About Loudoun Proud

Loudoun Proud is a local news publication for Newmilns, Darvel, Galston, Hurlford, Crookedholm, Priestland and the rest of the Irvine Valley.

The valley has not had proper coverage of its own for a long time. What happens here reaches people through Facebook groups that are noisy and unreliable, or through a Kilmarnock paper where valley stories come second. Most of what matters — a planning application, a closure, a funeral, a result — never gets written down anywhere at all.

This is an attempt to fix that. Twice a week, in your inbox and on this site: what is happening, what is planned, what is closing, who has died, and what the council is doing.

How we work

We show our workings

Where a story comes from a public record — a planning application, a council paper — we link to the original so you can read it yourself. We would rather you checked than took our word for it.

We correct things properly

We will get things wrong. When we do, we correct the article, say what was wrong at the foot of it, and do not quietly edit the record. If you spot a mistake, tell us and we will fix it.

Advertising is always marked

Sponsored content carries a Sponsored tag everywhere it appears — in the feed, in search results, in the breadcrumb. A sponsor buys a placement, never a story and never protection from one. Our rates are published openly.

We protect people who tell us things

If you ask not to be named, you will not be named. We do not publish someone's identity against a tip-off without their permission.

We are careful with grief

Family notices are handled with care and moderated before publication. No engagement metrics, no recommendations alongside them, no attempt to make a death into traffic.

Who is behind it

Loudoun Proud is written and edited from within the valley, by people who live here. It is a small operation and deliberately so — a publication that reliably puts out good local reporting twice a week is worth more than one that promises daily and burns out.

Get in touch

Tip-offs, corrections and story ideas go to our contact page, or straight to news@loudounproud.co.uk.

If you run a business in the valley, advertising starts here. If you want the valley in your inbox, subscribe — it is free and always will be.