Inverclyde ( sco, Inerclyde, gd, Inbhir Chluaidh, , "mouth of the Clyde") is one of 32
council areas
For local government purposes, Scotland is divided into 32 areas designated as "council areas" ( gd, comhairlean), which are all governed by single-tier authorities designated as "councils". They have the option under the Local Government (Ga ...
used for local government in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
. Together with the
East Renfrewshire and
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire () ( sco, Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland.
Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Re ...
council areas, Inverclyde forms part of the
historic county of
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire () ( sco, Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland.
Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Re ...
, which currently exists as a
registration county and
lieutenancy area
Lieutenancy areas are the separate areas of the United Kingdom appointed a lord-lieutenant – a representative of the British monarch. In many cases they have similar demarcation and naming to, but are not necessarily coterminate with, the coun ...
– located in the west
central Lowlands
The Central Lowlands, sometimes called the Midland Valley or Central Valley, is a geologically defined area of relatively low-lying land in southern Scotland. It consists of a rift valley between the Highland Boundary Fault to the north and ...
. It borders the
North Ayrshire and Renfrewshire council areas, and is otherwise surrounded by the
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde is the mouth of the River Clyde. It is located on the west coast of Scotland and constitutes the deepest coastal waters in the British Isles (it is 164 metres deep at its deepest). The firth is sheltered from the Atlantic ...
.
Inverclyde was formerly one of nineteen
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...
s within
Strathclyde Region, from 1975 until 1996. Prior to 1975, Inverclyde was governed as part of the local government
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire () ( sco, Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland.
Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Re ...
, comprising the burghs of
Greenock,
Port Glasgow and
Gourock
Gourock ( ; gd, Guireag ) is a town in the Inverclyde council area and formerly a burgh of the County of Renfrew in the west of Scotland. It was a seaside resort on the East shore of the upper Firth of Clyde. Its main function today is as a ...
, and the former fifth district of the county. Its landward area is bordered by the Kelly, North and South Routen burns to the southwest (separating
Wemyss Bay and
Skelmorlie,
North Ayrshire), part of the
River Gryfe and the Finlaystone Burn to the south-east.
It is one of the smallest in terms of area () and population () out of the 32 Scottish unitary authorities. Along with the council areas clustered around
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
it is considered part of
Greater Glasgow
Greater Glasgow is an urban settlement in Scotland consisting of all localities which are physically attached to the city of Glasgow, forming with it a single contiguous urban area (or conurbation). It does not relate to municipal government ...
in some definitions, although it is physically separated from the city area by open countryside and does not share a border with the city.
The name derives from the extinct
barony of
Inverclyde (1897) conferred upon
Sir John Burns of
Wemyss Bay and his heirs.
Council
Inverclyde District
Inverclyde was one of nineteen
local government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-l ...
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...
s in the
Strathclyde
Strathclyde ( in Gaelic, meaning "strath (valley) of the River Clyde") was one of nine former local government regions of Scotland created in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and abolished in 1996 by the Local Government et ...
region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
of
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
, which existed between 1975 and 1996. The district was formed by the
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 from part of the
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire () ( sco, Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland.
Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Re ...
. The boundaries remain the same as those of the modern council area. The remaining parts of the
County of Renfrew (Renfrewshire) were divided between two other districts:
Eastwood and
Renfrew District. In 1996 Inverclyde District was abolished under the provisions of the
Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994
The Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 (c. 39) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which created the current local government structure of 32 unitary authorities covering the whole of Scotland.
It abolished the two-tie ...
. Most of its area became the new Inverclyde council area, with the regions - such as Strathclyde - disappearing entirely.
Towns and villages
‡ Taken from Inverclyde Ward 1 figure, minus Kilmacolm settlement population.
Places of interest
*
Ardgowan Estate
*The Bogal Stone
*
Cappielow
*
Castle Levan
*
Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park
*Greenock Cut Visitor Centre
*Custom House Quay and Museum
*
Duchal House
*
Finlaystone House
Finlaystone House is a mansion and Estate (land), estate in the Inverclyde council areas of Scotland, council area and counties of Scotland, historic county of Renfrewshire (historic), Renfrewshire. It lies near the southern bank of the Firth of ...
*
Gourock
Gourock ( ; gd, Guireag ) is a town in the Inverclyde council area and formerly a burgh of the County of Renfrew in the west of Scotland. It was a seaside resort on the East shore of the upper Firth of Clyde. Its main function today is as a ...
Outdoor Pool
*
Granny Kempock Stone
*
Loch Thom
*
Lunderston Bay
*McLean Museum and Art Gallery
*
Newark Castle
*Waterfront Leisure Complex
National voting
In the
2014 independence referendum, the "No" vote won in Inverclyde by just 86 votes and a margin of 0.2%. By either measure, this was the narrowest result of any of the 32 council areas. In the
2016 EU Referendum, Inverclyde posted a "Remain" vote of almost 64%.
Education
Inverclyde has twenty primary schools serving all areas of its settlements. These are:
* Aileymill Primary School, Greenock (merger of Larkfield and Ravenscraig primaries)
* All Saints Primary School, Greenock (merger of St. Kenneth's and St. Lawrence's primaries)
* Ardgowan Primary School, Greenock
* Gourock Primary School, Gourock
* Inverkip Primary School, Inverkip
* Kilmacolm Primary School, Kilmacolm/Port Glasgow
* King's Oak Primary School, Greenock (merger of King's Glen and Oakfield primaries)
* Lady Alice Primary School, Greenock
* Moorfoot Primary School, Gourock
* Newark Primary School, Port Glasgow (merger of Boglestone, Clune Park, Highholm and Slaemuir primaries)
* St. Andrew's Primary School, Greenock (merger of Sacred Heart and St. Gabriel's primaries)
* St. Francis' Primary School, Port Glasgow
* St. John's Primary School, Port Glasgow
* St. Joseph's Primary School, Greenock
* St. Mary's Primary School, Greenock
* St. Michael's Primary School, Port Glasgow
* St. Ninian's Primary School, Gourock
* St. Patrick's Primary School, Greenock
* Wemyss Bay Primary School, Wemyss Bay
* Whinhill Primary School, Greenock (merger of Highlanders' Academy and Overton primaries)
These are connected to several Secondary schools which serve Inverclyde as follows:
*
Clydeview Academy, serving the West End of Greenock and the town of
Gourock
Gourock ( ; gd, Guireag ) is a town in the Inverclyde council area and formerly a burgh of the County of Renfrew in the west of Scotland. It was a seaside resort on the East shore of the upper Firth of Clyde. Its main function today is as a ...
*
Inverclyde Academy, serving South and East Greenock as well as the villages of
Inverkip
Inverkip (Scottish Gaelic: ''Inbhir Chip'') is a village and parish in the Inverclyde council area and historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland, southwest of Greenock and north of Largs on the A78 trunk road. T ...
and
Wemyss Bay
*
Notre Dame High School, serving
Greenock
*
Port Glasgow High School, serving
Port Glasgow and
Kilmacolm
Kilmacolm () is a village and civil parish in the Inverclyde council area, and the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the northern slope of the Gryffe Valley, southeast of Greenock and aroun ...
*
St Columba's High School, Gourock/Greenock, serving Gourock, Inverkip and Wemyss Bay
*
St. Stephen's High School
St. Stephen's High School () is an Episcopal Church in the Philippines, Episcopalian school, located in the Binondo, Manila, Binondo district of Manila. It is considered the first Christian Chinese school established in Luzon. The school offers ...
, serving Port Glasgow, Kilmacolm and the East End of Greenock
*
Craigmarloch School which is an Additional Support Needs school for pupils aged 4–18 based at the new Port Glasgow Community Campus after the merging of Glenburn and Lilybank schools.
Demography
The average life expectancy for Inverclyde male residents (2013–2015) is 75.4 years, to rank 28th out of the 32 areas in Scotland. The average Inverclyde female lives for 80.4 years, to rank 26th out 32. There are large
health disparities
Health equity arises from access to the social determinants of health, specifically from wealth, power and prestige. Individuals who have consistently been deprived of these three determinants are significantly disadvantaged from health inequiti ...
between settlements in Inverclyde with many health indicators being above the Scottish average in certain areas, whilst considerably below in others.
In 2019, the Inverclyde Council Area was rated as the most deprived in Scotland by the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD), with Greenock Town Centre the most deprived community. (The term "deprivation" refers not only to low income according to the BBC, but may also include "fewer resources and opportunities, for example in health and education".) After the announcement, Deputy leader Jim Clocherty said that he hoped that investment money would arrive soon, and that "no part of Scotland wants to be labelled as the 'most deprived'". A £3m investment was scheduled for Greenock Town Centre and there was also plan to create a new cruise visitor centre with other investment funds being expected.
See also
*
List of places in Inverclyde
References
External links
Inverclyde Council website
{{Authority control
Council areas of Scotland
Firth of Clyde