The Falkirk Arts Centre

This new facility, located within Falkirk town centre is supported by £3 million of funding from both UK and Scottish Governments (£6m total).  

The Arts Centre is a transformational project, creating a vibrant, new venue for culture and community activity for Falkirk and the surrounding area. It will be an anchor building which will provide a stimulus for the regeneration of Falkirk town centre, boosting footfall, dwell time and inspiring investor confidence to help repurpose the town as a vibrant cultural and residential centre.  

Adopting the Scottish Government’s Infrastructure Investment Plan for Scotland, the Arts Centre will serve multiple functions: at its heart will be a 550 seat auditorium together with shared studio spaces, a café/bar and meeting space. As well as supporting theatre, live music and civic functions, it will also house a number of council services, including Falkirk Central Library and Advice and Support Hub and office space.   

For more information visit The new Falkirk Town Hall

Scotland’s Centre of Excellence for Canals and Traditional Skills

Led by Scottish Canals and in partnership with Historic Environment Scotland is supported by £4 million of Scottish Government Growth Deal investment.  

This place-based regeneration project will see the vacant and underutilised site of the former AG Barr Factory at Loch 16 in Camelon, Falkirk transformed into a new low-carbon facility.  

The project will provide a new operational hub with integrated and shared collaborative working spaces and facilities to expedite enhanced initiatives for local volunteers, community partners and co-operatives. The flexible educational space will be further enhanced by providing access to the surrounding area via a community-led designed landscaped public realm space and gateway to the Forth and Clyde Canal.  

This project will radically transform a neglected area of the canal network into a thriving and commercially viable waterside centre focused on community participation and the development of relevant skills and increased local employment opportunities for local people. 

For more information visit Scottish Canals | Lock 16

Scotland’s Art Park

This partnership project between Scottish Canals and Falkirk Council, will be supported with £3 million of Scottish Government Growth Deal investment to deliver a linear Art Park. The project will bring a community led suite of public art interventions by way of a trail along the pathways of the Forth and Clyde Canal. The trail will connect key sites across Falkirk including the historic town centre, world renowned Kelpies, The Falkirk Wheel, and the new Rosebank Distillery to bring renewed vitality and life to the under-utilised canal corridor.  

An Art Park masterplan will be advanced to provide a vision for the area that focuses on leisure, culture, active travel and enhancing the natural assets of the area to bring long-lasting environmental, health and economic benefits. This focus may lead to reduced congestion, support for new and existing business, increased visitor numbers and enhanced community well-being through access and connections to quality and sustainable outdoor spaces and local attractions. This will enhance the appeal of the area to visitors, attract enterprise and investment to the area. This focus on recreational and cultural assets will help to drive economic and inclusive growth for the benefit of local communities.

Falkirk Sustainable Transport Network

£21 million in Scottish Government Growth Deal Investment will support two interrelated projects to transform how people travel in and around Falkirk by providing new public and active travel infrastructure.

The area’s economic potential is constrained by access to public transport, a reliance on private car use, limited capacity, connections to key destinations and tourism assets including the new Arts Centre, education, shopping, entertainment and leisure. 

Together these projects will support local demand for improved active travel options, and both provide additional social and environmental benefits such as reduction in noise and air pollution and an increase in wellbeing.

Rail Station and Interchange Hub - On the Falkirk Grahamston site, £12 million of investment will provide an improved rail station and new interchange, providing a focal point for those arriving at and departing from the town centre by sustainable modes. The Rail Station Interchange Hub will be supported by a network of sustainable green routes which will prioritise pedestrian and cycle movements to improve connectivity between homes and places of work and visitor attractions across and out of the area.

Green Cycle and Pedestrian Network - Investment of £9 million will be allocated to the provision of green routes by way of new cycle and pedestrian pathways, covering several miles, reinforcing the connections between the two communities of Grangemouth and Falkirk, enabling accessible, low/zero carbon movement between their centres, enhanced arrival points and linking major areas of employment, visitor activity and neighbouring communities.

Forth Valley College Skills Transition Centre (STC)

Led by Forth Valley College, the project transcends the Growth Deal to bring together a broad spectrum of partners to create a focus for skills delivery behind the Just Transition to Net Zero. The Skills Transition Centre will utilise £4 million of Scottish Government Growth Deal funding for state-of-the-art equipment necessary to respond to the needs of emerging sectors and support transitioning industries including down-stream petroleum, chemicals and polymers based in the Grangemouth clusters.

The project invests in the preparation of future skills development and training, investment in specialised resources including virtual reality, simulation, drones, digital classrooms, and immersive spaces. Over the next 10 years this will be accompanied by an associated skills development programme.

For more information visit Forth Valley College Skills Transition Centre (STC)

Strategic Sites

To address the critical shortage of development-ready strategic investment sites for business and innovation, £10 million of UK Government Growth Deal funding will be invested to improve and prepare currently unused land at key locations. This initiative aims to attract anticipated investment in innovation-driven activities and to support the broader need for growth in Grangemouth’s core industrial, chemical, and advanced manufacturing sectors, integrating cutting-edge technology and infrastructure. This work will involve sustainable drainage, base preparation for future plant and machinery with the introduction of infrastructure such as utilities and internal roads.

Grangemouth Sustainable Manufacturing Campus (GSMC)

Utilising £20 million of Falkirk and Grangemouth Growth Deal funding, provided by UK Government (£18m) and Scottish Government (£2m) the GSMC will create a centre for research and development (R&D) in Grangemouth. This will enable technologies, currently at the initial stages of development, to be assessed at a level that can provide assurance to potential investors of viability and performance, accelerating commercialisation and implementation of modern technologies.

Transportation, Renewables and Career Exploration Hub (TRACE)

A new career exploration and technology showcasing facility in Grangemouth will offer advanced simulation, virtual reality and augmented reality experiences to young people, supporting them to access local skilled employment opportunities. In addition, it will provide upskilling opportunities to those currently employed in transitioning industries.

This project is supported by £10 million of capital funding provided by Scottish Government (£1m) and UK Government (£9m) and will be dedicated to propelling Falkirk towards a greener future and supporting the nation’s ambitions for Net Zero. The TRACE Hub is set to be a nexus where industry meets education and will strengthen and grow the local skills base and be a key player in the delivery of Scotland’s green growth ambitions.

Greener Grangemouth Programme

Funded by Scottish Government with a total allocation of £12 million (£10 million capital and £2 million revenue) the Greener Grangemouth Programme is a flagship component of the Falkirk and Grangemouth Growth Deal. The programme will deliver an ambitious, place-based response to the challenges and opportunities presented by the transition to a net zero economy within one of Scotland’s most strategically significant industrial towns.

Grangemouth plays a central role in Scotland’s economy and energy system, yet faces acute environmental, social, and economic challenges.  As Scotland’s largest industrial cluster, the area is both critical to the national transition to net zero and highly exposed to its impacts. Decarbonisation, changing industrial demands, and the need for inclusive regeneration create a pressing requirement for coordinated investment in both people and place.

The Greener Grangemouth Programme seeks to demonstrate how communities at the heart of industrial transition can become healthier, more resilient, and more prosperous through local action.  The programme will deliver a balanced mix of physical regeneration, energy transition and community capacity-building interventions.