With over 30 years of experience working in local government, Paul has a proven track record of managing corporate and commercial assets and delivering significant property projects.

Having started his career at Stirling Council, where he spent 16 years, the 50-year-old moved to West Lothian Council in 2006 to become an Economic Property Development Officer. He then worked his way up to become Property Services Manager.

In that role, he took on responsibility for the management, maintenance, compliance, and development of projects associated with the Council’s operational and commercial property assets.

The role also gave him responsibility for the Property Capital Investment Programme, and allowed him to prioritise spending on modernising services and improving asset performance. This helped turn West Lothian’s portfolio into one of the best performing local authority estates in Scotland.

Credentials

Pictured: The Civic Centre is one of the many high-profile projects Paul helped deliver during his time at West Lothian Council. Pic courtesy of West Lothian Council.

During his 15 years at West Lothian, Paul - who is originally from Stirling but now lives in Larbert – also helped the Council deliver several large-scale projects, including:

• Heartlands, Whitburn: viewed as one of the biggest land remediation and regeneration projects in Europe, Paul led on the council’s interests to deliver a new motorway junction, business park and associated infrastructure that unlocked capacity for 2,000 new homes, over 1.5 million square feet of commercial space, as well as retail and leisure facilities.
• Civic Centre Headquarters, Livingston: as well as developing partnership centres in Linlithgow, Armadale, East Calder, and Livingston North, he oversaw the management of the Council’s Civic Centre, home to a range of public services including the Council, Police Scotland, NHS, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service.
• West Calder, High School: a £32m project to deliver the award-winning school. He also led the property team to co-locate two new secondary schools, primary school, and community sports facilities in Winchburgh and, most recently, the £14.3m state-of-the-art Calderwood Primary School.

This work provides him with the experience and expertise needed to positively influence and drive forward major projects for Falkirk Council, including the HQ & Arts Centre, the Strategic Property Review, Grangemouth Flood Protection Scheme, and Investment Zone and Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) projects.

Paul will join the new Place Services Directorate at Falkirk Council at the end of March.

Local roots

Cllr Cecil Meiklejohn, Leader of Falkirk Council, said the interview panel had been "impressed" by Paul’s experience of managing a large property portfolio and his overall performance history.

She said:

“Paul will be a great asset to the Council. His experience, knowledge, and passion for delivering change, that brings both economic and community benefit, will complement the vast expertise already held within the teams he will lead. By coming on board, he will help ensure Invest Falkirk becomes a real force for change.”

For Paul, the role will allow him to build on his experience sustaining and improving performance and service delivery while also benefitting the area in which he has lived for the past three years.

He said:

“As a local resident, I am acutely aware of the challenges and the exciting opportunities that lie ahead. I look forward to working with colleagues who have already undertaken significant work to develop and drive forward projects worth up to £1billion. These projects will not only support economic recovery and encourage growth and investment but also help modernise the Council’s property assets and support service delivery.”