2. Vacant and derelict Land

2.1 The survey covers vacant land in, or close to, urban areas and derelict land in both urban and rural areas, subject to certain agreed exclusions and to interpretation by those carrying out the survey. Sites covering less than 0.1 hectares are excluded unless a group of adjacent sites exceeds 0.1 hectare and can be counted as one. The forms used for recording site information are shown in the Annex.

2.2 Derelict land (and buildings) is land which has been so damaged by development or use, that it is incapable of being developed for beneficial use without rehabilitation, and which is not being used for either the purpose for which it is held, or for use acceptable in the local plan. The main exceptions are operational sites where rehabilitation would not be possible or appropriate within 5 years, and land which is derelict through natural causes (for example neglected woodland/farmland) and which appears to have blended into the landscape. All sites where contamination is known or suspected are classed as derelict.

2.3 Vacant land is broadly defined as land in urban settlements (with a population of 2,000 or more) or within one kilometre of the edge of such settlements, which is considered to show the characteristics of urban vacant land (eg land which is unused or unsightly, or which would benefit from development or improvement etc). The main exceptions are land held for operational needs, agricultural land, urban fringe land, and open space within the built up area, even where these offer the prospects of future development, as explained in the Annex.

Vacant and derelict land by council

2.4 Table 1 shows that in 1996 there were 13,101 hectares of vacant and derelict land, of this, 65 per cent was classified as derelict (8,482 hectares). The highest levels of vacant and derelict land were to be found in three councils - Glasgow City, North Lanarkshire and West Lothian - comprising 43 per cent of all vacant and derelict land.

Derelict land

2.5 Chart 2 shows the 12 councils with the highest percentage of derelict land in relation to their area. For example 184 hectares of derelict land in Falkirk represents approximately 0.6 per cent of its total land area. The figures for all councils can be found in the Annex.

Chart 2 : Derelict land as a percentage of an authority’s total land area

2.6 From the chart it can be seen that 5.1 per cent of Glasgow’s land area is derelict whilst in North Lanarkshire, derelict land accounts for approximately 4.6 per cent of the land area. These two councils account for 36 per cent of all derelict land in Scotland.

Vacant land

2.7 From Table 1, it can be seen that the highest levels of vacant land were in Glasgow (726 hectares which represents 16 per cent of all vacant land in Scotland), North Lanarkshire (579 hectares which represents 13 per cent) and Highland (498 hectares which represents 11 per cent).

Comparison of vacant and derelict land between 1995 and 1996

2.8 Table 2 shows a comparison of the areas of vacant and derelict land recorded in the survey years 1995 and 1996. It should also be noted that some councils did not participate in 1995 and/or 1996, and either the 1994 or 1995 figures have been re-used in these cases, where possible.

Table 2 : Vacant and derelict land by unitary authority area 1995 and 1996¹

2.9 The distribution of vacant and derelict land by Local Enterprise Company (LEC) area is shown in Table 3. Land reclamation is one of the LECs’ tasks and this table indicates their coverage in comparison with the local authority distribution given in Table 1. Local Enterprise Company areas with high levels of derelict land include Lanarkshire (2,138 hectares), Lothian and Edinburgh (1,465 hectares) and Glasgow (1,207 hectares).

Table 3: Vacant and derelict land by Local Enterprise Company^1,2

2.10 Table 4 shows the distribution of vacant and derelict land through time. Following local government reform, the Local Enterprise Company areas are the only consistant geographical boundaries upon which a time series can be constructed backwards past 1995. There were no surveys in 1991 and 1992.

2.11 Where Local Enterprise Company areas contain authorities that did not participate in the survey in any particular year, then that authorities previous return has been used to complete the data.

Table 4: Vacant and derelict land by Local Enterprise Company^1,2