A recent report published by The Local Data Company (LDC) and the University of Stirling has shown a decrease in the number of empty shops in Dumfries and has been welcomed by Dumfries & Galloway MP Russell Brown, Dumfriesshire MSP Elaine Murray and Labour Councillor and Chair of Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Economy, Environment and Infrastructure Committee Colin Smyth.

The report found the average retail vacancy rate in Scotland dropped from 14.5% to 13.7%.

The retail vacancy rate in Dumfries & Galloway is 7.8%, well below the 13.7% Scottish average.

The report showed that Dumfries was among the top seven most improved towns in Scotland for decreasing shop vacancy rates.

However, the report showed that Gretna has the lowest proportion of independent shops in Scotland at 5%.

The study also found that 40% of Scotland’s empty shops have remained vacant for more than three years.

Chair of Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Economy, Environment and Infrastructure Committee Councillor Colin Smyth said:

“It is encouraging to see that Dumfries was one of the most improved towns in Scotland in terms of reduced vacancies. The council has supported a number of new start businesses who have opened shops in the town centre through grants and business advice and it is really important this continues. However, the town centre is still a long way away from meeting the public expectation of what they want to see. We all still hark back to the day when people visited their town centre to do all their shopping but that is becoming a thing of the past due to internet shopping, faster transport links to cities and 24 hour supermarkets. The difficulties traditional market towns have competing with all this has become a real problem across Scotland and Dumfries is probably doing better than a lot of other towns. But we need to look at other ways to bring people into our town centres as it is clear retail isn’t enough.”

Dumfries and Galloway MP Russell Brown highlighted the problem of long term vacancies and said:

“One of the problems the report highlights is the number of properties that remain vacant for a long time. That’s partly as a result of them falling into a poor state of disrepair and we can see that with a number of almost derelict sites in towns across Dumfries and Galloway. Often the buildings are owned by companies from out with the region who do very little to make them attractive for people to move into. The Scottish Government talk a lot about putting town centres first, but unless they match this with funding to improve the condition of some of the buildings there are some properties that will simply never come back into use.”

Dumfriesshire MSP Elaine Murray highlighted the fact the figure showing that Gretna had the lowest proportion of independent shops in Scotland at just 5% was misleading. Elaine Murray said:

“Gretna is a relatively small village but it has a large designer outlet which serves far more than the village. By definition, these outlets have national chains in them and this totally skews the figures for local independent retailers. Overall the outlet has been beneficial for the local area bringing in visitors and creating jobs and it’s a positive news story that it is expanding.”

Danz Designz is the new business venture of young Moffat graphic designer Daniel Warwick.
Daniel is one of a number of businesses in Annandale and Eskdale taking advantage of the networking opportunity provided by Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Inspiring Entrepreneurs events.

Aimed at 18 to 25 year olds in Dumfries and Galloway, these events encourage young people to develop their self-employment ideas. Experts in their field headline the events with workshops and lectures and the business owners get the chance to mingle with their peers, sharing experiences.

Daniel said, “When I graduated, I was convinced that to use the skills I had developed at university I would have to leave Moffat and live somewhere like Glasgow. I was fortunate that Job Seekers gave me a contact for Business Gateway who put me in contact with Lindsey Mason from the Council’s Young Entrepreneur Project.

“With the information from Lindsey I was able to set up my business over the summer. It was a great push for me to find out about grants and loans and I was delighted to find I could stay in Moffat and use my skill set straight away. Since I started in September I have had a lot of business, particularly from young start-ups looking for logos and branding. Some of that business has come from the Inspiring Entrepreneurs networking events. It’s also great to meet other young businesses facing the same challenges and to learn from the great guest speakers.”

Councillor Colin Smyth, Chairman of Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Economy, Environment and Infrastructure Committee. He said, “Our Council is committed to supporting more young people into employment. The Young Entrepreneur Project was a first amongst Scottish councils and the figures for business survivals show that we are having some successes. We often lose our talent to the large cities, so I am particularly pleased that the advice and support from our Council’s Young Entrepreneur Co-ordinator has helped Daniel to stay in the region. ”

John Grierson, Chapelcross Site Director for Magnox, said, “We appreciate that there may be reduced prospects for employment for young people for long term careers in the area with the decommissioning of Chapelcross. Our support for this project acknowledges that change and helps young people find alternatives. I am impressed at the success of the networking events in attracting numbers of young people with a desire for self-employment. The events have obviously led to a number of business start-ups and to business contacts that they can benefit from in both the short and long term.”

Young business owners between the ages of 18 and 25 years can apply to the Young Entrepreneur Project for either a pre-start up grant or a start-up grant if their business is in the Dumfries and Galloway postcode areas of DG10 to DG16. In certain, limited circumstances support is available for business owners up to age 30.

To keep up-to-date with future events and find out about funding opportunities, visit the Inspiring Entrepreneurs Facebook page.

For more information contact Lindsey Mason, Young Entrepreneur Co-ordinator on 01387 260171 or by email at lindsey.mason@dumgal.gov.uk
Businesses outside the age limits, but within the same postcode areas can enquire about funding from the CX Project.
For more information on the CX project contact beverley.bamford@dumgal.gov.uk

Inspiring Entrepreneurs
Dumfries and Galloway Council is one of the first local authorities in Scotland to deliver a project which adds value to the work of other young enterprise support agencies including Youth Business Scotland. The project is targeted at young people who would like to take advantage of the opportunities offered by self employment. A package of support is available to anyone between the ages of 18 and 30 (subject to certain criteria) who is considering self employment or would like to find out whether self employment is for them.
Through the Young Entrepreneur project, would-be entrepreneurs can access:
•One to one advice and support with market research and business planning.
•Resources and support to write a business plan.
•A package of grant funding to help kick start their business idea.
•Access to low cost loans via Youth Business Scotland.
•A business aftercare adviser to support and assist them in the first two years of trading.
•Invitation to attend regular local Inspiring Entrepreneurs events offering training and networking opportunities.
•Signposting to Business Gateway workshops to learn business skills including bookkeeping and marketing.
For more information contact Lindsey Mason, Young Entrepreneur Co-ordinator on 01387 260171 or by email at lindsey.mason@dumgal.gov.uk

A murky multi-million pound trade in wild animals and their parts is booming across online marketplaces, with questions being asked as to the legality of many advertisements offering endangered species for sale.

A shocking report released last week by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) shows how thousands of endangered species are bought and sold on the Internet, many advertised without any form of supporting documentation.

Wanted – Dead or Alive, Exposing Online Wildlife Trade reveals that, in early 2014, an intense six-week investigation found a total of 33,006 endangered wildlife and wildlife parts and products for sale via 280 online market places across 16 countries.

IFAW found the legality of almost 13 per cent – 1,192 – of the 9,482 advertisements investigated was sufficiently doubtful to warrant turning these over to law enforcers for further examination. However this may only be the tip of the iceberg as investigators were careful not to deluge enforcers with reports of potential wildlife crime. The IFAW investigation focuses on the ‘surface-web’, namely open-source websites commonly referred to as online marketplaces, where products are freely available to the public.

Dumfries & Galloway MP Russell Brown said:

“I wish to commend the International Fund for Animal Welfare on producing this shocking report that shows the devastating effect of the online trade on wildlife across the world. I am offering my support for tougher measures and the strongest possible enforcement of the law to clamp down on this organised criminal activity.”

In the UK, websites hosted 1,087 online advertisements offering a total of 1,603 items for sale including ivory and suspected ivory, turtles, tortoises, owls, exotic birds, monkeys and parts and products from elephants, rhinos, hippos, crocodiles, alligators and big cats. The items were valued at more than £300,000. Over two-thirds of adverts were for wildlife parts and products rather than live animals.

Philip Mansbridge, UK Director of IFAW, said:

“Governments need to introduce stronger legislation that specifically targets online wildlife crime and must encourage and support their enforcement agencies in making sure wildlife cybercriminals are apprehended and prosecuted. We would like to thank Russell Brown for his support in saving wildlife and combating international crime.”

IFAW’s investigation specifically targeted the sale of species listed on Appendix I and II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) which regulates and restricts the trade in wildlife and their parts and products. Many of the 280 online sites monitored either didn’t ask customers to demonstrate that their trade met with national laws, or else the provisos were hidden to the extent that customers simply wouldn’t be aware of them.

Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Community Learning and Development Service in partnership with Moffat Academy’s S3 pupils have been working with adults in the community to assist them get to grips with new technology.

Over a period of four weeks the young people helped the adults learn about how to make better use of their smart phones and tablets, download apps, use Facebook and twitter and much more.
The young people have also been given the opportunity to gain a 2 Star Dynamic Youth Award and can also bank their hours towards either a Silver or Gold Youth Achievement Award.

Chair of Community and Customer Services Committee Cllr Tom McAughtrie said;
“Projects like this really showcase how well our community can work together. The skillsets held by the young people in relation to new technology are incredible and it is fantastic to hear these skills are being passed onto their elders, like me! Social media is becoming a bigger part of everyday life and it it’s encouraging that our Council is facilitating getting more people online and signed up.”
Due to success of the project and the continued demand from adults in the community we are now in the process of planning further Digital Champions sessions involving young people from S3-S6.
If you would like more information about Digital Champions please contact Sue Coulthard, Community Learning and Development Worker or Sharron McGonigle, Community Learning Assistant at Moffat Town Hall or on 07709 479645. Email sue.coulthard@dumgal.gov.uk or sharron.mcgonigle@dumgal.gov.uk