Settlements (Urban Areas)

National Records of Scotland (NRS) create and maintain digital settlement boundaries to support the creation of statistics for geographies that generally describe the urban areas of Scotland. NRS define a settlement as a collection of contiguous high density postcodes, bounded by low density postcodes (or water), with a population of 500 or more. While settlements can go a long way in defining the towns and cities in Scotland, some cover extensive areas and group together large populations. Current Settlement boundaries are reflective of mid-2016 populations, having been created using an amended version of postcodes from the Scottish Postcode Directory (SPD) 2016, release 2. Older versions of Settlements and Localities geographies are available from the NRS website.
 
Citation proposal
. Settlements (Urban Areas). National Records of Scotland https://services.mspdata.eu:/geonetwork/srv/api/records/e457f123-09df-4d67-ac81-d7bb2e470499

Simple

Alternate title
Date ( Creation )
2003-02-13T09:30:00
Date ( Revision )
2018-03-12T09:30:00
Identifier
www.nrscotland.gov.uk / NRS_SettlementBdry

  Publisher

Maintenance and update frequency
asNeeded As needed
GEMET - INSPIRE themes, version 1.0 ( Theme )
  • Statistical units
Access constraints
otherRestrictions Other restrictions
Other constraints
No limitations on public access
Use limitation
The following attribution statement must be used to acknowledge the source of the information: Contains NRS data © Crown copyright and database right (insert year), contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right (insert year).
Denominator
10000
Metadata language
eng English
Topic category
  • Boundaries
N
S
E
W


Geographic identifier
GB-SCT

 

Date ( Publication )
2007-12-13

Reference system identifier
EPSG / OSGB 1936 / British National Grid (EPSG:27700) / 7.4
Distribution format
  • ESRI Shapefile (1.0 )

  • WMS (1.3.0 )

OnLine resource
Settlement Boundaries  

OGC View Service

OnLine resource
Settlement_Boundaries  

OGC Feature Download Service

OnLine resource
Settlement Boundaries  

ESRI Shapefile Download

OnLine resource
National Records of Scotland website  

Geography – Settlements and Localities

Hierarchy level
dataset Dataset
Statement

National Records of Scotland (NRS) create Settlement boundaries by categorising postcodes maintained in the Scottish Postcode Directory (SPD) as either high or low density. A postcode was defined as high density if at least one of the following applied:

• It had more than 2.1 residential addresses per hectare;

• It had more than 0.1 non-residential addresses per hectare; or

• The estimate of the population per hectare exceeds five people

The threshold densities were set as they were found to give a good approximation to the built-up areas identified in previous Censuses using traditional methods. The second condition was included such that non-residential parts (e.g. industrial estates) of built-up areas could be identified and included.

An additional rule was implemented which stated that any 2016 postcodes which fell within a 2012 Settlement boundary (based on centroid point in polygon assignment) would automatically be included in a 2016 Settlement.

The classified postcodes were then grouped into areas of neighbouring high density postcodes, or ‘Settlements’. Areas of low density postcodes completely surrounded by the high density areas (i.e. ‘holes’) were incorporated into the settlement. Population estimates for each area were then calculated, and any settlement with fewer than 500 residents was discarded. Lastly, Councils were consulted for their views on the proposed boundaries and, where possible, their suggestions were taken into account.

The Settlement boundaries have been clipped to the high water mark coastline using OS BoundaryLine product. Inland water has also been removed as listed in the Standard Area Measurements (SAM) produced by the Office for National Statistics.

The current Settlement boundaries (2016) have been created using an amended version of the Scottish Postcode Directory 2016 release 2 boundaries. An ad-hoc amend was required on postcodes on the boundary of the previous 2012 set of Settlements and Localities to remove any excess land, and to ensure that postcodes on the outskirts of the Settlements and Localities contained all the address content.

NRS create Settlement boundaries in conjunction with the Localities geography, normally every two years. Settlement and Locality boundaries are co-incidental, however, large settlements can be subdivided into two or more localities. For further details on Settlements and Localities, and the methodology, please see the background explanatory note at https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//statistics/settlements-localities/set-loc-16/settlements-localities-background-info.pdf. Changes to the methodology and publication are consulted on through the Population and Migration Statistics Committee.

Metadata

File identifier
e457f123-09df-4d67-ac81-d7bb2e470499   XML
Metadata language
eng English
Hierarchy level
dataset Dataset
Date stamp
2018-12-27
Metadata standard name
ISO 19115:2003/19139
Metadata standard version
1.0

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