Crafty move boosts West Kilbride

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The town of West Kilbride in Ayrshire has been named the UK's Capital of Enterprise at this year's DTI Enterprising Britain awards.

The town won the contest after relaunching itself as Scotland's first Craft and Design Town.

Despite suffering from above average unemployment, judges said West Kilbride had transformed itself in recent years.

The competition aims to recognise enterprise achievement throughout all the regions of the UK.

West Kilbride will now be entered into the Europe-wide leg of the contest - the European Enterprise Awards.

West Kilbride has embraced a real can-do attitude to successfully regenerate its town centre, helping to transform the whole community Alistair DarlingSecretary of State for Trade and Industry

The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Alistair Darling, said the town had stood out among its competitors.

He said: "All of the finalists showed why the UK is such an enterprising place, but West Kilbride stood out as a fantastic example of just what can happen when enterprise is put at the heart of the community.

"West Kilbride has embraced a real can-do attitude to successfully regenerate its town centre, helping to transform the whole community."

The competition, which launched in January, is part of a government drive to increase entrepreneurship in the UK by identifying areas of job creation, or where communities have come together and made a real difference to local businesses and local people.

Real difference

Judges were impressed by the town's efforts to transform its town centre despite its empty shops, by re-styling itself as a Craft and Design Town.

The project encouraged enterprise to grow in the town by providing affordable studio accommodation and redeveloping the town centre as a focus for niche retailing.

A special emphasis was also put on conserving and enhancing local architecture in a bid to attract visitors.

The initiative has resulted in the creation of five studios, a shop and gallery for the town, as well as attracting 14 new businesses.

Organisers said jobs had been created as a result.

National competition judge Lynne Franks added: "This competition is all about identifying those places that have brought communities together and made a real difference to local people and West Kilbride did that perfectly."