FreshAyr, the group who want to regenerate Ayr, into a creative marketplace to serve Ayrshire, are urging local groups to join together to develop the town. 

The organisation had been running in Queens Court but circumstances have forced them to move elsewhere and look for a new location for their enterprise.

They also hope to encourage more young people to get involved with the project so they can have their say in how Ayr town centre can be regenerated and give those who have left the town, a reason to return.

Robert Singer, of FreshAyr, said: “I have a vision of what I want for Ayr but we need to get as many young people involved as possible as this project is for them.

“I want to build a group of all ages who are interested in regenerating the town. We want to move forward and have set up a SCIO. We may have moved out of Queens Court but have a plan to develop elsewhere.

“We are working with many groups in Ayr including Ayr Renaissance, VASA and SeAscape so we can move forward. It is important to work together to benefit the town and the people. 

“Everyone needs to have the opportunity to have their say. It is not about what we want, but what they want. We need to organise a drop in session, particularly for young people, and try and get them involved.”

A ‘cultural conversation’ was held at The Ark last month to establish how Ayr might benefit from cultural development.

There was a consultation to gather opinion and ideas to forward to the Scottish Government as part of the development of Scotland’s next Creative Strategy Document.

Robert added: “I would very much like to get a Creative Needs Conversation activated to truly get a sense of what the people of Ayrshire want from Arts, Culture and Heritage and what resources are needed to bring back our Cultural Capital as an asset to making Ayr, Ayrshire and Scotland an International destination.”

It is hoped a discussion, in the form of a drop in session for young people, can be held in the new year to see how Ayr can be developed.