2025 has been a milestone year for Larkhall Plan Partnership with so much progress made and many challenges ahead.
Each of our partners continue to work tirelessly to support and represent Larkhall communities including the most vulnerable people in our town. They do this in the face of immense challenges for charities and community groups while the need for our services rises.
A crucial moment came at the start of 2025 when we helped to secure additional funding for our new leisure centre so it is fit for purpose for generations to come. Our campaign built a lot of momentum and folk in the town were passionate about securing the best leisure centre possible. We reached over 2,000 petition signatures and our Facebook page reached 130,000 views in a month period. The combined effort of local people, political manoeuvres, and our campaign secured an extra £3.85 million for our new leisure centre including a bigger games hall.
Then in April we launched our community survey. Asking for people’s views, representing them, and trying to influence decision-makers to find solutions to problems people tell us about is the foundation of everything we do – your town, your voice.
Our survey campaign coincided with a tumultuous Scottish parliament by-election and we used this as an opportunity to engage with the candidates and get them on board with our vision for Larkhall.
We started 2025 with a campaign to fight for the services our town deserves and that’s how we’re ending the year. Now, we’re challenging Bank of Scotland over the closure of Larkhall’s last bank branch. They never consulted or engaged with us and they completely dismiss our concerns, but against the odds we will ensure they hear our concerns.
Our recent peaceful demonstration proved that people are willing to come out and make a stand for their community.
We don’t know what 2026 will bring. We have a Scottish Parliament election in the Spring which could change the landscape we’re living and working in. But nonetheless there are many projects we continue to pursue to improve the quality of life in our town and we look forward to updating you on these in the near future. And crucially, we will be publishing the results of our community survey which will drive our work for the next few years.
Thank you to everyone who has supported us and caught the vision of what we’re trying to achieve for our town – even filling in the survey or signing a petition adds up. 2025 demonstrated clearly that when people rally together, make their voice heard, and fight for the services that their community deserves, it makes a difference.
We strive in to 2026 remembering one of our favourite quotes: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”