Sustainable Transport Corridor in Midlothian - Case Study Video

The Bush Loan Junction is the first phase of the A701 Improvement programme in Midlothian. This programme of enabling transport infrastructure will improve traffic flow in the A701 corridor, promote active travel and enhance public transport infrastructure, supporting a shift away from private car usage in this area. The upgraded junction at Bush Loan will allow further expansion at the University of Edinburgh’s Easter Bush campus and across the Midlothian Science Zone, which is a key economic driver for the region.

You can watch other videos which show how the City Region Deal’s projects and programmes are helping people, in the Annual Report 2023/24

First tenants move into flagship Levenmouth Business Park

The first tenants have moved into the new flagship Levenmouth Business Park – marking a major milestone in the ongoing regeneration of Mid-Fife.

Seven new modern and attractive units have been built at Muiredge on the outskirts of Buckhaven, providing 741 square metres of space for a range of businesses and supporting the creation of an estimated 15 jobs.

The units – which have been built to a high specification - have evidenced high demand, with six units snapped up by growing businesses and new enterprises with ongoing enquiries focussed on the remaining available unit.

After the units were formally handed over by contractors last week, the occupants are starting to settle into their new surroundings, supporting the expansion of Levenmouth’s business base.

The creation of Levenmouth Business Park is part of the £58 million 10-year Fife Industrial Innovation Investment (Fife i3) Programme, which has been supported through the wider £1.5 billion Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal and aims to provide much-needed serviced employment land and new industrial, office and business space across the Kingdom.

Around £1.2 million was secured via the City Region Deal for this particular project, while £715,000 from the Levenmouth Reconnected Programme – a £10 million fund set up to maximise the benefits of the new Levenmouth Rail Link – also went towards site servicing and the new builds.

Councillor Altany Craik, spokesperson for finance, economy and strategic planning, said he was delighted to see the new units open for business.

“The Fife i3 Programme is all about creating conditions for start-ups and SMEs (small/medium-sized enterprises) to grow and innovate, and with that comes direct and indirect employment, increased demand for local services, and major benefits for supply chain businesses both here in Fife but across Scotland more generally,” he commented.

“It’s great to hear these units have been in demand, and of course they are perfectly placed to take advantage of the new £116m Levenmouth Rail Link, the new active travel network going in, and enhanced bus services.

“We’ve been committed to ensuring new, flexible business property is available across a range of locations, sizes and uses, and I think Levenmouth Business Park is a prime example of that.

“On behalf of the council, we’d like to wish all the new tenants well and we look forward to seeing them flourish.”

Fife Council’s Economic Development team has led on the development and promotion of the new units and employment land with the aim of securing new occupiers and investment at the Business Park. To find out more, visit www.investfife.co.uk or email fifemeansbusiness@fife.gov.uk.

A fly-through video of the new units can be found on the Levenmouth Reconnected You Tube channel here: https://youtu.be/Qczb-uPDc9g

Work Starts on Edinburgh Innovation Hub

A ‘ground-breaking’ ceremony has taken place to mark the start of construction on an innovation hub designed to become a nationally significant centre for innovation driven business growth and to create new high value employment.

The Edinburgh Innovation Hub is a joint venture between East Lothian Council and Queen Margaret University (QMU).

Representatives of the council and university were joined for the ceremony by Donald Cameron, UK Government Minister for Scotland, and Richard Lochhead, the Scottish Government’s Minister for Small Business, Innovation, Tourism and Trade.

The 7,200 sqm Hub, which received planning permission last September, is expected to be completed in 2025. It will comprise flexible laboratory, office and fully equipped meeting and conference spaces for rent by high growth small to medium enterprises (SMEs).

The Hub will support and grow businesses driven by innovation, knowledge exchange and technology, bringing together research, industry and academia under one roof, creating opportunities for synergies and knowledge-sharing. Tenants will be able to rent accommodation packages, for move-in ready space, that fits their size and needs. The design of the Hub will enable tenants to take up more space as and when they need to.

The venture is supported by £28.6 million from the UK Government, £1.4 million from the Scottish Government and £10 million from East Lothian Council as part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal (ESES City Region Deal).

Councillor Norman Hampshire, Leader of East Lothian Council, said: “The start of construction on this project highlights our ambition to create a sought-after location for business growth and increase high value jobs for East Lothian. It aligns with our aim of making East Lothian the best place in Scotland in which to live, work and do business.

“By supporting the food and drink and other important economic sectors, including tech and life sciences, we can attract innovative businesses to one of Scotland’s fastest growing areas.

“The 52 acre Edinburgh Innovation Park adjacent to the Edinburgh Innovation Hub will transform a strategic economic development site, owned by East Lothian Council, into a nationally significant cluster of knowledge exchange, innovation and high value business growth.”

Sir Paul Grice, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of QMU said: “Along with driving economic development locally and nationally, the Hub will act as a gateway into QMU for businesses, increase opportunities at the University for industry-relevant research and knowledge exchange, promote an entrepreneurial culture, and increase the vibrancy of the area around the campus.

“The Hub is not just a new building, it will be a new business. Importantly, it will provide a much more bespoke and focused service than is currently offered by business parks, providing not only physical facilities but also the operational support SMEs need to work effectively and grow.”

UK Government Minister for Scotland, Donald Cameron said: “Construction starting on this UK Government and partners funded innovation hub is a hugely exciting milestone for the area. I can't wait to see the facility up and running as it will help boost the local and national economy through generating innovative business and employment growth. The UK Government is backing the facility with £28.6 million investment - part of our £300 million commitment to the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. In total we are investing more than £3 billion to level up across Scotland.”

Scottish Government Minister for Small Business, Innovation, Tourism and Trade Richard Lochhead said: “This is an important milestone in the development of the Edinburgh Innovation Hub, which is being delivered with Deal partners and £1.4 million of Scottish Government investment.

“We are investing £300 million in the Deal across a range of projects, which will be crucial in helping us deliver a fair and sustainable wellbeing economy with good quality jobs at its heart.

“Our National Innovation Strategy for Scotland sets out our vision of how, over the next ten years, Scotland will become one of the most innovative small nations in the world – projects such as this are going to be crucial in fulfilling that ambition.”

The Hub will help to initiate development of the wider Edinburgh Innovation Park on land adjacent to the QMU campus. The development was granted planning permission in principle in March 2019, as part of a wider mixed use development, including new homes and a new primary school, business & industry use and community facilities.

More information on the Edinburgh Innovation Hub is on the website.

Fife Council Commits To ESES City Region Deal Community Wealth Building Pledges

Fife Council on behalf of the Fife Industrial Innovation Investment (i3) Programme, have become the first City Region Deal project to commit to the ESES CRD Community Wealth Building (CWB) Pledge.  

Fife’s Industrial Innovation Investment programme (i3) is being delivered as part of the ESES City Region Deal, with an aim to provide much-needed serviced employment land and new industrial, office and business spaces, as well as creating new skilled permanent jobs, short-term construction jobs over the 15-year lifetime of the City Region Deal. 
 
“Committing to these pledges demonstrates our dedication to accelerating inclusive growth and removing barriers to growth in our inclusive economy.” Gordon Mole, Head of Business and Employment, Fife Council.  
 
Fife Council have been proactive on their own community wealth journey and instil the core values of the 5 pillars of CWB in their day-to-day activity.  

Read the press release to find out more information about why committing to the pledge was important to Fife Council and how this will influence their activity going forward.

For more information on the Community Wealth Building framework and pledge, visit the Community Wealth Building website 

GOVE TOURS EDINBURGH’S NATIONAL ROBOTARIUM TO SEE LEVELLING UP AND SCIENTIFIC INNOVATION IN ACTION

Secretary of State for Levelling Up Michael Gove today (24 February 2022) toured a state-of-the-art research facility for robotics and artificial intelligence in Edinburgh, which is backed by £21 million in UK government funding.

Mr Gove saw some of the innovative research projects being developed at the National Robotarium including a demonstration from the facility’s resident robot dogs. These four-legged robots will be used to support people working in hazardous environments like energy inspection and disaster recovery as well as making the construction process safer, more efficient, and sustainable.

The funding, which is provided through the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal with an additional £1.4 million from the Scottish Government, is supporting the National Robotarium to create cutting-edge solutions to many of the challenges we face in everyday life. Examples of projects include the development of a train cleaning robot that can complement existing staff while reducing health risks, a robotic coach to aid the process of long-term rehabilitation after stroke, and underwater robots to support safer inspection and repair of offshore wind turbines. Mr Gove also heard more about the facility’s growing partnerships with industry, healthcare organisations and its support for entrepreneurship.

Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Michael Gove MP said:

“Levelling up is not going to be an easy task. To be successful, it requires a huge collaborative effort as we have seen here in Edinburgh where governments, local authorities, partners from academia and private sector come together to delivery real results.

“The National Robotarium is the perfect example of what is possible when we work together, and it has been fantastic to see some of the innovative projects being developed here that genuinely have the potential to change people’s lives for the better.”

Based at Heriot-Watt University’s Edinburgh campus, the new facility is due to be completed this year, bringing with it jobs and prosperity to the region.

The Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal draws on a combined total of £600 million in funding from both Scottish and UK Governments to invest in projects over a 15 year period focussing on research, employability and skills, transport, culture and housing.

Professor Mark Biggs, Vice-Principal, Heriot-Watt University said:

“Backed by the combined experience of Heriot-Watt and the University of Edinburgh, we’re demonstrating how Scotland and the UK can lead global developments in robotics and AI, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible and addressing some of industry and societies biggest challenges.

“We look forward to working closely with governments to ensure the National Robotarium makes a positive impact by accelerating growth, attracting investment and acting as a catalyst for entrepreneurship and job creation.”

This comes less than a month after the UK Government set out an ambitious plan to level up the whole of the United Kingdom. In addition to existing City Region and City and Growth Deals, our Levelling Up White Paper set up further plans to harness innovation, including £100 million in funding to set up three innovation accelerators across the UK, including one in Glasgow. These will create “Silicon Valley” set ups which will harness research and development in the area.

We have already seen investment as part of the UK Government suite of levelling up funds. £1.7 billion was invested throughout the UK in round one of the Levelling Up Fund including £172 million on 8 projects in Scotland.

While in Edinburgh, Mr Gove also visited the flagship UK Government Hub in Edinburgh, Queen Elizabeth House, and spoke at the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and Improvement Service Annual Conference 2022. He also appeared before a Scottish Parliamentary Committee.

Further information

· The National Robotarium is a world-leading research facility for robotics and artificial intelligence, the largest and most advanced of its type in the UK. 

·  Opening on Heriot-Watt University’s Edinburgh Campus in 2022, the purpose-built building will have unrivalled facilities, adding high precision manufacturing and dedicated laser labs to existing laboratories in ocean systems, human-robotic interaction and assisted living.

· Home to world-leading experts in data analytics, the National Robotarium is exploring collaborative interaction between humans, robots and their environments, translating cutting-edge research into new technologies, underpinned by an ethical approach.

For more information, please visit www.hw.ac.uk/nationalrobotarium

Follow Twitter: @NRobotarium / LinkedIn: @The National Robotarium