Scottish Vacant and Derelict Land Survey 2015

The Scottish Vacant and Derelict Land Survey is a data collection undertaken to establish the extent and state of vacant and derelict land in Scotland. The survey has been operating since 1988, and is managed by the Scottish Government Communities Analysi


5 Derelict Land: Levels and Location

5.1 This section focuses exclusively on derelict land, its levels over the past 7 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 2009-2015, split by local authority. It should be noted that a small number of councils did not participate in every survey between 2009 and 2015.

5.3 Overall, the total amount of derelict land has shown a net increase of 1,424 hectares (16%), from 8,941 hectares in 2009 to 10,365 hectares by 2015. Some councils have seen large percentage decreases (Dundee City, down 61% and West Lothian and Perth & Kinross, both down 38%) whereas others have seen increases in levels of derelict land. East Ayrshire has almost nine times the amount of derelict land in 2015 compared to 2009. 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. Some of the larger percentage changes for other councils (for example Argyll & Bute, Moray and Shetland Islands) are due to there only being a small base of recorded land in 2009. Excluding derelict mineral sites, the total amount of derelict land in Scotland has shown a net decrease of 5% (364 hectares) since 2009 (from 6,960 hectares in 2009 to 6,597 hectares in 2015).

5.4 The six councils recording the largest amount of derelict land are East Ayrshire (2,481 ha), Highland (1,276 ha), North Ayrshire (1,125 ha), North Lanarkshire (1,109 ha), Renfrewshire (748 ha), and Glasgow City (641 ha). Together these councils account for more than 70% of all derelict land recorded in 2015. East Ayrshire on its own accounts for nearly a quarter of all derelict land recorded in 2015.

5.5 Out of these 6 councils East Ayrshire had the biggest increase in its amount of derelict land from 279 hectares in 2009 to 2,481 hectares (almost nine fold increase). North Ayrshire increased only slightly from 1,114 hectares in 2009 to 1,125 hectares in 2015 (up 1%). Glasgow City had the largest decrease in its amount of derelict land from 719 to 641 hectares (down 11%), North Lanarkshire from 1,146 hectares to 1,109 hectares (down 3%), Highland from 1,303 hectares to 1,276 hectares (down 2%) and Renfrewshire decreased from 767 hectares to 748 hectares (down 3%).

Table 5: Total Derelict Land by local authority area, 2009-2015 1,2,3

Local Authority Total Derelict land Area (ha) % Change 2009-2015 5
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Aberdeen City 29 20 20 26 28 24 20 -30%
Aberdeenshire 38 38 35 35 35 33 33 -13%
Angus 112 119 119 124 124 126 112 0%
Argyll & Bute 4 6 9 8 8 9 8 37 513%
Clackmannanshire 11 11 14 11 11 15 12 9%
Dumfries & Galloway 452 448 448 455 455 454 427 -6%
Dundee City 40 37 14 14 14 18 16 -61%
East Ayrshire 279 279 277 277 285 2,493 2,481 788%
East Dunbartonshire 56 56 48 56 56 52 61 9%
East Lothian 77 77 74 57 57 56 71 -8%
East Renfrewshire 37 37 38 39 39 34 35 -6%
Edinburgh, City of 130 121 125 112 111 110 95 -27%
Falkirk 90 75 79 79 89 101 105 16%
Fife 747 746 782 764 755 761 548 -27%
Glasgow City 719 693 669 657 644 638 641 -11%
Highland 1,303 1,373 1,373 1,373 1,302 1,299 1,276 -2%
Inverclyde 24 24 25 24 26 26 28 14%
Loch Lomond & the Trossachs 4 n/a n/a 28 26 26 25 25 n/a
Midlothian 260 259 255 253 253 204 185 -29%
Moray 6 3 2 3 9 9 8 24%
Na h-Eileanan Siar 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0%
North Ayrshire 1,114 1,114 1,125 1,119 1,120 1,132 1,125 1%
North Lanarkshire 1,146 1,137 1,160 1,150 1,139 1,132 1,109 -3%
Orkney Islands 39 40 40 40 39 39 39 -1%
Perth & Kinross 4 40 38 40 39 37 25 25 -38%
Renfrewshire 767 765 766 794 783 760 748 -3%
Scottish Borders 70 62 57 58 54 49 49 -30%
Shetland Islands 7 7 7 7 7 5 5 -24%
South Ayrshire 73 70 70 70 69 69 74 1%
South Lanarkshire 378 378 366 346 353 344 339 -10%
Stirling 4 139 140 136 137 131 131 131 -6%
West Dunbartonshire 4 197 189 174 172 168 168 167 -15%
West Lothian 554 417 416 416 416 412 341 -38%
Scotland 8,941 8,780 8,793 8,748 8,645 10,753 10,365 16%

1. Figures may not sum due to rounding.
2. See Annex Table E for details of council participation in different years.
3. During 2015, historical data for the years 2009-2014 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 2015 survey returns. Further information on this process is available in the Annex along with un-amended historical data for the survey years of 1996-2008.
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.

5.6 Table 6 shows the number, location and average size of derelict sites by local authority in 2015. The average size of a derelict site in Scotland is 5.3 hectares. Just over three quarters of all Scotland's derelict sites are found within a settlement. The remaining quarter are 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 14.7 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. 7,112 hectares of derelict land is currently located within the countryside. This is 69% of the total derelict land in Scotland, whereas the remaining 31% (3,253 hectares) is located within a settlement. It is notable that the 666 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 12.3 to 14.7 hectares, an increase of 19%.

5.7 North Lanarkshire has the largest number of settlement-based derelict sites with 305 recorded in 2015. North Lanarkshire also has the largest amount of derelict land recorded within settlements in 2015 (798 hectares). This accounts for a quarter of all settlement-based derelict land.

5.8 North Lanarkshire also has the largest number of countryside-based derelict sites with 89 (312 hectares) recorded in 2015. 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 2,217 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, 2015 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 20 100 19 1.1 1 - - - - - 20 19 1.1
Aberdeenshire 20 60 17 1.2 1 13 40 2 6.7 * 33 19 1.7
Angus 28 25 13 2.1 1 84 75 17 4.9 1 112 30 3.7
Argyll & Bute 5 8 21 8 1.0 * 29 79 3 9.8 * 37 11 3.4
Clackmannanshire 12 100 12 1.0 * - - - - - 12 12 1.0
Dumfries & Galloway 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 66 3 44 1.5 2 2,415 97 55 43.9 34 2,481 99 25.1
East Dunbartonshire 32 52 8 4.0 1 29 48 7 4.1 * 61 15 4.0
East Lothian 22 32 9 2.5 1 49 68 16 3.0 1 71 25 2.8
East Renfrewshire 33 94 21 1.6 1 2 6 2 1.0 * 35 23 1.5
Edinburgh, City of 93 98 33 2.8 3 2 2 1 1.8 * 95 34 2.8
Falkirk 51 49 16 3.2 2 53 51 13 4.1 1 105 29 3.6
Fife 218 40 99 2.2 7 329 60 52 6.3 5 548 151 3.6
Glasgow City 605 94 289 2.1 19 36 6 5 7.2 1 641 294 2.2
Highland 174 14 75 2.3 5 1,102 86 28 39.4 15 1,276 103 12.4
Inverclyde 28 100 31 0.9 1 - - - - - 28 31 0.9
Loch Lomond & the Trossachs 5 25 100 10 2.5 1 - - - - - 25 10 2.5
Midlothian 12 6 13 0.9 * 173 94 42 4.1 2 185 55 3.4
Moray 8 100 11 0.7 * - - - - - 8 11 0.7
Na h-Eileanan Siar 1 100 4 0.3 * - - - - - 1 4 0.3
North Ayrshire 327 29 86 3.8 10 798 71 46 17.3 11 1,125 132 8.5
North Lanarkshire 798 72 305 2.6 25 312 28 89 3.5 4 1,109 394 2.8
Orkney Islands 3 9 1 3.5 * 35 91 3 11.7 * 39 4 9.6
Perth & Kinross 5 19 76 24 0.8 1 6 24 4 1.5 * 25 28 0.9
Renfrewshire 64 9 37 1.7 2 684 91 4 171.0 10 748 41 18.2
Scottish Borders 33 68 51 0.6 1 16 32 8 2.0 * 49 59 0.8
Shetland Islands 1 10 1 0.5 * 5 90 5 0.9 * 5 6 0.8
South Ayrshire 73 98 33 2.2 2 1 2 1 1.4 * 74 34 2.2
South Lanarkshire 146 43 83 1.8 4 192 57 34 5.7 3 339 117 2.9
Stirling 5 19 14 6 3.1 1 112 86 10 11.2 2 131 16 8.2
West Dunbartonshire 5 167 100 64 2.6 5 - - - - - 167 64 2.6
West Lothian 103 30 17 6.1 3 238 70 27 8.8 3 341 44 7.7
Scotland 2 3,253 31 1,480 2.2 100 7,112 69 485 14.7 100 10,365 1,965 5.3

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.

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 2.9% in Renfrewshire, 2.4% in North Lanarkshire, 2.0% in East Ayrshire, 1.3% in North Ayrshire and 1.1% 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, 2015

Chart 2: Local Authorities with the largest amount of Derelict Land as a percentage of local authority administrative area, 2015

5.10 Table 7 shows the characteristics of derelict land in Scotland during 2015. Of the 1,965 derelict sites recorded in the 2015 survey 1,560 (79%) were given a characteristic. In terms of land the response rate is 8,919 out of 10,365 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 (2,717 hectares and 121 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 (2,316 hectares and 193 sites) is characterised by building remains and possible left over chemicals/substances. Whilst accounting for only 8% 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 599 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, 2015 1,2

Derelict Characteristics Derelict Land
Area (ha) % of Derelict Land (by Area) No. of Sites
Building remains 749 8 599
Possible left over chemicals/substances 859 10 257
Abandoned physical material (stone deposits, rubble etc) 553 6 182
Building remains and possible left over chemicals/substances 2,316 26 193
Building remains and abandoned physical material (stone deposits, rubble etc) 441 5 143
Possible left over chemicals/substances and rubble, stone deposits and other material 2,717 30 121
Building remains, possible left over chemicals/substances and abandoned physical material (stone deposits, rubble etc) 1,285 14 65
Percentage of categorised sites   100  
Unknown 2 1,446 - 405
Total 10,365 1,965

1. Figures may not sum due to rounding.
2. Unknown values are excluded from the calculation of percentages

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