Dumfries & Galloway hosts LEADER study visit

Catalys

Thursday 14 January 2016 - 15:45

A report from a study visit to Dumfries and Galloway by Ceredigion and Cairngorms LEADER Local Action Groups is now available.

Below is the Executive Summary of the report, and you can also download the full report for more information.

Ceredigion and Cairngorm LEADER Local Action Groups (LAG) visited the Dumfries and Galloway LAG on 24 - 26 September 2015. The purpose of the study visit was for LAG members and officers to learn from one another about their respective approaches and achievements. The study visit was proposed as the areas were thought to have much in common, and that learning between different parts of the UK would be mutually beneficial.

The visit was timed so that it maximised learning potential from the 2007-14 programme, with respect to planning for the new 2015-2020 programmes.

Representatives from the two visiting groups were given an overview of the LAG’s activities through a site visit tour of example projects, which also offered the opportunity to meet project partners and to hear the beneficiary stories.

The visit commenced with a joint meeting of all three LAGs, where all participants introduced themselves and stated their expectations of the visit. Dumfries and Galloway introduced their work in more detail, in particular the projects to be visited on the tour.

The tour included visits to the D&G LAG’s biggest projects, firstly the "Window on Wildlife" visitor centre at the WWT reserve at Caerlaverock on the Solway Firth. Another highlight of the tour was the visit to Eskdalemuir, in order to gain insight into the flagship multi-year community focused project, "Day of the The Region".

The study visit has led to a number of short term outcomes:

Plans for further bilateral visits in the Autumn of 2015 and Spring of 2016
Focused learning about particular projects, e.g., Ceredigion’s enterprise support, the Day of the Region, Biosphere collaboration and Social Return on Investment are all likely topics for further discussion.

In the longer term, the LAGs are looking to further their engagement and the possibility exists to develop joint projects in areas of common interest.

Download the full Ceredigion LAG study visit to Dumfries and Galloway report.