Overview
Fort William 2040 (FW2040) is a long-term programme that brings people together to plan and deliver a shared vision for the future of Fort William and Lochaber.
The Vision, Masterplan and Delivery Programme were developed using feedback from consultation events held in 2018 and 2019. These events involved people who live, work and invest in the area. We continue to gather feedback through engagement events and consultations. This helps shape the Vision, individual projects and future plans for Fort William and Lochaber.
Find out more about engagement
The Vision
The FW2040 consultation process asked people what they wanted Fort William and the wider Lochaber area to be like in the future. Many comments focused on how land and water could be used better within the town. People also recognised the importance of Fort William as Lochaber's main town and how changes there affect residents, businesses and visitors across the wider area. People told us that working together would help achieve more for the area.
The qualities and values the town and area should represent were distilled into the following themes:
- a Great Place to Live - with a unique landscape and strong local communities. Providing enough affordable housing is a key priority, alongside facilities and accommodation for visitors. There is also a need to attract and retain a wide range of residents, visitors and businesses.
- a Connected Place - focusing on making the most of transport links, digital connections and new technologies.
- a Place Facing Water - recognising the importance of water and making better use of our rivers, lochs and coastline to support communities, tourism and business.
- a Place with Collective Vision - supporting all FW2040 work through strong partnerships, good communication and shared goals.
- addressing Climate Change and Ecological Emergency - added following feedback received in 2019. Many people felt this should guide all FW2040 projects. Partners agreed to work towards making Fort William a net-zero town. Larger projects will be assessed for their environmental impact as they develop, and all projects are encouraged to help achieve the net-zero target.
Masterplan and Delivery Programme
The Masterplan provides an overview of projects that have been delivered or are being developed to support the FW2040 Vision. Projects are at different stages. Some are already underway, while others need more work to explore funding and feasibility before they can move forward. Every project included in the Masterplan has support and remains part of the wider vision for the area.
We report progress through the FW2040 Update, which is presented to the Lochaber Area Committee up to twice a year, usually in January and August.
FW2040 updates include:
- progress on projects
- programme management arrangements
- key priorities and issues
- next steps
FW2040 partners also meet four times a year through the Programme Board to review progress and support the delivery of projects.