How do I find a job when hundreds in my town are redundant?

Martin Hunter, although skilled and well-qualified, has struggled to secure a job after redundancy from Petroineos

Falkirk and Grangemouth sit just over three miles from each other and share a grim bond - both towns have been hit with hundreds of redundancies in the past year.

The Petroineos refinery plant in Grangemouth is in the process of closing down with the loss of over 400 jobs.

Most workers there have agreed to voluntary redundancy deals with work coming to an end in the coming months.

Down the road in Falkirk, bus builder Alexander Dennis plans to cease its operations in Scotland, putting a further 400 jobs at risk.

The UK and Scottish governments are currently working with the company to save jobs but some posts have already gone.

Grangemouth Refinery ceased refining crude oil in April

What this all means is that hundreds are searching for stable work in the small area with limited jobs on offer.

Martin Hunter had worked at the Grangemouth refinery for over 20 years when he was told last year that he was to be made redundant.

He told BBC Scotland News: "I'm quite a skilled person.

"I've got a lot of qualifications so I thought it would be easy for me.

"I spent eight months looking for a job and I've just got a job in the past month."

He's also studying at Forth Valley College in a health and safety course that will hopefully allow him to upgrade his career options.

"No one wants to be in a position where you don't know if you're going to be able to feed your family, don't know where your next pay check is coming from. I'm in that position, but I've been staying positive."

Brenda Bolton runs a snack van in Grangemouth and has seen her business deteriorate at the same time as the job losses

Retraining has become the only viable option for many.

Since the refinery announced its closure, 121 former workers have completed training courses at Forth Valley College and 72 are currently studying there.

Their learning is being supported by a scheme created by Petroineos, the Scottish and UK governments, and Falkirk Council.

But it's not just the staff at the Grangemouth refinery who have suffered the consequences of work drying up.

The Rumbling Tum snack van has served refinery workers for over 30 years. Brenda Bolton took over the business from her mum.

She's been forced to cut staff hours and open at weekends because of dwindling business.

She said: "There was a drastic change when the closure was first announced, I think there was an initial fear put into people about their spending.

"We started to get them back, slowly but surely, but in the past four months it has deteriorated week by week.

"I have noticed the sombre mood and just the whole atmosphere changing. It's devastating."

Plans to shut Alexander Dennis bus manufacturing sites came on the back of the closure of the Petroineos plant at Grangemouth

In a double blow to Brenda, her son lost his job at Alexander Dennis late last year.

"He comes in, and he says, 'Mum, I've lost my job'.

"Every one of the apprentices, they all lost their jobs. It was devastating, especially at Christmas time, and it took him to March to get a job, he was trying everything."

Union leaders had hoped that the Petroineos facility could remain open for longer to provide time for a greener fuel alternative to be established at the site.

The company is to convert the refinery into a terminal able to import petrol, diesel, aviation fuel and kerosene into Scotland, but only 65 of the 400 jobs on site are expected to be retained.

Thousands affected

Brenda is worried. "The future does not look great for families, unless somebody steps up and does something. It's not looking great for the whole economy, the whole town.

"I mean, it's just not affecting people like me, it is all the subcontractors that went in there. There's actually thousands that it's affecting."

Talks are still ongoing with the hopes of saving roles at nearby bus-maker Alexander Dennis. A consultation on its plans to end manufacturing in Scotland, which would result in the loss of 400 jobs, is underway.

Meanwhile, the Scottish government said officials had met the company to discuss the possibility of a furlough scheme.

Laura Pollard was the only female coach builder at Alexander Dennis in Falkirk for years

Until recently, Laura Pollard was the company's only female coach builder. She'd worked at the firm for 35 years, specialising in everything from design to part fitting. But with orders fizzling out, she was also made redundant.

She told BBC Scotland News: "It was pretty bad. We started to notice that a lot of the lines were shutting down. Originally there were six and it sort of went down to three, two and then just one. Lots of people were coming into work and having to sit around the factory with nothing to do.

"I loved my job. I loved making things and I worked in all different departments in the factory. The fun kind of came out of it when we realized that it wasn't going to be there anymore."

Alexander Dennis is proposing to centralise its bus building in Scarborough.

The firm's managing director, Paul Davies, previously told a Holyrood committee it would need to win orders for at least 70 new buses this year before it could keep its Scottish sites open.

Mr Davies said the company would then need to win 300 additional orders next year.

Laura Pollard has worked for Alexander Dennis for 35 years

A majority of Unite union members have now voted in favour of the scheme.

But Laura says not enough is being done: "They need to save jobs. I mean, there's so much talent in this country and they're just letting it go to waste. That's disappointing to me."

Laura was a mental health first aider while working at Alexander Dennis and was an outlet for people struggling.

She still keeps up with many of her former colleagues, some who are still waiting to learn the fate of their jobs: "I'll be there for them, you know, when the inevitable happens. Hopefully we can stay friends and help each other for a long time to come."

'Incredibly difficult time'

The Scottish government said it would continue to meet the firm to discuss a potential furlough scheme hat would aim to prevent compulsory redundancies until new orders came in.

A Scottish government spokesperson said: "The Scottish government is working intensively with the company, trade unions, the wider public transport sector and the UK government to secure the future of Alexander Dennis in Scotland.

"Tonight's ballot outcome is a welcome step forward in ensuring the modernisation of ADL's operations and maintaining bus manufacturing in Scotland."

A UK government spokesperson acknowledged the changes at Grangemouth had been "an incredibly difficult time for workers and their families".

A spokesperson said: "When we came to power, there was no overall plan for the future of the Grangemouth refinery and within weeks we delivered an unprecedented support package.

"The National Wealth Fund will invest £200m in new opportunities and we are working closely with investors to advance sustainable, long-term proposals for the site - alongside this, our training guarantee is already helping former workers retrain for high-skilled jobs."