A year-long project aimed at improving confidence in the police in Irvine's Fullarton area is set to come to a conclusion this week.

The Scottish Police Authority and Police Scotland will be hosting a final event to discuss what their Community Confidence Action Research Project has achieved over its time in the area as the project's work in Irvine comes to a close.

Last year, the Times revealed the results of a shock survey showing almost half of residents in the Fullarton area lacked confidence in officers' capacity to tackle anti-social behaviour.

The Scottish Police Authority (SPA) study discovered 46 per cent of those surveyed said cops were doing a 'somewhat poor' or 'very poor' job dealing with the issue.

In the study, carried out between February and March last year, locals highlighted 'distressing' anti social behaviour by young people at the beach park or shopping centre, as well as drug-related crime.

Now the results of a project aimed at tackling those findings will be revealed at two meetings in Fullarton Community Hub tomorrow, Thursday, February 8.

The two sessions will be held from 3.30-4.30pm and from 5.30-6.30pm.

This event follows on from one held in July 2023 where, based on feedback from the community, Police Scotland outlined initiatives to try and enhance confidence in policing in Irvine Fullarton and gathered views from the community on these initiatives.

Those initiatives were evaulated between September and December.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "This event will outline the work that has been undertaken in Irvine Fullarton as part of this project along with the future of the initiatives undertaken by Police Scotland.

"We also want to hear from people in Irvine Fullarton on their views of the project and any feedback that could inform learning for future projects.  

"This event is open to residents, community groups and others who regularly visit Irvine Fullarton and refreshments will be provided. "

The event forms part of a piece of research which the SPA and Police Scotland are carrying out in various locations across Scotland.

The wider research project, which runs until March 2024, aims to understand more about confidence in policing in areas that experience deprivation in some way, as national research indicates that confidence in the police is lower.

This can mean many different things, for instance not having local access to a GP surgery, or having infrequent public transport links, and is not solely about income or employment.

For more details, Email: ProjectDeprivationAndConfidence@spa.police.uk