Scottish Cities Alliance

14/01/25, CoStar, by Cllr Grant Laing, SCA Chair and Leader of Perth & Kinross Council

From the 20th to 22nd January 2025, Scotland’s eight cities and the Scottish Government, collectively referred to as the Scottish Cities Alliance, will host Scottish Cities Week in London.

The annual events programme, now in its third year, offers a unique opportunity for the Alliance partners, both jointly and individually, to develop long-term strategic partnerships with investors and developers, promoting the benefits of investing in Scotland’s smart and sustainable cities.

Ahead of 2025’s edition the Alliance’s Chair, Cllr Grant Laing reflects on the standout infrastructure investment that took place across Scotland’s cities and city regions in 2024 and looks forward to the promising developments to come.

“City Region Deals and other strategic funding interventions are crucial in this process, representing strategic partnerships between public sector bodies and private investors to drive economic growth and development. These deals ensure that all regions of Scotland benefit from growth, which in turn delivers positive outcomes for local communities. This concept will be a focal point during our upcoming Scottish Cities Week, highlighting how collaborative sustainable investment can transform cities and regions.

Work on a new Life Sciences Innovation Hub in the heart of Dundee has completed and is due to open in Spring 2025 which is forecasted to support over 800 life science jobs in the city by 2053 and deliver over £190m benefit to the local economy. Meanwhile fellow Tay City Region Deal partner Perth, has seen a cultural renaissance with the opening of its new museum last 2024. This £27m project, backed by £10m funding from the UK Government, has quickly become a cultural landmark, attracting over 100,000 visitors in its first hundred days. The museum has revitalised Perth’s cultural scene and created new opportunities for investment in the arts.

Over £19m from the UK Government is being invested to transform a former Ministry of Defence site in Stirling into a prime economic hub, including the creation of one of Scotland’s largest film studio campuses. Stirling Studios is estimated to create more than 4,000 jobs over 25 years, with positive impacts for local supply chains. The site was transferred to Stirling Council using £5m from its City Region Deal. That Deal is supporting further strategic interventions to boost Stirling’s regional economy, such as construction of Scotland’s National Aquaculture Technology and Innovation Hub. The Hub builds on the University of Stirling’s strengths in the blue economy and environmental sciences and leans into Stirling’s burgeoning life sciences sector. The sector has been buoyed by significant investment over recent years from industry, investors and Scottish Enterprise.

Further north, Aberdeen’s £27 million ONE SeedPod innovation hub for food and drink manufacturing will open in spring this year, offering both physical space and access to essential resources for scaling businesses. The dedicated place for food and drink entrepreneurs will include food-safe manufacturing units and a development and demonstration kitchen to help businesses scale production and innovate new products and processes.

The formal opening of the Govan Partick Footbridge in 2024 has significantly improved connectivity and supported the regeneration of Glasgow’s waterfront. This £29.5 million project with equal contributions from the UK and Scottish Governments re-establishes a historic connection and is expected to bring economic, environmental, and social benefits to the city.

The Edinburgh Futures Institute opened its doors in June 2024 following an extensive seven-year, multi-million-pound restoration of the iconic, category-A listed Old Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. This included £56 million from UK Government, £2m from Scottish Government and significant investment from the University of Edinburgh. Over 20,000m2 of space has been created for multidisciplinary collaboration, data-led innovation, education, research, and partnership with collaborative spaces available for external organisations, incubation areas for start-up businesses and labs for innovation and prototyping.

Looking ahead to 2025, the Scottish Cities Alliance remains committed to fostering success through collaboration and innovation. The partnerships between the UK and Scottish Governments and Scotland’s eight cities are vital in driving forward city region deals that ensure communities, businesses and investors benefit from sustainable economic growth.

The coming year offers an exciting opportunity to build upon wider partnerships working between both governments and the city regions including the Green Freeports in Cromarty Firth and the Firth of Forth as well as regional Investment Zones in Glasgow and the North East of Scotland just to name a few At the Alliance we are keen to continue this momentum and increase investment into Scotland’s dynamic cities.”