“Dunfermline and its hinterland, offer strategic growth opportunities for business or industry with planned future growth of the City being managed proactively through the implementation of the Fife Council Local Development Plan. This identifies Dunfermline as a location for strategic development including new housebuilding, the provision of additional employment land and associated infrastructure by 2026.
“Fife is home to the University of St Andrews, rated the UK’s best university in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide and the first university to ever top the British rankings above Oxford and Cambridge. Dunfermline also benefits from its close proximity to the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh Napier University, Heriot-Watt University, Stirling University, Abertay University, and the University of Dundee.
“The region is also well-served by Fife College, with campus facilities in Dunfermline, Kirkcaldy, Glenrothes and Levenmouth. A new state-of-the-art £180million Shared Learning Campus development in Dunfermline is set to become the world’s largest Passivhaus building to date, providing multi-purpose space for college courses alongside new-build replacements for Woodmill and St Columba’s RC High Schools, sports facilities and a mixture of social and civic spaces.
Leader, Fife Council (Dunfermline) – Councillor David Ross
Over the past 20 years, Dunfermline has been one of the fastest growing and most improved towns in the UK, culminating in its selection for city status as part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in 2022.
The area provides an outstanding quality of life, with its mix of urban and rural environments. Steeped in history Dunfermline boasts attractive and affordable housing, beautiful parks and greenspace, award-winning beaches, world-renowned golf courses, top performing schools, a new £180milion state of the art learning and conference campus including a university hub and industry centres of excellence (opening in summer 2024), accessible local services, sports, leisure and cultural opportunities and strong sense of community all combine to make Dunfermline and the rest of Fife a great place to live, work, study, visit and invest.
Dunfermline’s well connected geographical location is supported by road and rail infrastructure including the M90 and A92 corridors, in addition to the Fife Circle and East Coast Mainline train services – all of which directly connect the newly acclaimed city with Mid Fife, and Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Perth, and Stirling. Nearby, the Port of Rosyth, and Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen airports each provide easy access to the rest of the UK and beyond.
The city’s rich heritage dates to the reign of King Malcolm III in the 11th century, when Dunfermline was once home to Scotland’s Kings and Queens and an important centre for European pilgrimage.
Dunfermline is also the birthplace of world-renowned industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. The first Carnegie library, the Carnegie Hall theatre, and Pittencrieff Park were all gifted to the citizens of Dunfermline through his generosity and the Carnegie UK Trust continues to have its headquarters in Dunfermline.
A place of history, a place of innovation, a place of opportunity … come and see what Dunfermline has to offer.
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