Published Date: May 15th, 2025
Fife Council welcomes the Scottish Government's announcement, awarding £50,000 to piloting a Citizens’ Assembly in Dunfermline.
Citizens’ Assemblies enable communities to discuss, deliberate and make decisions on issues and topics that are important to them.
Public Finance Minister Ivan McKee said:“The Scottish Government places great value on community empowerment and providing more people the opportunity to participate in the decisions that matter to them, so we are pleased to be supporting this innovative pilot.
“This project will also provide valuable learning for our joint Democracy Matters process with COSLA, which is designing new community decision making models to support communities across Scotland to take ownership of important decisions.”
Cllr James Calder, Area Convenor for the City of Dunfermline Area Committee, expressed his enthusiasm for the announcement: "We’re thrilled with the Scottish Government's commitment to empowering our local community through a Citizens’ Assembly.
“As Scotland’s newest city, it’s an exciting opportunity for residents to actively participate in decision-making processes that directly affect their lives. I look forward to seeing how this pilot develops and working with the Citizen’s Assembly to help Dunfermline thrive."
The Electoral Reform Society Scotland (ERS Scotland) is working in partnership with Fife Council to pilot this project in Dunfermline. Willie Sullivan, Director of ERS Scotland said:“ERS Scotland are delighted to see the opportunity Dunfermline now has to lead Scottish democracy.
“The challenges our communities are facing are larger than ever before, and we strongly believe it is the people who live in Dunfermline who know what their community needs and what they hope for.
“The Dunfermline Citizens Assembly gives a new way for the people of Dunfermline to influence the future of their city.
“Once the ancient capital, Dunfermline is now the leader in modern democratic innovation.”
Already, ERS Scotland and Fife Council have been conducting outreach work across Dunfermline to raise awareness of the initiative. Dunfermline resident, Peter Reid moved to the city twenty years ago to work with the Scottish Civic Forum, involving communities in the decisions that affect them. Since then, he has been an active member of his local community council and has got to know and work with volunteers, activists, and community groups from across Dunfermline.
Speaking about this outreach work, he said: “Dunfermline already has great volunteers and community groups, bringing in new and different voices can only make Dunfermline a better place for everyone. This is a real opportunity for the people of Dunfermline to have a say on the issues that affect them. “
Part of this has involved the design of a declaration. Those who are interested can read and sign up to the declaration on the 19th of May 2025 at www.dunfermlineassembly.org/.
