South West Locality Improvement Plan
South West Locality Information
The South West Locality covers 4 ward areas, Sighthill/Gorgie, Colinton/Fairmilehead, Fountainbridge/Craiglockhart and Pentland Hills.
The population of the area is 113,492.
South West Edinburgh also has some of the densest and most sparsely populated areas within Edinburgh. In 2015 the Pentland Hills Ward had less than 400 people per km2, mostly concentrated in the villages of Balerno, Currie, Ratho and Juniper Green. By comparison Sighthill/Gorgie had a population density of over 4,500 people per km2, much of it concentrated in flats closer to the city centre.
Key challenges
- Over the next 20 years the South West is expected to see a significant rise in the older population. In particular the number of people aged over 85 is expected to increase by 120%, a rise from roughly 2,300 to 5,000 by 2037
- South West has a slightly higher rate of income deprivation than Edinburgh as a whole. Child poverty in South West is joint second highest, with South East. One in five children live in low income households
- The proportion of people claiming work related benefits varies between the four South West wards, from a low of 4.9% of working age residents in Colinton/ Fairmilehead to a high of 12.0% in Sighthill/Gorgie. The overall rate for the locality is 8.1%, which is the second highest amongst the four localities and compares to a city rate of 7.7%
The revised priorities
- Undertsand and take steps to address the causes and motivation of hate crimes
- Increased community involvement in food growing
- Reducing lonliness and isolation
- Improved quality, level and continued participation of all young people in education, employment or training
- Families that experience unsafe environments are supported to reach their full potential