Allan Water Developments celebrates 40th anniversary

Allan Water Developments celebrates 40th anniversary

Bridge of Allan-based Allan Water Developments, which encompasses housebuilder Allanwater Homes, has celebrated 40 years in business.

The firm continues to be involved in commercial developments across Scotland, while its housebuilding division has seven current developments across the central belt.

New housing developments are coming soon to Haddington and Chryston near Glasgow, as Allanwater Homes enters new geographic locations for the first time.

In a further bid to build its brand, Allanwater will name these new developments in the same new simplified way as Allanwater Stirling, calling them Allanwater Haddington, and so on.



Managing director David Stirling, who has helped to grow and diversity the company since 1994, said: “We went into the pandemic situation in good shape and are well placed to bounce back quickly afterwards.

“We were very fortunate to reserve a number of properties during lockdown, and have just launched the new Allanwater Stirling development, with two more new developments to launch.”

He cited the new Allanwater brand name for the new developments in Haddington, Stirling, and Chryston as “ground-breaking” for the firm.

“It’s a bit different from the norm, and we feel it will make us stand out. Most housebuilders tend to use the same type of names over and over again at new developments, such as The Meadows, or The Glades and so on, or name them after historical points of interest. We wanted to introduce something simple which puts our brand at the heart,” he said.



“The Haddington development will see us present luxury bungalows to market. It’s our first development in East Lothian, an area where we are not known at all, so we have a real job to do here.

“Similarly, going west to Chryston is another new challenge. It’s our furthest move west as we travel from our traditional heartland of Stirling, Dunblane and the Hillfoots.”

Reflecting on the company’s history, Mr Stirling added: “In the early days for Allan Water Developments, the majority of the work was refurbishing old buildings into flats.

“In the mid-1980s my father Ian bought an old property for the purpose of refurbishment, but it was problematic to split into apartments, and so it ended up becoming a nursing home. This changed the company’s focus, and for the next twenty years Allan Water Developments was essentially a care home business, with all work being completed in house.



“I came into the business in 1994 with a degree in engineering. I wanted to be more development focused, so we started to push back into that in the late 1990s, selling the care home company in 2006.”

Allan Water Developments managed to buck an industry trend by thriving during the recession thanks to carefully selected land acquisitions. In 2007 the firm established Allanwater Homes, a distinct company within its portfolio.

“We continue to do commercial, retail and leisure projects too, but there is a real thrust on growing Allanwater Homes,” Mr Stirling said.

“As a smaller company, we can offer clients a bit more for their money, be it a better quality of finish or more space. We offer flexibility. Unlike volume builders, who are constrained by the nature of their work, we’ll listen to what people want and tailor houses to meet their needs.”


Share icon
Share this article: