First Minister meets with Blairgowrie and Rattray Development Trust

Pictured from left are Steve Johnson, Peter Thomson and Lesley McDonald from Blairgowrie and Rattray Development Trust with First Minister of Scotland John Swinney MSP

First Minister of Scotland and local MSP John Swinney met with representatives from Blairgowrie and Rattray Development Trust (BRDT) recently to discuss how the Trust can work with the Scottish Government to help deliver some of its key strategic objectives.

The meeting followed initial discussions that took place at Rattray Community Garden, one of BRDT’s core projects, in August last year where staff and volunteers were able to highlight the work the Trust is undertaking in Perthshire’s largest town to the First Minister.

As well as updating the First Minister on the work that BRDT is doing in Blairgowrie and Rattray, the team stressed to him the importance of development trusts in supporting the work of the Scottish Government.

Trustee and BRDT treasurer Peter Thomson said: “We were pleased to be able to meet with Mr Swinney and would like to thank him for his time.

“We were able to update him on progress at BRDT, particularly around the implementation of aspirations highlighted in the Blairgowrie and Rattray Local Place Plan through our Town Projects initiative, and how we are working with Perth and Kinross Council’s Economic Development and Planning team on that.

“Over a number of years now, BRDT has grown into a highly respected community-led organisation that delivers a huge amount of support to residents of the largest town in Perth and Kinross, and the Scottish Government’s Democracy Matters initiative recognises the importance of working in local areas where community infrastructure is already developed.

“We therefore believe that BRDT is well-placed to work with the Scottish Government on a pilot project to help form a flexible framework that would support other communities to deliver its whole town approach as part of Scotland's Public Reform Strategy and the Democracy Matters initiative, which are looking at reshaping how public money is spent, services are run, and local communities make decisions.

“Whilst bringing communities into the decision-making process about the services that affect them is a positive step, it is also vitally important that communities have the resources to enable them to make informed decisions and deliver services where appropriate.

“For that reason, securing funding is crucial to ensuring that BRDT is in a position to be able to continue working in collaboration with others to build a strong community-led place and to deliver essential projects that support Scottish Government policies.”

Mr Swinney said: “The work that BRDT does in the local area is of huge importance and the team is to be commended on their efforts.

“While other towns and communities may not have the same resources or impetus to implement the model we see working to such good effect in Blairgowrie and Rattray, that model is certainly a step in the right direction in terms of forming a flexible framework that can be adapted to suit other localities.

“I am keen to see how we can take this further and hope to meet with BRDT, Perth and Kinross Council again to discuss how best we can progress this, both in terms of providing resources and looking at the next steps.”

For further information on BRDT and its work, see www.brdt.org.uk