Supporting documents - Renfrewshire Council

Proposed Mixed Use Development, Braehead: Socio-Economic Impact Report
Economic Developments
3.12 The Clyde Waterfront Area where Braehead is located has a variety of
developments either in the planning process, under construction or recently
completed. Some of the major developments are highlighted below:
a Junction 26: The development at Junction 26 will take place on a nine
acre site and consists of proposals for a hotel, residential and further
commercial uses to support and build on the success of Scotland’s first
Infiniti car dealership and newly completed Costa Coffee Drive Thru store
which have been delivered to date.
b Situated next to the shopping centre is Renfrew Riverside which includes
the Ferry Village residential development of more than 2,000 new homes
and Riverside Braehead Business Park.
c Royal Ordnance Site, Bishopton: the former Royal Ordnance site at
Bishopton is one of the largest brownfield site regeneration projects in
the UK. In partnership with Renfrewshire Council and the Scottish
Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), site owner BAE Systems is driving
a multi-million pound transformation over the next 15 years. Approval has
been granted for a mixed use development comprising 2,500 units of
housing, 150,000m2 of commercial and employment space within a
business park, along with associated community facilities and local
services. Around 4,000 full and part-time employment opportunities are
expected to be created through the construction phases and operation of
the planned commercial businesses.
Local Labour Market Conditions
3.13 The level of local claimant unemployment is relatively high, with approximately
28,810 claimants across the labour catchment area in September 2012. Long
term unemployment, defined by the proportion of the resident population
claiming JSA over 12 months, is marginally higher than the average for Scotland
(1.1%), with Glasgow City recording the highest rate of long term unemployment
(1.7%) followed by Renfrewshire (1.4%).
3.14 Among claimant unemployment workers in the labour catchment area, the most
sought after occupations were elementary (31.5%, for example cleaners,
labourers, refuse workers, food preparation etc) and sales and customer
service occupations (28%, for example retail assistants). This accounts for
greater than half of all jobs sought by claimants in the labour catchment area
and broadly reflects national trends (Table 8, Appendix 1).
3.15 Actual levels of unemployment are likely to be higher than claimant
unemployment, as some residents opt not to register for out-of-work benefits.
The unemployment rate within both Renfrewshire (9.3%) and Glasgow City
(10.8%) exceeded the regional (7.9%) and national (8.1%) averages in June
2012 (the most recent data available) (Table 8, Appendix 1).
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