The deal will unlock a £600m pipeline of work in the region during the next 10 years for 14 councils and other public bodies.

It is the last of the Scottish Futures Trust’s five Scottish hubCos agreements to be signed off, which together are expected to deliver £1.5bn worth of infrastructure projects over the decade.

The Alliance Community Partnerships consortium deal is with six local authorities, three health boards, emergency services and other public bodies in the Ayrshire, Lanarkshire and Dumfries & Galloway areas.

Bill Martin, programme director of the south west hubCo programme board, said:  “The structure of this relationship means that it will bring real opportunities to local businesses as over 80% of the construction value will be competitively tendered to SMEs on the supply chain.

John Hope, accommodation director at the Scottish Futures Trust, said: “Over the next ten years, over £1.5bn of investment will be made in community-based infrastructure across Scotland.

“And in the forthcoming financial year, over £300m of projects, including primary and secondary schools, health and medical centres and community projects will move into the construction or development stage which will be welcome news for the construction industry.”

The hub model allows the private sector partners to work with the public sector across all stages of a development from strategic planning through funding and project delivery, to facilities management via an integrated supply chain.

Every hub project is committed to providing opportunities for Scottish businesses and the local supply chain.