The first ever Provost’s Enterprise and Innovation Challenge was held at Ayr Town Hall, showcasing the very best of South Ayrshire’s entrepreneurial spirit! Young people from across South Ayrshire secondary schools participated in the challenge set by Provost Iain Campbell – to come up with an innovative new product or service and present a pitch in front of a panel of judges. The competition was tough, with all teams creating thoroughly researched proposals consisting of

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

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

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

From Sunday 3rd May, Stagecoach bus fares will increase in price across Scotland.  Image - Stagecoach Stagecoach has said: “These decisions are never taken lightly. The changes reflect the rising costs of running our services and ensure we can continue to invest in what matters most – delivering reliable, sustainable bus services for our customers and communities. As a result, prices of Single, DayReturn, DayRider, Flexi 5 & 10, 7 day and 4 week MegaRider, and MegaRider

The team and residents at a not-for-profit Sanctuary Care home in Ayr are celebrating the home’s glowing Care Inspectorate (CI) report.   Glenfairn House Care Home in Racecourse Road has received stand-out ‘Very Good’ ratings in its recent report following an unannounced inspection, for how well the team supports residents’ wellbeing and the quality of the home environment of the home, which has recently undergone an impressive internal and external refurbishment. Resi

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

Celebrate the colours of spring at Dobbies’ Spring Shopping Evening, a free-to-attend evening event dedicated to outdoor living and seasonal inspiration, taking place on Thursday 2 April at the Ayr store. Bring friends and family together to join the local community to mark the start of the season, with entertainment from local groups, hands-on workshops, delicious samples from Dobbies’ new foodhall, and in-store garden inspiration. Start the evening with a complimentary dr

At a Council meeting on Thursday 26 March, Councillors agreed to progress three major projects using funding from the Prestwick Capital Regeneration budget. Following the commitment made in 2024 of £2million for regeneration investment within Prestwick, South Ayrshire Council engaged with Prestwick Civic Pride, stakeholders, and the public to identify key project strands for allocation of funding. As a result of this consultation, £1million has been budgeted to fund impro

Gas network company SGN is investing £2m to upgrade the gas network in Ayr to ensure local homes and businesses continue to receive a safe and reliable gas supply. The project involves replacing old metal mains, reaching the end of their useful lives, with new plastic pipe which has a lifespan of around 80 years. This will help ensure local homes and businesses continue to receive a safe and reliable gas supply long into the future. Following close consultation with South

Ayr customers can support families facing financial difficulties during the Easter school holidays by picking up an extra bag to put through the checkout at Tesco stores. The donation bags, which cost between £2 and £5, are pre-packed with healthy long life food items. They will be available in every large Tesco store in and around Ayr during the Easter break (30 March to 12 April) to make donating the most-needed items to the charitiesFareShare & The Felix Project and Trus

Yesterday Air China Cargo quietly expanded its freight flights to Prestwick yet again and now has daily services to Chengdu in Western China. This is in addition to both Air China and China Southern airlines operating a total of 8 scheduled freight flights from Guangzhou in South East China, near Hong Kong. By Aviation Editor Doug Maclean Image - Glasgow Prestwick Airport On May 16th 2025 the first scheduled freight flights from Scotland to China started from Prestwick when

Detectives are appealing for information following a housebreaking and theft in Ayrshire. Around 6pm on Tuesday, 25 February, 2026, a property near the B739, between Tarbolton and Monkton, was broken into. Jewellery and clothing worth approximately £300,000 were stolen. It is believed two males were involved in the break-in and they would have needed access to a vehicle. A team of detectives has reviewed CCTV and carried out extensive enquiries in the local area. Detective Se

The Leaders of South Ayrshire Council and Dumfries and Galloway Council are once again calling on the Scottish and UK Governments to invest in the A77 and the A75. These two major trunk roads are critical for connecting passengers and freight between England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Despite this, the roads which run from Ayr to Stranraer and from Stranraer to Gretna, are mainly single carriageway. The speed limit for heavy goods vehicles (HGV) is restricted and alt

South Ayrshire Council is calling on residents to make full use of their food recycling caddies, as part of a new campaign to reduce waste, boost recycling rates and protect the environment. Every year, households across Scotland throw away thousands of tonnes of food that could be recycled. When food waste goes into the general waste bin it is sent to an ‘energy from waste’ facility for incineration. Transporting food waste for incineration is five times more expensive an

Marr College has been awarded Intermediate level of the British Council’s prestigious International School Award in recognition of its work to bring the world into the classroom. The International School Award celebrates the achievements of schools that do exceptional work in international education to support our young people in gaining a wider cultural understanding. To achieve this award Marr College undertook various international projects including the exchange of le

South Ayrshire based Land Energy is thrilled to announce that it has been shortlisted for two prestigious industry awards in recognition of its continued commitment to innovation, sustainability and business excellence in Ayrshire and the wider region. The company has been confirmed as a finalist in the Resilience category by the Glasgow based Centre for Engineering, Education and Development (CeeD) at its Industry Awards. The awards celebrate innovation, excellence and colla

The Waverly has started her winter refit programme at the James Watt Dock in Greenock. This is part of a programme of restoration and repair that will see more than £500,000 spent on her this year. She will sail regularly from Largs in 2026 and is also expected make some sailings from Ayr and Troon during the this summer’s Clyde Sailing season from 26th June to 30th August. Details of the summer sailing programme will be released mid-March. Bookings will be possible at that t

Demolition of the Arran Mall in Ayr is set to begin on 23 February 2026. The buildings to be demolished include the three-storey concrete office block on Alloway Street and the single storey mall and retail units behind. The works, which will be carried out by Dem-Master Demolition Ltd, will take approximately six months to complete. Secure hoarding will be put in place around the demolition area. The hoarding will maintain existing access from Dalblair Road to neighbouring p