Thursday February 26th 2026
Hawick Business Centre
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
Scottish Borders Council’s takeover of Hawick Business Centre represents a “huge opportunity”, a senior town councillor believes.
The complex in Oliver Place will enter a new phase from April when it returns to SBC following the conclusion of its current lease with South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE).
The near-£3m centre opened amid much fanfare in April 2024 providing modern, flexible workspaces, meeting rooms, and a digital lab with VR and podcasting facilities.
SOSE has leased the building since its opening, delivering a range of support for entrepreneurs and businesses.
This arrangement has been funded through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, which concludes at the end of March.
The Hawick Business Centre was created as part of an inspiring regeneration project, funded by the Scottish Government and Scottish Borders Council, which transformed a previously neglected group of buildings into state-of-the-art, grade A office space in the centre of Hawick.
But concerns have been raised that the centre has not lived up to its promise due to under-utilisation.
Now SBC will actively market the building for commercial lease, with the goal of supporting local businesses and continuing the strong legacy of enterprise and regeneration within the Hawick community.
The council says this offers an exciting new opportunity for a local entrepreneur or business to benefit from the excellent facilities in the heart of the town.
It’s a view shared by Hawick and Hermitage councillor Watson McAteer, who believes the best may yet be to come for the centre – built on the site of the Former Armstrongs department store.
He explained: “The bottom line is that SOSE has taken over the old Borders College in Buccleuch Road so there is no requirement for them to run two premises in Hawick.
“My view is that this could create a huge opportunity for a commercial enterprise to come and make use of the fantastic facilities and plough jobs and money back into Hawick.
“It could be multi, it could be single, it has commercial opportunity written all over it, perhaps supporting Center Parcs move to the town.
“We need to get a return on the building. My view is that it needs to be commercialised to get jobs for Hawick and money for the council.”
While SOSE will no longer operate from the business centre, it remains fully committed to continuing to work with SBC to support businesses and communities across Hawick and the wider Borders.
This includes the new Borderlands Deep Tech Accelerator Hub, which will be based in Hawick and is expected to be operational from May this year.
The Hub will provide access to advanced technology and specialist support for small and medium‑sized enterprises and entrepreneurs across the South of Scotland.
The Hub is not intended to replace the business centre’s short-term working spaces and small bookable rooms which are currently available up until March 25.
Hawick also continues to provide a number of locations for community meetings and events, offering a variety of flexible venues managed by Live Borders, such as the Heart of Hawick and Hawick Town Hall.
For more information about the many available community spaces in Hawick, please contact the Community Engagement Team at communityengagement@scotborders.gov.uk.
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