A 31-year-old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment following the death of Alan Lawson in Largs. Jordan Honeyman was convicted of murder after being found guilty at the High Court in Glasgow on Thursday, 14 May, 2026 following a trial. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum term of 25 years. Mr Lawson, from Saltcoats, died in hospital on 6 February, 2024, following an assault at a property on Alexander Avenue, Largs, which happened over the weekend of 3 F

An activity group for people aged 50 and over has become so popular that a second one has been set up to meet demand. The waiting list for theKilwinning Discovery Group, which started three years ago,became so busy that another one was establishedin 2025to allow more people to enjoy the programme. TheDiscoveryAward is a fun and free personal challenge for people aged over 50 and is run by the Discovery Award Federation. It has four categories for its challenges: Service In th

Bestselling author Sir Michael Morpurgo visited the Barony Campus on Friday as part of the Boswell Book Festival’s education outreach programme. Sir Michael spoke to P7 pupils from Lochnorris Primary School and S1 pupils from The Robert Burns Academy about his new book, Black Beauty – A Retelling. The Boswell Book Festival, held annually at Dumfries House, is described as the world’s only festival of memoir and biography. Organised by the Boswell Trust, the festival also incl

Park School has come out top in the Big Walk and Wheel – the UK’s largest walking, wheeling, scooting and cycling challenge. The challenge, which took place between 16 and 27 March, encouraged children and young people to travel actively to school and learn more about air quality improvements as a result. In 2025, 4,550kg of nitrogen oxide was avoided as a result of the ten-day challenge and 2,880 tonnes of CO² were avoided. Each day of the challenge, schools recorded how man

A talented young cricketer from Prestwick has seen her design become Scotland’s brand-new international cricket shirt ahead of the upcoming ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. Thirteen-year-old Millie Chaudhary, a junior member of Prestwick Cricket Club, was revealed as the winner of Cricket Scotland’s nationwide “Design the Shirt” competition after beating hundreds of entries from across the country. Her winning design was officially unveiled on Prestwick Beach as Scotland internatio

Police Scotland have charged a 12-year-old boy after reports of bricks being thrown onto the busy A71 carriageway in Kilmarnock. Police Said: “On 28th April 2026, Police Scotland received reports of bricks being thrown onto the A71 carriageway near to the bridge over Campbell Street, Kilmarnock endangering moving traffic.” “A 12 year old male has now been charged in relation to this incident.”

A video posted to Facebook by a local home improvement company shows a massive chunk of concrete narrowly missing his van parked beside the old bingo hall building at Boswell Park, Ayr. Business owner of Darryl white home improvements shared a video on Facebook yesterday evening showing the debris all over the footpath below. The area which is commonly busy with pedestrians due to bus station access and local bars was luckily quiet due to the time of night when the part of t

Young people from six South Ayrshire secondary schools recently showcased their talents in an exciting modern languages football competition. The annual event, held in collaboration with Ayr United Football Club, took place on Tuesday 28 April and was organised by the South Ayrshire 1+2 languages and South Ayrshire Reads teams. S3 pupils from Queen Margaret Academy, Belmont Academy, Prestwick Academy, Marr College, Kyle Academy and Carrick Academy presented a video of footb

Detectives are appealing for information following a wilful fire in Saltcoats. Around 11.20am on Saturday, 2 May, 2026, we received a report of a fire at a property on Canal Street. Emergency services attended, the fire was extinguished and there were no reports of injuries. Following enquiries, the incident is now being treated as attempted murder. Detective Constable Neil McGregor said: “This reckless, deliberate act of setting fire to the door of the property could have ha

Ayrshire Cancer Support Launches New 100km Community Challenge Ayrshire Cancer Support has launched a brand-new fundraising challenge for 2026, encouraging people across Ayrshire to get active throughout May while supporting local people affected by cancer. The Ayrshire 100 invites individuals, families, friends, workplaces and community groups to complete 100 kilometres over the course of the month. Participants can take part in any way that suits them, including walking, ru

A family-run island business has been named Business of the Year after helping to champion local creatives on Arran. The Isle of Arran Candle Company, founded by Daniel and Vik Steel, received the honour at the North Ayrshire Community Champion Awards in recognition of its business growth and wider contribution to the island community. The company was praised for the launch of the Arran Design Collective, an initiative created in 2025 to support local makers and give them a s

A colourful new art exhibition has opened in Kilwinning, showcasing the creative journey of 24 local people who have been developing their skills through community art groups. The exhibition, organised by the Kilwinning Locality team, is located in the community room behind Kilwinning Library’s reception area and celebrates work created by members of the Tuesday art group at Cranberry Moss and the Friday group at Kilwinning Library. Both groups run from 10am until 12pm and ar

A Primary 7 pupil from Dalmilling Primary School has enjoyed a night to remember after being crowned the overall individual winner at a brand-new schools cluster darts competition. Ramsay Canniffe took part in the first-ever competition following a six-week block of darts coaching delivered to pupils by Coach Ryan from Newton Primary School. The initiative proved to be a huge success for Dalmilling Primary, with the school being named overall winners. Ramsay also claimed the

An Ayrshire man has been banned from owning animals after keeping his pet dog and tortoise in squalor Ronan Jackson was sentenced at Ayr Sheriff Court on Tuesday 21 April to a Community Payback Order and has been placed under supervision for one year. He was also handed a disqualification order for owning and keeping animals for five years, after failing to provide his Border Collie Meg and pet tortoise Pebble with a safe and sanitary living environment, exposing his dog t

Young people across Ayrshire are increasingly rethinking how they travel, as rising fuel costs continue to impact day-to-day life. New research from Stagecoach shows that 55% of young people in Scotland have already changed how they commute due to higher petrol prices, with many turning to public transport as a more affordable and practical option. The under-22s free bus travel scheme is playing a key role in supporting this shift, helping young people stay connected to work,

Dobbies Garden Centres is encouraging the nation to embrace their creative side this May with a brand-new cottage garden-inspired Hanging Basket Workshop, taking place at its Ayr store on Saturday 9 and 16 May. Happening ahead of Dementia Action Week (May 18-24), money from the sale of every ticket will go to Dobbies’ National Charity Partner, Alzheimer’s Research UK, the UK’s leading dementia research charity. Guaranteed to get attendees feeling inspired this spring, the

Police are appealing for information after the front door of a property was deliberately set alight in the Keir Hardie Hill area of Cumnock. The incident happened around 5am on Sunday, 19 April. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service attended and no one was injured. Detective Constable Fraser Murray said: “The fire is being treated as wilful and enquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances. “We are asking anyone who saw anything suspicious at the time to get in tou

More than 300 young people from across South Ayrshire have been recognised for completing their Duke of Edinburgh’s Award at a special ceremony in Ayr Town Hall. The event, organised by South Ayrshire Council’s Thriving Communities Health and Wellbeing team, celebrated the achievements of young people who had completed their Bronze, Silver and Gold awards. Parents, carers, school staff and members of the wider community were among those in attendance as participants were hono

A community roofing project at Auchincruive has been praised for delivering lasting benefits to both residents and young people, while transforming a derelict building into something positive once again. The initiative, led by Andy Kerr, Operations Director at KRB Group (Ayr) Ltd, brought together professionals, students and residents in a hands-on effort to rebuild a collapsed and dilapidated roof at River Gardens, Auchencruive. The building is linked to a local alcohol and

The next stage of internal construction works has commenced at the Citadel Leisure Centre as part of the significant upgrades to the facility. To support this transformation, there will be temporary changes to the way customers access gym facilities. For a period of approximately four weeks beginning Monday 20 April, members should access the gym via the rear of the building. Non-members who wish to attend the gym should visit the main reception as normal to pay for their ses