Scottish vacant and derelict land survey 2016

Data collection publication undertaken to establish the extent and state of vacant and derelict land in Scotland.


5 Derelict Land: Levels and Location

5.1 This section focuses exclusively on derelict land, its levels over the past seven years and its location within Scotland. As previously stated, derelict land is land which has been so damaged by development, that it is incapable of development for beneficial use without rehabilitation. The land must currently not be used for the purpose for which it is held or a use acceptable in the local plan. Land also qualifies as derelict if it has an un-remedied previous use which could constrain future development.

5.2 Table 5 shows the area of recorded derelict land in the years 2010-2016, split by local authority. It should be noted that a small number of councils did not participate in every survey between 2010 and 2016.

5.3 Overall, the total amount of derelict land has shown a net increase of 1,487 hectares (17%), from 8,792 hectares in 2010 to 10,279 hectares by 2016. Some councils have seen large percentage decreases (Dundee City, down 58% and Perth & Kinross, down 50%) whereas others have seen increases in levels of derelict land. The larger percentage changes for some councils (for example Argyll & Bute, Clackmannanshire and Moray) are due to there only being a small base of recorded land in 2010. East Ayrshire has almost nine times the amount of derelict land in 2016 compared to 2010. This large increase is due to the addition of 2,217 hectares of land that became derelict due to the liquidation of Scottish Coal and ATH Resources in 2013 causing several surface coal mines to fall out of use. Two larger sites added in the latest year are surplus land (28 hectares) at the INEOS [1] site in Grangemouth, Falkirk and the former manufacturing site (25 hectares) at Kilbagie in Clackmannanshire. Excluding derelict mineral sites, the total amount of derelict land in Scotland has shown a net decrease of 5% (317 hectares) since 2010 (from 6,990 hectares in 2010 to 6,673 hectares in 2016).

5.4 The six councils recording the largest amount of derelict land are East Ayrshire (2,386 ha), Highland (1,276 ha), North Ayrshire (1,124 ha), North Lanarkshire (1,078 ha), Renfrewshire (708 ha), and Glasgow City (640 ha). Together these councils account for 70% of all derelict land recorded in 2016. East Ayrshire on its own accounts for nearly a quarter of all derelict land recorded in 2016.

5.5 Out of these 6 councils East Ayrshire had the biggest increase in its amount of derelict land from 279 hectares in 2010 to 2,386 hectares (almost nine fold increase). North Ayrshire increased only slightly from 1,116 hectares in 2010 to 1,124 hectares in 2016 (up 1%). Glasgow City had the largest decrease in its amount of derelict land from 693 to 640 hectares (down 8%), Renfrewshire decreased from 765 hectares to 708 hectares (down 7%), Highland from 1,373 hectares to 1,276 hectares (down 7%) and North Lanarkshire from 1,139 hectares to 1,078 hectares (down 5%).

Table 5: Total Derelict Land by local authority area, 2010-2016 1,2,3

Local Authority Total Derelict land Area (ha) % Change 2010-2016 5
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Aberdeen City 20 20 26 28 24 20 15 -23%
Aberdeenshire 38 35 35 35 33 33 37 -2%
Angus 119 119 124 124 126 112 100 -16%
Argyll & Bute 4 9 8 8 9 8 37 37 337%
Clackmannanshire 11 14 11 11 15 12 54 397%
Dumfries & Galloway 6 448 448 455 455 454 427 427 -5%
Dundee City 37 14 14 14 18 16 16 -58%
East Ayrshire 279 277 277 285 2,493 2,480 2,386 754%
East Dunbartonshire 56 49 57 56 52 61 67 19%
East Lothian 6 77 74 57 57 56 71 71 -8%
East Renfrewshire 37 38 39 39 36 36 36 -2%
Edinburgh, City of 121 125 112 111 110 95 95 -22%
Falkirk 75 79 79 89 101 108 163 117%
Fife 747 784 766 757 763 550 551 -26%
Glasgow City 693 669 657 644 638 641 640 -8%
Highland 6 1,373 1,373 1,373 1,302 1,299 1,276 1,276 -7%
Inverclyde 24 25 24 26 26 28 82 244%
Loch Lomond & the Trossachs 4 n/a 28 26 26 25 25 25 n/a
Midlothian 259 255 253 253 204 185 178 -31%
Moray 3 2 3 9 9 8 7 168%
Na h-Eileanan Siar 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 -8%
North Ayrshire 1,116 1,127 1,122 1,123 1,135 1,126 1,124 1%
North Lanarkshire 1,139 1,162 1,152 1,142 1,135 1,112 1,078 -5%
Orkney Islands 40 40 40 39 39 39 39 -4%
Perth & Kinross 4 38 40 39 37 25 25 19 -50%
Renfrewshire 765 767 795 784 761 748 708 -7%
Scottish Borders 62 57 58 54 49 49 49 -20%
Shetland Islands 7 7 7 7 5 5 5 -24%
South Ayrshire 71 71 71 70 70 75 81 13%
South Lanarkshire 381 370 350 356 345 340 296 -22%
Stirling 4 140 136 137 131 131 131 117 -17%
West Dunbartonshire 4 189 174 172 168 168 167 157 -17%
West Lothian 6 417 416 416 416 412 341 341 -18%
Scotland 8,792 8,805 8,761 8,658 10,765 10,379 10,279 17%

1. Figures may not sum due to rounding.
2. See Annex Table E for details of council participation in different years.
3. During 2016, historical data for the years 2010-2015 were revised to remove sites that had been taken out of the survey for definitional reasons and to correct any revisions to the data highlighted in the 2016 survey returns. Further information on this process is available in the Annex along with un-amended historical data for the survey years of 1996-2009.
4. From 2011 LLTNP took responsibility for surveying vacant and derelict land within the park boundaries. These sites are no longer recorded in Argyll & Bute, Perth & Kinross, Stirling and West Dunbartonshire local authority boundaries, and are separately identifiable as LLTNP from 2011. Prior to 2011, these sites were classified within the relevant local authority boundary.
5. Previous SVDLS bulletins have used different base years for percentage change and so these percentages should not be compared with those in previous bulletins.
6. 2016 data for Dumfries & Galloway, East Lothian, Highland and West Lothian is carried over from 2015.

5.6 Table 6 shows the number, location and average size of derelict sites by local authority in 2016. The average size of a derelict site in Scotland is 5.2 hectares. Just over three quarters of all Scotland's derelict sites are found within a settlement. The remaining quarter is within the countryside. Whilst a clear majority of derelict sites are located within settlements, there is actually more derelict land outside of settlements (in the countryside) than within. This is because the average size of a countryside site is 14.5 hectares, whereas the average size of a settlement-based derelict site is only 2.2 hectares. Averages have been calculated from the sizes of each reported separate parcel of land rather than the combined size within any one particular site such as those for former surface coal mines. 6,968 hectares of derelict land is currently located within the countryside. This is 68% of the total derelict land in Scotland, whereas the remaining 32% (3,311 hectares) is located within a settlement. It is notable that the 628 hectare former Royal Ordnance site in Renfrewshire and the 507 hectare former surface coal mine near Glenbuck, East Ayrshire between them increase the average size of countryside sites from 12.2 to 14.5 hectares, an increase of 19%.

5.7 North Lanarkshire has the largest number of settlement-based derelict sites with 303 recorded in 2016. North Lanarkshire also has the largest amount of derelict land recorded within settlements in 2016 (770 hectares). This accounts for almost a quarter of all settlement-based derelict land.

5.8 North Lanarkshire also has the largest number of countryside-based derelict sites with 91 (309 hectares) recorded in 2016. East Ayrshire and Highland collectively account for almost half of all countryside-based derelict land. This is due mainly to the presence of some very large derelict sites, namely the former surface coal mines (collectively 2,124 hectares) in East Ayrshire and the Fearn/Fendom Airfields (collectively 681 hectares) as well as Ardersier Port (255 hectares) in Highland.

Table 6: Location of Derelict Sites by local authority and average site size, 2016 1,2

Local Authority In a Settlement In the Countryside All Derelict Land
Area (ha) % of LA's sites in settlements (by Area) No of Sites Average Site Size % of Scottish sites in settlements (by Area) 3 Area (ha) % of LA's sites in the Countryside (by Area) No of Sites Average Site Size % of Scottish sites in the Countryside (by Area) 4 Area (ha) No of Sites Average Site Size
Aberdeen City 15 100 17 0.9 * - - - - - 15 17 0.9
Aberdeenshire 24 64 21 1.1 1 13 36 2 6.7 * 37 23 1.6
Angus 26 26 13 2.0 1 74 74 17 4.3 1 100 30 3.3
Argyll & Bute 5 8 21 8 1.0 * 29 79 3 9.8 * 37 11 3.4
Clackmannanshire 22 41 11 2.0 1 32 59 2 16.1 * 54 13 4.2
Dumfries & Galloway 6 30 7 22 1.3 1 397 93 11 36.1 6 427 33 12.9
Dundee City 16 100 18 0.9 * - - - - - 16 18 0.9
East Ayrshire 65 3 42 1.5 2 2,322 97 57 40.7 33 2,386 99 24.1
East Dunbartonshire 33 49 10 3.3 1 34 51 7 4.9 * 67 17 3.9
East Lothian 6 22 32 9 2.5 1 49 68 16 3.0 1 71 25 2.8
East Renfrewshire 34 95 22 1.6 1 2 5 1 1.7 * 36 23 1.6
Edinburgh, City of 93 98 30 3.1 3 2 2 1 1.8 * 95 31 3.0
Falkirk 109 67 32 3.4 3 54 33 14 3.8 1 163 46 3.5
Fife 219 40 105 2.1 7 332 60 53 6.3 5 551 158 3.5
Glasgow City 604 94 289 2.1 18 36 6 5 7.2 1 640 294 2.2
Highland 6 174 14 75 2.3 5 1,102 86 28 39.4 16 1,276 103 12.4
Inverclyde 82 100 42 1.9 2 - - - - - 82 42 1.9
Loch Lomond & the Trossachs 5 25 100 10 2.5 1 - - - - - 25 10 2.5
Midlothian 12 7 12 1.0 * 167 93 39 4.3 2 178 51 3.5
Moray 7 100 8 0.9 * - - - - - 7 8 0.9
Na h-Eileanan Siar 1 100 3 0.4 * - - - - - 1 3 0.4
North Ayrshire 326 29 87 3.8 10 798 71 46 17.3 11 1,124 133 8.5
North Lanarkshire 770 71 303 2.5 23 309 29 91 3.4 4 1,078 394 2.7
Orkney Islands 3 9 1 3.5 * 35 91 3 11.7 1 39 4 9.6
Perth & Kinross 5 13 69 20 0.7 * 6 31 4 1.5 * 19 24 0.8
Renfrewshire 62 9 37 1.7 2 646 91 4 161.6 9 708 41 17.3
Scottish Borders 34 68 52 0.6 1 16 32 8 2.0 * 49 60 0.8
Shetland Islands 1 10 1 0.5 * 5 90 5 0.9 * 5 6 0.8
South Ayrshire 79 98 38 2.1 2 2 2 2 0.9 * 81 40 2.0
South Lanarkshire 137 46 83 1.6 4 159 54 26 6.1 2 296 109 2.7
Stirling 5 5 4 3 1.7 * 112 96 9 12.4 2 117 12 9.7
West Dunbartonshire 5 157 100 56 2.8 5 - - - - - 157 56 2.8
West Lothian 6 103 30 17 6.1 3 238 70 27 8.8 3 341 44 7.7
Scotland 3,311 32 1,497 2.2 100 6,968 68 481 14.5 100 10,279 1,978 5.2

1. Figures may not sum due to rounding.
2. Settlements as defined by Local Authorities in their latest council approved local plans (see Annex Section A.6).
3. As a percentage of the total amount of derelict land that is within a settlement in Scotland.
4. As a percentage of the total amount of derelict land that is within the countryside in Scotland.
5. From 2011 LLTNP took responsibility for surveying vacant and derelict land within the park boundaries. These sites are no longer recorded in Argyll & Bute, Perth & Kinross, Stirling and West Dunbartonshire local authority boundaries, and are separately identifiable as LLTNP from 2011. Prior to 2011, these sites were classified within the relevant local authority boundary.
6. Data for Dumfries & Galloway, East Lothian, Highland and West Lothian is carried over from 2015.

5.9 Chart 2 shows the ten councils with the largest amount of derelict land in relation to the size of their administrative area. The figures for all councils can be found in Table C in the annex. Approximately 3.7% of Glasgow City's total land area is derelict. The comparative figures for the next highest councils are 2.7% in Renfrewshire, 2.3% in North Lanarkshire, 1.9% in East Ayrshire, 1.3% in North Ayrshire and 1.0% in West Dunbartonshire. Across Scotland as a whole 0.1% of all land is derelict.

Chart 2: Local Authorities with the largest amount of Derelict Land as a percentage of local authority administrative area, 2016 1
Chart 2: Local Authorities with the largest amount of Derelict Land as a percentage of local authority administrative area, 2016
1. Data for West Lothian is carried forward from 2015.

5.10 Table 7 shows the characteristics of derelict land in Scotland during 2016. Of the 1,978 derelict sites recorded in the 2015 survey 1,569 (79%) were given a characteristic. In terms of land the response rate is 8,814 out of 10,279 hectares of derelict land (86%) classified by characteristic.

5.11 Table 7 also shows the variation in the characteristics of derelict land (for the 86% of land that has been classified by characteristic). 30% of this derelict land (2,613 hectares and 119 sites) is recorded as having a mixture of possible left over chemicals/substances and rubble, stone deposits and other material. A further 26% of derelict land (2,299 hectares and 192 sites) is characterised by building remains and possible left over chemicals/substances. Whilst accounting for only 9% of characterised derelict land, it is worth noting that the most common derelict characteristic in terms of sites affected is the remains of buildings, with 628 sites recorded as having this as a single characteristic. It should be noted that there is potential for a lot of overlap in these categories, so the results should be treated with some caution.

Table 7: Derelict Land characteristics, 2016 1,2,3

Derelict Characteristics Derelict Land
Area (ha) % of Derelict Land (by Area) No. of Sites
Building remains 789 9 628
Possible left over chemicals/substances 851 10 249
Abandoned physical material (stone deposits, rubble etc) 539 6 170
Building remains and possible left over chemicals/substances 2,299 26 192
Building remains and abandoned physical material (stone deposits, rubble etc) 411 5 140
Possible left over chemicals/substances and rubble, stone deposits and other material 2,613 30 119
Building remains, possible left over chemicals/substances and abandoned physical material (stone deposits, rubble etc) 1,311 15 71
Percentage of categorised sites   100  
Unknown 2 1,465 - 409
Total 10,279 1,978

1. Figures may not sum due to rounding.
2. Unknown values are excluded from the calculation of percentages.
3. 3,606 hectares of derelict land had previously been used for mineral activity with 63% of this area with derelict characteristics recorded as possible left over chemicals/substances and rubble, stone deposits and other material.

Contact

Email: Planning Statistics

Phone: 0300 244 4000 – Central Enquiry Unit

The Scottish Government
St Andrew's House
Regent Road
Edinburgh
EH1 3DG

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