The state of the buildings in Irvine high street has been branded a disgrace by a concerned community councillor.

Community councillor Wilma Fraser says despite millions being spent investing in new paving complained that crumbling buildings are being ignored and ‘getting worse’.

North Ayrshire Council said they share the concerns, and despite not having ‘required resources', hope a Scottish Government fund could support this.

Wilma Fraser said: “The high street is a disgrace with the buildings and it’s getting worse. 

“They’re spending millions on the ground to dig it up again, but if you’re walking along you don’t need to raise your head up much to see it’s a total disgrace. Nothing seems to be getting done.

“These buildings do not belong to the council they belong to people that are just ignoring them. As a resident, if I let my grass grow up or if I had a dangerous wall they wouldn’t be long in coming to tell me."

A North Ayrshire Council spokesperson: “We are currently in the middle of our programme of improvements to the public realm in Irvine town centre.

“As part of this wideranging refurbishment programme, more than £ 200,000 has been earmarked for initiatives such as marketing of town centre shops and services, and a property repair or shopfront improvement scheme. We envisage that once the work is complete, both visitors and retailers will see the benefits from a much-improved town centre environment.

“Nevertheless, we share the concerns about derelict buildings in our town centres and the impression that this creates, particularly given the significant levels of investment by the council over recent years.

“This is an issue which affects many of our towns. Unfortunately, we do not have the resources that would be required to address these empty properties. We do keep in contact with the owners of the private properties where possible and encourage them to bring forward development schemes which would allow the buildings to be brought back into use.

“The Scottish Government has also recently announced a new Town Centre Fund and we will examine if this will provide additional resources which could support the regeneration of our towns.”