Renfrewshire

[ren-froo]

Renfrewshire or Renfrew, former county, central Scotland. Under the Local Government Act of 1973, Renfrewshire became (1975) part of the Strathclyde region, but in 1996 that region was dissolved and the council areas of Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire were created from portions of the former county.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004.
Licensed from Columbia University Press

Renfrewshire

Renfrewshire (Siorrachd Rinn Friù in Scottish Gaelic) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic Renfrewshire, the other two being Inverclyde to the west and East Renfrewshire to the east. The older Renfrewshire still remains in the form of a registration county and lieutenancy area.

Although containing the traditional county town of Renfrew from which its name derives, the centre of local government in Renfrewshire is found in the nearby town of Paisley. Renfrewshire borders the south-west of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's commuter towns and villages.

History

Present day Renfrewshire borders the south-west of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's commuter towns and villages. Renfrewshire also has boundaries with North Ayrshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde and West Dunbartonshire. Although by area one of Scotland's smallest unitary authorities (excluding the cities), it is one of the country's most populous areas, being the fifth largest unitary authority and the ninth largest including the city authorities.

The ancient county of Renfrewshire covered a larger area — including both Inverclyde and East Renfrewshire. This area still exists in the form of a lieutenancy area and registration county, and has a statutory funding board called the Renfrewshire Valuation Joint Board The county was traditionally based around its seat, the Royal Burgh of Renfrew and as such was also known as the County of Renfrew.

There was also a district named Renfrew which existed between 1975 and 1996. Renfrew District covered a slightly larger area than the present local authority area, and included the towns of Barrhead, Neilston and Uplawmoor, which, following the partition of Strathclyde region in 1996, were transferred into the new East Renfrewshire unitary local authority.

Composition of the council

As of the May 2007 local council election, the composition of the council is:

	Party	Councillors
	Labour	17
	Scottish National Party	17
	Liberal Democrat	4
	Conservative	2

The Council is administered by a Scottish National Party/Liberal Democrat coalition.

Electoral wards

The wards used for elections to Renfrewshire Council are assigned a number of councillors to be selected by the Single Transferable Vote system since the coming into effect of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004. These wards, as defined in the Renfrewshire (Electoral Arrangements) Order 2006 (SSI 2006/551) are as follows:

Ward 1 - Renfrew North (3 councillors)
Ward 2 - Renfrew South & Gallowhill (3 councillors)
Ward 3 - Paisley East & Ralston (4 councillors)
Ward 4 - Paisley North West (4 councillors)
Ward 5 - Paisley South (4 councillors)
Ward 6 - Paisley South West (4 councillors)
Ward 7 - Johnstone South, Elderslie & Howwood (4 councillors)
Ward 8 - Johnstone North, Kilbarchan & Lochwinnoch (3 councillors)
Ward 9 - Houston, Crosslee & Linwood (4 councillors)
Ward 10 - Bishopton, Bridge of Weir & Langbank (3 councillors)
Ward 11 - Erskine & Inchinnan (4 councillors)

Transport

Renfrewshire is home to Scotland's busiest airport, Glasgow International Airport, at Abbotsinch between Paisley and Renfrew. It is served by the M8 motorway, which terminates in the area, just east of Langbank, and is a major artery between northwest and southwest Scotland, via the Erskine Bridge. The presence of the airport and the proximity to Glasgow means that Renfrewshire supports one of the busiest transport infrastructures in Scotland, and is frequently congested. Developments to ease traffic flow have included a lifting of tolls on the Erskine Bridge, plans to extend the rail network to connect to the airport, and the M74 extension — which will handle traffic from Renfrewshire heading south, diverting it away from Glasgow city centre.