users. The £420 million ...
22/11/2024

South Lanarkshire Council's £10 million fire safety improvement programme has reached a significant milestone, with CCG (Scotland) completing installations in over 1,700 high-rise residences across East Kilbride and Cambuslang. The Glasgow-based construction firm has been working closely with the ...
22/11/2024

SSEN Transmission, a key player in the UK's energy transition, is set to further expand its workforce and move into a new, sustainable office space in Glasgow. The company's commitment to net zero and the increasing demand for green energy workers has led to significant growth, with the number of ...
22/11/2024

Scottish Water is investing in the upgrade of its Loch Eck clean water plant in Dunoon. The project involves replacing outdated dry well pumps with new, more reliable pumps capable of operating in both wet and dry conditions. WGM Engineering, an RSK Group company, has been tasked with carrying out ...
22/11/2024

Scottish Land & Estates has expressed serious concerns over the Scottish Government's Land Reform Bill, particularly the provisions that would allow ministers to force landowners to sell large estates in lots. Sarah-Jane Laing, the organisation's chief executive, stated that while the land-based ...
22/11/2024

Clark Contracts employees have once again shown their commitment to community engagement by volunteering at Silverburn Park in Leven. On Thursday, 21st November, 16 members of the team spent their day planting over 400 trees and carrying out other landscaping tasks. This latest volunteering effort ...
Morris & Spottiswood LtdRBT Underfloor LimitedToner Damp Proofing SuppliesNo HydroSEEIT3DCF Concrete PumpingMaccaferri LtdDiscount Kitchens and Bathrooms LtdShopfronts ScotlandJSJ Foam Insulation Ltd
Terms and Conditions
2024/11/23 09:21:13