The purpose of the CPG is to analyse policy prescriptions and develop ideas and innovations. This will help Scotland’s towns and town centres through the current economic climate to emerge stronger, smarter, cleaner, healthier and greener. The group will discuss ways in which Scotland’s towns can work towards sustainable economic growth through greater vibrancy and vitality.
You can view all 'Wakelet' event reports of past CPG meetings, including photos, tweets and presentations for download, at the STP Wakelet page.
You can find out more about the work and membership of the CPG on the Scottish Parliament website.
Date of Next Meeting
Minutes & Annual Reports
Minute of the Meeting 7th December 2022 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 7th September 2022 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 9th March 2022 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 8th December 2022 (Word)
CPG Registration Form 2021 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 10 March 2021 DRAFT (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 9 December (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 9 September 2020 (Word)
CPG Annual Return Form 2019-2020 (Word)
CPG Annual Return Form 2018 - 2019 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 4 March 2020 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 4 September 2019 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 13 March 2019 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 5 December 2018 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 26 September 2018 (PDF)
CPG Annual Return Form 2017 - 2018 (Word)
Minute of the Meeting 13 June 2018
Minute of the Meeting 13 March 2018 (40KB)
Minute of the Meeting 6 December 2017 (48 KB)
Minute of the Meeting 13 September 2017 (47 KB)
Minute of the Meeting 8 March 2017 (43.8 KB)
Minute of the Meeting 7 December 2016 (44.1 KB)
Minute of the Meeting 21 September 2016 (587KB PDF)
CPG Annual Return Form 2015 - 2016 (PDF)
Minute of the Meeting 24 February 2016 (317KB)
Minute of the Meeting 4 November 2015 (356KB PDF)
Minute of the Meeting 13 May 2015 (408KB PDF)
Minutes of the Meeting 25 February 2015 (601KB)
Minutes of Meeting 10 December 2014 (366KB PDF)
Minutes of Meeting 1 October 2014 (320KB PDF)
Minutes of Meeting 14 May 2014 (341KB PDF)
CPG Annual Return Form (MS Word Doc)
Minutes of Meeting 19 February 2014 (387KB PDF)
Minutes of Meeting 13 November 2013 (151KB PDF)
Minutes of Meeting 11 September 2013 (350KB PDF)
Minutes of Meeting 6 February 2013 (489KB PDF)
Minutes of Meeting 17 April 2013 (98KB PDF)
Minutes of Meeting 12 June 2013 (162KB PDF)
Presentations & Links
You can view all event reports of past CPG meetings, including photos, tweets and presentations for download, at the STP Wakelet page.
2021 - 2022 Parliamentary Year
Event report from 08/07 CPG Towns Meeting: "Town Centres Beyond Retail"
- Siobhian Brown MSP (CPG Convenor and Meeting Chair)
- Phil Prentice, Chief Officer of Scotland's Towns Partnership
- Mhairi Donaghy, Associate Director, Scottish Futures Trust
- Andrew Meehan, Associate Director, Rettie & Co
- Ken Ford, Beyond Retail Property Fund
Event Report from 09/03 CPG Towns Meeting: "Community Wealth Building and Towns"
- Siobhian Brown MSP (CPG Convenor and Meeting Chair)
- Phil Prentice, Chief Officer of Scotland's Towns Partnership
- Neil McInroy, Fellow, Democracy Collaborative and Community Wealth Building Adviser to Scottish Government
- Mhairi Paterson, Community Wealth Building Coordinator, North Ayrshire Council
- Emma Fyvie, Senior Development Manager, Clackmannanshire Council
Event Report from 08/12 CPG Towns Meeting: "Culture and Place"
- Siobhian Brown MSP (CPG Convenor and Meeting Chair)
- Phil Prentice, Chief Officer of Scotland's Towns Partnership
- Karen Dick, Head of Place, Partnerships and Communities, Creative Scotland
- Robert Livingston, Director, Regional Screen Scotland
- David Paton, Associate Director, Crawford Architecture and Founder, Designer and Chair of Montrose Playhouse Project
2020 - 2021 Parliamentary Year
- John Scott MSP (CPG Convenor and Meeting Chair)
- Phil Prentice, Chief Officer of Scotland's Towns Partnership
- Craig McLaren, Director, Scotland and Ireland, Royal Town Planning Institute
- Shona Glenn, Head of Policy, Scottish Land Commission
- Donald Gillies, Director of Place, South Ayrshire Council
Event Report from 9/12 CPG Towns Meeting: "Together Toward Change"
- John Scott MSP (CPG Convenor and Meeting Chair)
- Phil Prentice, Chief Officer of Scotland's Towns Partnership
- David Cowan, Head of Regeneration Unit, Scottish Government
- Douglas Duff, Acting Director, Development Services, Falkirk Council
- Alan Anthony, Scottish Chair, Revo and CEO, 360 Architecture
- Emma Mackenzie, Head of Asset Management, Director, NewRiver
- John Scott MSP (CPG Convenor and Meeting Chair)
- Aileen Campbell MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Local Government
- Councillor Alison Evison, President of CoSLA
- Roddy Smith, Chief Executive and Director, Essential Edinburgh
- Phil Prentice, Chief Officer of Scotland's Towns Partnership
- Professor Leigh Sparks, Deputy Principal and Professor of Retail Studies at the Institute for Retail Studies, University of Stirling and Chair, Scotland’s Towns Partnership.
Report and Video from the 09/09 CPG Towns Meeting: “Scotland’s Towns Post-Covid – The Recovery”
- John Scott MSP (CPG Convenor and Meeting Chair)
- Phil Prentice, Chief Officer, Scotland’s Towns Partnership
- Danielle McRorie-Smith, Manager, Go Forth Stirling BID
- Caroline Warburton, Regional Leadership Director (East), VisitScotland
- Debbie MacCallum, Chair, Tourism St Andrews
2019 - 2020 Parliamentary Year
Report and Presentations from CPG Meeting 04/03/2020 - "Towns: Vacant Spaces Made Good"
- Iain Scott, Director, Can Do Places
- Tom Donaldson, One Dalkeith
- Claire Carpenter, The Melting Pot
Presentations from CPG Meeting 04/09/2019 - "Towns for Leisure"
- Robert Livingston, Director, Regional Screen Scotland - Your Cinema, Your Community
- Colin Moulson, BID Manager, Dunoon Presents - Fitness Festivals and Footfall
- Tony I’Anson, BID Manger - The Future of Events in Towns
2018 - 2019 Parliamentary Year
Presentation from CPG Meeting 13.03.2019 - "Towns: Creativity and Culture"
- Matt Baker, The Stove Network. Embracing Creativity and Culture in Dumfries
Presentations of CPG Meeting 05.12.2018 - "Clean, Green & Sustainable Towns"
Presentations from the 5 December 2018 meeting of the CPG on Towns and Town Centres including:
- Iain Rennick, Head of Structural Funds, Scottish Natural Heritage
- Lesley Ure, Project Development Officer and Warren McIntyre, Programme Manager, Zero Waste Scotland
- Martin Valenti, Strategic Director, Scottish Land Commission
- Pete Leonard, Operations Director, Keep Scotland Beautiful
Presentations of CPG Meeting 26.09.2018 - "Towns - The Evening Economy"
Presentations from the 26 September 2018 meeting of the CPG on Towns and Town Centres including:
- Nicola Johnston, Aberdeen Inspired
- Lynsae Tulloch, Chief Operations Officer, SBRC
- John Lee, Head of Policy and Public Affairs, Scottish Grocers Federation
2017 - 2018 Parliamentary Year
Presentations of CPG Meeting 13.06.2018 - The Future: Living, Low Carbon, Digital
Presentations from the 13 June 2018 meeting of the CPG on Towns and Town Centres.
Event Report of CPG Meeting 14.03.2018 - "Young People and Towns"
Multimedia report from the 14 March 2018 meeting of the CPG on Towns and Town Centres, including presentations for download, Twitter interaction and more.
Storify Report of CPG Meetings 2017
A regularly updated event report with photos, social media interaction and presentations from meetings of the CPG for Towns and Town Centres during the Autumn - Winter 2017 parliamentary session.
Presentations of Meeting 06/12/2017 - "Towns - More than a Retail Economy"
- Alasdair Smart, Tourism Manager, Abellio ScotRail
- Donald Morrison, Public Affairs and Media Relations (Scotland), ABB Scotland
- Claire Carpenter, Founder and Managing Director, The Melting Pot
- John Lauder, National Director, Sustrans Scotland
- Leigh Brown, Chair, Association of Town and City Management (ATCM)
Presentations of Meeting 13/09/2017 - "Inclusive Towns"
- Andy Milne, Chief Executive and Derek Rankine, Policy and Participation Manager, SURF - Scotland's Regeneration Forum
- Shaheena Din, National Project Manager, Scottish Empty Homes Partnership
- Christine Browne, Economic Development Officer (Change), East Renfrewshire Council
2016 - 2017 Parliamentary Year
Storify Report of CPG Meetings 2016 - 2017
A regularly updated event report with photos, social media interaction and presentations from meetings of the CPG for Towns and Town Centres during the September 2016 - June 2017 parliamentary session.
Presentations of Meeting 08/03/2017 - "Digital Towns"
- Digital Towns Strategy for Scotland: Phil Prentice, Chief Officer, Scotland’s Towns Partnership
- Maggie Morrison, Vice President Public Sector, CGI Scotland
- What Does Digital Mean for Towns? - David Wallace, Regional Director – Major and Public Sector, BT
- Digital Renfrewshire - Diane Webb, Project Manager, Digital Assistance, Renfrewshire Council
- Digital Support for Renewable Towns - Brian Walker, Principal, Energy Edge Consulting, LLC
Presentations of Meeting 07/12/2016 - "Towns Mean Business" (2.8MB PDF)
- The Ideal Retail Mix - Keith Hargest, Hargest Planning Ltd
- How are Town Centre Businesses Doing? - Laura McKelvie, FSB Scotland
- Retail, High Streets, and Transformational Change – Ewan MacDonald-Russell, Scottish Retail Consortium
- Shopping Centres: Working Together with Communities and Town Centres – Alexander Nicoll, Intu Properties Plc; Chair, ATCM
- Be Careful How you handle Charities – Phil Prentice, Chief Officer, Scotland’s Towns Partnership
Presentations of Meeting 21/09/2016 - "Celebrating Local Leaders"
- Laura Molloy, Barrhead BID - All About Barrhead
- Maggie Broadley, Craft Town Scotland - More than Bricks and Mortar
2011 - 2016 Parliamentary Session
Garry Follis, ABB Community Engagement
Giffnock Village: Classic Car Rally
Paul Matthews, An Active Route to Town Centre Vitality
Ian McLelland, The Future of Retailing Presentation
Pete Vallance, Healthy High Streets Presentation
Town Centre Action Plan Update
Andy Godrey, Alliance Boots Presentation
Barry McCulloch, FSB Scotland Presentation
Understanding Scottish Places Flyer 1
Understanding Scottish Places Flyer 2
Colin Munro, mi Scotland presentation
Ian Cooke, Development Trusts Association Scotland
An Assessment of the Economic, Social and Cultural Impact of Galeri Caernarfon
New Scottish Parliament Publications: You and Your Parliament and Common Questions
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly? Portas, Grimsey and Fraser - Professor Leigh Sparks, University of Stirling
Town Centre Review – Malcolm Fraser, Chair of the External Advisory Group, Town Centre Review
1001 Enterprising Scots Digital Vignettes from Iain Scott – video shorts sharing the highs and lows of setting up business in towns
21st Century High Streets - David Martin, Scottish Retail Consortium
British Retail Consortium’s publication, ‘21st Century High Streets – What Next for Britain’s High Streets?’
Local Solutions – Phil Prentice, Economic Development & Regeneration Manager, East Renfrewshire Council
Test Towns – Jim Metcalfe, Carnegie UK
Monitoring Economic Diversity & Wider Social Value of Town Centres – Chris Wade, Chief Executive, Action for Market Towns - Insight into 'Benchmarking+' Pilot Led by Action for Market Towns, with Scotland's Towns Partnership and East Renfrewshire Council Supported by Scottish Government
Independents' Day campaign – David Stewart on behalf of National Skills Academy for Retail
Supporting Scotland's Towns
Supporting Scotland's Towns