Hundreds Barr residents have received a £50 windfall - with money from wind farm community funds shared with residents using the South Ayrshire Gift Card.

Tom Walker is the chair of Barr Community Council and said the gift cards will support the viability of a vital community resource.

He said: “Barr is a small, rural village of 133 households and 240 people out in the countryside and surrounded by wind farms.

“We saw the South Ayrshire Gift Card had been introduced by South Ayrshire Council and thought that instead of using all of the fund for a project, we could buy the gift card.

“To see if our residents would like the idea, we got in touch with them and asked what they thought. The response was overwhelmingly positive, every respondent said they would like to receive a South Ayrshire Gift Card through the fund, so Barr Community Council purchased a £50 South Ayrshire Gift Card for every household.

“As a community council, we have a duty to take action to support the area. Some of the gift cards will be spent in our local Barr Community Shop and Café, which provides a vital service to our community. This will keep money in the hyper local area and support the viability of this community resource, which we rely on. And some of the gift cards will be spent in the wider South Ayrshire area, benefiting the region’s economy.”

“The good thing about the South Ayrshire Gift Card is that it puts the money directly into residents’ pockets and they can decide what to do with it. It’s a way that we can help everyone and give a little boost in a tangible way. And at the moment, with costs rising, I’m sure that is something that will be appreciated.

The South Ayrshire Gift Card was introduced by South Ayrshire Council in November 2021 to drive economic recovery in the region. Backed by the Scottish Government, the initiative is being delivered by Scotland’s Town Partnership (STP) and Perth based fintech Miconex.