Inverclyde

Updated on Oct 18, 2023

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Population 82,432 (2004) University James Watt College		Capital Greenock Area 60 sq mi

Map of Inverclyde

Inverclyde (Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Chluaidh, [iɲiɾʲˈxlˠ̪uəj], "mouth of the Clyde") is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Together with the East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire council areas, Inverclyde forms part of the historic county of Renfrewshire, which currently exists as a registration county and lieutenancy area - located in the west central Lowlands. It borders the North Ayrshire and Renfrewshire council areas, and is otherwise surrounded by the Firth of Clyde.

Inverclyde was formerly one of nineteen districts within Strathclyde Region, from 1975 until 1996. Prior to 1975, Inverclyde was governed as part of the local government county of Renfrewshire, comprising the burghs of Greenock, Port Glasgow and Gourock, and the former fifth district of the county. Its landward area is bordered by the Kelly, North and South Routen burns to the south west (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 (29th) and population (28th) out of the 32 Scottish unitary authorities. Along with the council areas clustered around Glasgow it is considered part of Greater Glasgow 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.

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Inverclyde snp council election 2017

Towns and villages

‡ Taken from Inverclyde Ward 1 figure, minus Kilmacolm settlement population.

Council

Until recently, Inverclyde was the only authority in the United Kingdom not to have named electoral wards: whilst the local authority reserved its right to name wards, it failed to supply any to the Local Government Boundary Commission. This was rectified in the 2006 review.

Composition

Following the Council elections of 2017 the current composition of Inverclyde Council is:

The election resulted in no overall control of the council.

Recent history

The council gained national notoriety in 2005 following harsh criticism from the Accounts Commission regarding poor leadership and accountability. In November 2005 the council was given a 6-month deadline to reorganise and improve further, following the resignation of the council chief in September and organisational changes in the wake of the original report.

Following this criticism the Chief Executive of Inverclyde Council Robert Cleary stepped down and a new chief executive John Mundell was appointed. The position of Chief Executive commands an annual salary of £112,000. There was criticism over the benefits the outgoing chief executive received on leaving—he was given a six figure severance payment and his pension will be approximately £50,000 per annum.

In June 2006, changes were still ongoing: Inverclyde Council altered its directorship structure by adding new corporate director positions and removing senior manager positions. It was expected that the £90,000 a year posts will mostly be filled by new applicants, although existing Council workers were able to apply. There was some criticism with regards to the merging of council services; for instance, Education and Social Work merged and now share the same director. This was frowned upon as at the time the Director responsible for the two merged departments had an educational qualification, not a social work one.

The 2007 council elections took place at the same time as the Scottish Parliament elections. The Liberal Democrats lost nine seats; Labour gained two, but fell short of a majority. The SNP and Conservatives both entered the council with five seats and one seat respectively, while an independent candidate also won a place. In 2014, one of the Labour councillors, Vaughan Jones, became an independent member after announcing support for Scottish independence.

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.

Inverclyde District

Inverclyde was one of nineteen local government districts in the Strathclyde region of Scotland, which existed between 1975 and 1996. The district was formed by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 from part of the county of Renfrewshire. The boundaries remain the same as those of the modern council area. The remaining parts of the County of Renfrew (Renfrewshire) where 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. Most of its area became the new Inverclyde council area, with the regions - such as Strathclyde - disappearing entirely.

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

Gourock Outdoor Pool

Granny Kempock Stone

Loch Thom

Lunderston Bay

McLean Museum and Art Gallery

Newark Castle

Waterfront Leisure Complex

Education

Inverclyde has twenty primary schools serving all areas of its settlements. These are:

Aileymill Primary School, Greenock (merger of Larkfield and Ravenscraig primaries). Head Teacher is Mrs Catriona Miller.

All Saints Primary School, Greenock (merger of St. Kenneth's and St. Lawrence's primaries). Head Teacher is Mrs Angela Kennedy.

Ardgowan Primary School, Greenock. Head Teacher is Mrs Alison McLellan.

Gourock Primary School, Gourock. Head Teacher is Mrs Patricia Robertson.

Inverkip Primary School, Inverkip. Head Teacher is Mrs Diane Blyth, with Mrs Gail Connick as Acting Head Teacher.

Kilmacolm Primary School, Kilmacolm/Port Glasgow. Head Teacher is Mrs Simone McCredie.

King's Oak Primary School, Greenock (merger of King's Glen and Oakfield primaries). Acting Head Teacher is Mr Graeme Marshall.

Lady Alice Primary School, Greenock. Head Teacher is Mrs Maureen Morris.

Moorfoot Primary School, Gourock. Head Teacher is Mrs Alison Irvine.

Newark Primary School, Port Glasgow (merger of Boglestone, Clune Park, Highholm and Slaemuir primaries). Head Teacher is Mr Douglas Creighton.

St. Andrew's Primary School, Greenock (merger of Sacred Heart and St. Gabriel's primaries). Head Teacher is Mr Alan Connick.

St. Francis' Primary School, Port Glasgow. Head Teacher is Mrs Anne Marie Mullan.

St. John's Primary School, Port Glasgow. Head Teacher is Mr Mark Coyle.

St. Joseph's Primary School, Greenock. Head Teacher is Mr Alan Graham.

St. Mary's Primary School, Greenock. Head Teacher is Mrs Angela Guthrie.

St. Michael's Primary School, Port Glasgow. Head Teacher is Mrs Colette Wallace.

St. Ninian's Primary School, Gourock. Head Teacher is Mrs Lesley McCabe.

St. Patrick's Primary School, Greenock. Head Teacher is Mrs Kirsteen Doherty.

Wemyss Bay Primary School, Wemyss Bay. Head Teacher is Mrs Elaine Montgomery.

Whinhill Primary School, Greenock (merger of Highlanders' Academy and Overton primaries). Head Teacher is Mrs Elizabeth Ruddy.

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. Head Teacher is Mr Willie Todd.

Inverclyde Academy, serving South and East Greenock as well as the villages of Inverkip and Wemyss Bay. Head Teacher is Mrs Denise Crawford.

Notre Dame High School, serving Greenock. Head Teacher is Mr Grant McGovern.

Port Glasgow High School, serving Port Glasgow and Kilmacolm. Head Teacher is Mr Stephen Clark.

St. Columba's High School, Gourock/Greenock, serving Gourock, Inverkip and Wemyss Bay. Head Teacher is Mrs Nicola Devine.

St. Stephen's High School, serving Port Glasgow, Kilmacolm and the East End of Greenock. Head Teacher is Mr Stephen Parsons, with Mrs Alison Fanning as Acting Head Teacher.

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 between settlements in Inverclyde with many health indicators being above the Scottish average in certain areas, whilst considerably below in others.