Invest in West Lothian - October Newsletter

Celebrating Good News Stories in West Lothian

A New Ten-Year Plan to Boost West Lothian’s Economy and Maximise Opportunity has been Launched

The new West Lothian Economic Investment Plan 2025 – 2035 was official launched at the iconic Almond Valley Heritage Centre in Livingston recently.

A wide range of local business owners and partner organisations were in attendance for the unveiling of the plan, which sets out a framework on how the council and its partners aim to maximise the economic competitiveness of West Lothian and its contribution to the regional and national economies.

It was a fantastic morning with lots of valuable insights, positive conversations and exciting networking opportunities.

You can read the full story here.

The New and Improved Invest in West Lothian Website is Here!

We were also proud to launch the new and improved Invest in West Lothian website this month.  The website is your one stop shop for everything you need to know about living, working and doing business in West Lothian.  There is helpful information about why West Lothian is a great place to do business, our key sectors, the business support that is available, support for individuals, and local news and events. With this new design, it is easier than ever to navigate the site and find the right support for your business.

You can browse the new site here!

Funding for Businesses in West Lothian

The Invest in West Lothian team have extensive experience of preparing funding packages for local businesses of all sizes. Each month, we will highlight a new funding opportunity that is currently available to eligible businesses in the area.

West Lothian Business Funding Webinar

On Wednesday, the 1^st of October, our Growth Advisers hosted a West Lothian Business Funding webinar. During this, they highlighted some of the exciting time limited funding opportunities that are currently available to help eligible local businesses achieve their growth goals.

Funds discussed included our:

• Digital Development Grant
• Innovation Grant
• Project Grant
• Trade Development Grant
• And more!

Please note that all projects funded must be completed by the 31^st of January 2026.

You can watch the full recording of the webinar here  and learn more about all of our funding opportunities here.

Upcoming Events

We are delighted to be hosting the following free events in October:

Sustainability and Procurement Webinar

If you are keen to improve your tendering win rate, don’t miss out our brand-new Sustainability and Procurement webinar on Thursday, the 9^th of October, from 10:30am – 12:00pm. During the webinar, our host Mandy Millar from Intend Business Development will be sharing practical advice on the elements you need to consider when answering the important sustainability questions that can account to up to 10% of total marks when applying for public sector contracts.

Mastering Canva Pro for Creative Marketing

Join us for this exciting webinar to learn how to utilise Canva’s Pro tools, with topics covered including, how to streamline social media management with Canva’s scheduling and quick creation tools, using AI powered features to create content, and creating video content at half the speed. This is taking place from 10:00am – 12:00pm on Thursday, the 30^th of October. 

1:1 Procurement Surgery Sessions

We are offering eligible West Lothian businesses the opportunity to book a free, 1:1 virtual surgery session with a procurement expert from Intend Business Development Ltd. These sessions have been created to help West Lothian business owners improve their understanding of the procurement process and improve their success rate with tender bids. Sessions last 1-hour and flexible appointments are available.

To learn more and book your free space at any of our events, please click here.

If you have any questions about any of the topics covered, please email invest@westlothian.gov.uk .

Have a great month!