5
Aberdeen city centre masterplan report
DRAFT
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Issue 2 : May 2015 (Final Version)
Baseline Paper
Socio-Economic
Review
2 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline Contents 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 5 Geographic Boundaries ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ 5 Linkages with other Baseline Reports ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Headline Findings ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 2. Business and Sectors ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 7 2.1 Business Base and Sector Mix .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 7 2.2 Oil & Gas and the Energy Sector ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 8 2.3 Other Important Sectors .................................................................................................................................................................................................. 9 Life Sciences Sector .................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 9 Food and Drink Sector ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ 10 2.4 Forecasting Sector Change: Regional ............................................................................................................................................................................. 10 2.5 Forecasting Sector Change: Local .................................................................................................................................................................................. 11 Oil and Gas ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 11 Retail ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Finance and Business ............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 12 Creative and Digital ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 12 Public Sector........................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 12 2.6 Enterprise ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 13 2.7 Business Investment and City Perceptions .................................................................................................................................................................... 13 2.8 Employment Geography ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 13 2.9 Emerging Messages for the City Centre Masterplan: Business and Sectors .................................................................................................................. 14 Insert Baseline Paper Name here 3. Population and Housing ......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 15 3.1 Population ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 15 Nationality Mix ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 16 Transient Population .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 16 Student Population ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 16 3.2 Population Projections ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 17 3.3 Residents and Housing ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 17 Residential Mix ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 17 Growth Projections and Completions .................................................................................................................................................................................... 18 Housing Affordability ............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 19 3.4 4. Emerging Messages for the City Centre Masterplan: Population and Housing ............................................................................................................. 19 Skills and Employment ........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 21 4.1 Employment ................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 21 4.2 Skills ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 21 Current Skills .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 21 Skills Gaps ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 22 4.3 5. Emerging Messages on Skills and Employment ............................................................................................................................................................. 23 Quality of Life ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 24 5.1 Relative Quality of Life ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 24 5.2 Deprivation ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 24 5.3 Digital Connectivity ........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 25 5.4 Education ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 25 3 4 6. Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline 5.5 Health ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 26 5.6 Crime and Disorder ........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 26 5.7 Culture Participation ...................................................................................................................................................................................................... 27 5.8 Emerging Messages for the City Centre Masterplan: Quality of Life ............................................................................................................................. 27 Summary – SWOT Analysis .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 28 Appendix A: Geographies Used in Analysis .................................................................................................................................................................................... 30 5 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline 1. Introduction An important element of the Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan is the presentation of a new economic vision which can articulated spatially within the plan. A critical starting point for this is an understanding of the current social and economic conditions within the city centre. This section provides commentary on the current socio‐economic conditions within Aberdeen City Centre. It looks at a range of data and consultee opinions to draw conclusions which will ultimately inform the Masterplan and the case for intervention. This analysis is structured under the following headings: 
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Business and Sectors Population and Housing Skills and Employment Quality of Life The paper concludes with an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing Aberdeen and its city centre with respect to economic and social factors, which will influence the development of the city centre masterplan. GeographicBoundaries
Where possible, analysis focusses on the specific city centre geography (as set out in the City Centre Development Framework, 2012). In some cases, data is not available at such a specific local level, where this is the case, the Aberdeen City administrative geography is used. Further information on geographical boundaries used in the report is set out in Appendix A. LinkageswithotherBaselineReports
This report is one of several baseline reports undertaken to support development of the city centre masterplan. It should be read in conjunction with separate, linked reports covering transport; property market; culture, tourism and the visitor economy and townscape, all of which have a relationship with economic and social indicators. HeadlineFindings
Various national and local studies have highlighted Aberdeen’s prosperity. The city has one of the highest employment rates in the UK, a very high start‐up rate and has seen high private sector jobs growth. Aberdeen is of course, the centre of the UK’s offshore Oil and Gas sector and one of a handful of acknowledged global energy hub locations. Importantly however, recent analysis (eg City development Plan, Energetica Masterplan etc) has tended to focus upon Aberdeen’s wider economic area (in most cases including Aberdeenshire) as well as the city itself. In recent years, there has been little consideration the specific performance of the city centre in and its role in the future of wider area. Some of the findings from the socio economic baseline are set out below: 
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Although the trend has been for large Oil and Gas HQs to move from the city centre, the sector remains a highly important employer and will remain the preeminent driver of growth in the centre Business ‘flight’ to areas outside of the city centre has created a “doughnut of investment” where the city centre has suffered limited 6 
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Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline spending in comparison to its neighbours 7,000 jobs were lost from the city centre between 2008 and 2012. Jobs in Aberdeenshire increased by almost 9,000 Service sector employment has grown significantly in the last decade, particularly in retail sector New target sectors (Life Sciences, other Energy and Food and Drink) might not located in the city centre; their growth will however, be enhanced by a better and more varied offer in the centre There has been little net population growth in the city centre in the last 30 years (at a time when the Shire’s population has increased steadily) The city centre’s population is a young one. Around half of residents are under the age of 34. Housing supply and affordability are a concern to partners. Houses prices have increased by 40pp more than London in the last decade Workforce and skills indicators are strong. The Oil and Gas sector has capacity for growth and needs more skilled graduates to fill gaps within the workforce There is surplus of local residents looking for retail and service sector 
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jobs in the city. Retailers however, report issues in recruiting into these jobs Aberdeen has a number of assets contributing a quality of life, this is not however translating into a strong performance in international rankings (largely as a result of the high cost of living). Aberdeen is Scotland’s least deprived city, there are however, pockets of deprivation in the city centre hinterland. Insert Baseline Paper Name here 2. Business and Sectors At the heart of the Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan is the desire to create a more diverse and prosperous city centre economy. To do this, it is important to have a good idea of the current business base and to consider ways this might evolve and grow in the future. This section covers key data and policy analysis relating to the business base and key sectors in Aberdeen City Centre, including analysis of oil and gas, energy and other priority sectors, levels of enterprise in the city, perceptions of the city from an investment perspective, and the geographical spread of employment. (fewer than 10 employees). Despite the fact that partners have observed larger companies moving out of the city centre, this is a significantly greater proportion of larger businesses than in Scotland as a whole. The chart below shows the breakdown of economic activity by sector in Aberdeen City Centre against the wider City, Shire and Scotland. Figure 1.1 Employment by sectors The following table highlights the number of workers in the ten main employment sectors in the city centre. Note: this covers around 70% of all employees in the city centre. 2.1 Business Base and Sector Mix The 2014 UK Business Counts survey indicates that overall there are around 2,200 enterprises based in Aberdeen City Centre in 2014 (i.e. their head office location is based in this area). Of these around 1% are large businesses (250 + employees), 4% are medium enterprises (50‐250 employees), 21% are small enterprises (10‐50 employees) and the remaining 73% are micro businesses administration. It is also notable that the city centre has a much larger proportion of its workforce in professional, scientific and technical sectors than is the case in Scotland as a whole. Source: ONS, Business Register and Employment Survey, 2013 Unsurprisingly, the city centre has a far larger proportion of its workforce in extraction activities (relating to oil and gas) than across Scotland (over 11% of city centre workers). The city centre also has a high concentration of workers in retail, hospitality and public 7 8 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline oil and gas sector e.g. architecture, engineering, legal and accountancy. 
2.2 Oil & Gas and the Energy Sector 
Table 1.2 Top ten employment sectors in Aberdeen City Centre, 2013 Retail trade Food & drink activities Public administration Mining support service activities Architectural & engineering activities Employment activities Social work activities without accommodation Legal and accounting Education Extraction of petroleum & gas No % of all LQ vs.
(000s) Emp’t Scot. 5,900 15.3% 1.6
4,100 10.8% 2.0
3,800 9.9% 1.7
3,300 8.6% 11.6
2,700 7.0% 3.0
2,500 6.6% 3.2
1,900 4.9% 1.2
1,400 3.6% 2.2
1,100 2.9% 0.4
1,000 2.7% 7.2
Oil and Gas is the sector that largely defines Aberdeen nationally and internationally, and the industry upon which a significant part of its economy relies. This includes a significant direct employment, further supply chain spending and the additional spend it brings into shops, hotels and restaurants in the city centre. The tables above highlight the importance in employment terms of the oil and gas sector and its secondary employment benefits. Whilst the sector is fundamental to Aberdeen’s economic future, uncertainties obviously exist. These prompt a number of important questions to be borne in mind as the Masterplan is developed. In particular: Source: ONS, Business Register and Employment Survey, 2013 This further highlights the importance of supporting activities for the oil and gas sector (captured under ‘mining support service activities’ code), as well as other professional, scientific and technical sectors that may provide support to the 
For how long will North Sea oil and gas production continue and at what level? 
What is the scale of further opportunities relating to decommissioning activities? What is the realistic scale of activity that could remain serving an export market after production ends? How significant are the opportunities for diversification into other sectors such as offshore wind and what is the business appetite for that? Currently, Aberdeen competes internationally with a number of other oil and gas locations, including Perth (Australia), Stavanger (Norway), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Calgary (Canada), and Houston (USA). Differentiating itself (and understanding the role of the city centre in doing this) will be critical to Aberdeen’s future in this increasingly competitive global market. Being one of the smaller of the global hubs (in terms of population), is a challenge for Aberdeen, particularly as other locations have a more mature and embedded sector. Anecdotally, Aberdeen, does have broader niche specialisms and supports a reasonable amount of R and D activity. It was also noted by consultees that Aberdeen has a Insert Baseline Paper Name here relatively high cost of living compared to other oil and gas hubs, and this is reinforced by recent research (The Competitiveness of North east Scotland as a Global oil and Gas Hub, 2014). Other key findings from this report (which benchmarked Aberdeen against other major key oil and gas sector locations) include the following: 
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Aberdeen is generally a competitive tax location for the sector Aberdeen is a top location for protection of intellectual property and property rights Aberdeen is weaker than benchmark cities as a place where businesses can secure debt finance Aberdeen is seen to offer a fairly high cost of living and low quality of life compared with comparator cities Aberdeen’s workforce compares reasonably well to comparator locations. It has a higher proportion of students but lower proportion of people engaged in R&D than comparator locations Both transport connectivity and digital connectivity are weaker in Aberdeen than in comparator cities 
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Aberdeen performs well with respect to the density of oil and gas businesses in the city, and it is seen as a comparably attractive location for greenfield foreign direct investment Operating costs offer mixed performance for Aberdeen compared to others, given relatively high office costs, but lower costs on industrial space, high telecoms and gas costs, but reasonable electricity costs. The oil and gas and wider energy sector are clearly recognised as being the continued cornerstone of the Aberdeen economy. Indeed, the 2012 Economic Action Plan for Aberdeen City and Shire, sets out a vision of Aberdeen City and Shire as a global energy hub, and with major sector developments taking place along the Energetica corridor. The role of the city centre in supporting this is however, not currently articulated in policy. 2.3 Other Important Sectors The 2012 ACSEF economic action plan for Aberdeen City and Shire highlights Life Sciences and Food and Drink as priority growth sectors, alongside Energy. It highlights a fourth priority growth sector: Tourism, which is covered in a separate (visitor economy) baseline report. LifeSciencesSector
The 2011 Scottish Life Sciences Strategy highlights a target to double the economic contribution of the national life sciences sector by 2020. The sector in Aberdeen is primarily located around a hub of the research facilities at the University of Aberdeen, and currently has limited penetration into the city centre. That said, an important aspect of the theory of business clusters is the existence of a central hub where employees meet, share ideas and engage new networks. The importance of a stronger, higher quality city centre to better fulfil that role, and of enhanced connectivity to the centre from surrounding parts of the city and shire 9 10 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline will nevertheless be important to support the development of this and other business clusters. The University has confirmed that it is in the Life Sciences sector where they are seeing the most significant spin out activity and commercial R and D activity. More generally, it is also worth noting that the Centre for Cities for Cities has rated Aberdeen as the 5th most innovative city in the UK. FoodandDrinkSector
Scotland Food and Drink’s 2011 ‘Fresh Thinking’ report highlighted three major growth opportunities for the sector in Scotland – premium goods, healthy goods and provenance brands, building on the reputation for quality. It highlights the needs for key locations across Scotland to capitalize on food tourism opportunities and use place image as a driver for growth. In early Masterplan consultations it has been highlighted that despite the high degree of wealth in Aberdeen, the city centre high quality restaurant offer is very limited, with no Michelin starred establishments. While much of the agriculture and manufacturing activity relating to this sector is more likely to take place in Aberdeenshire rather than the city, the image and food and drink offer within the city can be an important driver for growth of this sector. 2.4 Forecasting Sector Change: Regional To inform the new ACSEF economic strategy and the Aberdeen City Deal, SQW (alongside Cambridge Econometrics) have produced new employment forecasts for NE Scotland Economy. This study uses the CE Local Economic Forecasting Model to project how the north east economy will change up to 2025. The model uses trends for each sector in the north east economy, and national forecasts of growth rates, including oil and gas, to project future levels of employment and GVA. Because the model is linked to national economic datasets the latest figures relate to 2012, and these are used as the base year in much of the analysis (and hence pre‐
dates recent decline in oil prices). These projections have been used as the basis for developing two local scenarios in which have been adjusted to take into account the jobs and GVA benefits identified by economic impact research for three key projects: the AWPR, the Harbour development and the main elements of the Energetica proposals. Because the analysis can only use these three large projects, it can only provide an indicative assessment of what can be achieved. The two scenarios are: 
A Higher Growth scenario that assumes that the three key projects go ahead, together with the necessary supportive infrastructure, and that they achieve their anticipated impacts. It assumes that there is sufficient housing to accommodate population growth of 54,000 by 2025 
A Constrained Growth scenario assumes that although the AWPR goes ahead, the Harbour development and later parts of Energetica do not, and that a failure to carry out other improvements means that only half the forecast population growth is achieved (27,000). Insert Baseline Paper Name here Using these scenarios, forecasts have been generated for the targeted sectors which have previously been promoted by ACSEF and through the Energetica projects. The forecast increase in employment in each within the Higher and Constrained growth scenarios is outlined in the table below. Figure 1.2 Employment by sectors Growth Scenarios (£ millions 2009 prices) Higher Energy 38%
Constrained Cumulative increase in GVA (2012 ‐2025) Higher Growth 29% 1,260 Food and Drink 26%
3% 500 Life Sciences 48%
10% 160 Tourism 27%
20% 130 Creative Industries 43%
22% 300 Total 2,350 Total ‐ All sectors
8,823 Source: Cambridge Econometrics LEFM, 2014 2.5 Forecasting Sector Change: Local There is limited forecast information to help develop judgements on sector growth at a more local geographic level. One available source of information is the forecasts provide by UKES (UK Commission for Employment and Skills). These show that employment in the Aberdeen City and Shire region is expected to grow by around 10,800 jobs (or 3.3%) between 2012 and 2022. Major growth sectors in terms of absolute numbers include professional services (+4,200 jobs), health and social work (+6,900 jobs) and construction (+1,800 jobs). On the other hand, agriculture (‐1,200 jobs), manufacturing and engineering (‐1,700 jobs) and education (‐900 jobs) are all expected to see a decline between 2012 and 2022 across the City and Shire region. Although SQW and CE have looked at employment in sectors of regional significance, it is reasonable to assume that those accommodated in the city centre will not necessarily mirror these. As a result, the prospects of the following sectors are considered below: 
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Oil and Gas Retail Finance and Business Creative and Digital Public Sector OilandGas
The Working Futures employment forecasts published by UKCES do not give specific employment forecasts for the oil and gas sector, but group this sector with other mining and quarrying activities. The UKCES dataset indicates that between 2012 and 2022 employment in mining and quarrying in the City and Shire region is expected to decline by around 2,800 jobs (ie. shrinking by around 10%). The decline in mining and quarrying employment is expected to be more pronounced between 2012 and 2017 with around 450 jobs lost each year, after which the decline will slow down to around 110 jobs lost every year until 2022. Despite the decline in mining and quarrying, the UKCES data indicates that in 2022 the sector will become more important to the Aberdeen City and Shire economy, especially when compared to 11 12 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline 2012. In 2012, the sector had a location quotient1 of 6.9 compared to a location quotient of 7.1 forecasted for 2011. The decline in the core Mining and Quarrying sector is, in part, expected to be driven by the decommissioning of wells in the North Sea. Oil and Gas UK (Decommissioning Insight 2014) suggest that of the current inventory of around 5,000 wells in the North Sea, close to 930 are scheduled for decommissioning over the next decade. This represents nearly 19% of the total well stock in the area. The decommissioning of wells will generate some opportunity in decommissioning‐related jobs, over the short term, but will have a greater impact on job numbers over the longer term. Importantly, As a global Oil and Gas Hub, the Oil and Gas Sector also supports a range of other activities, principally Aberdeen’s Professional Services Sector which is around double the relative size of that in Scotland as a whole. It is this broad sector which accounts for much of the higher value jobs in Aberdeen and those skills and services which are exported globally. According to UKCES forecasts, this sector is forecast to grow by 4,200 jobs by 2022. DecliningOilPrices
It is important to note that since this commencement of the Aberdeen Masterplan project Oil Prices have declined by around 40%. This potentially has a significant long term effect upon the future of Aberdeen, not least because of the difficulty in predicting future prices. A number of larger companies (BP, Chevron, Shell and Taqa amongst others) have made redundancies, with contractors reporting a decline in rates. This is translating into a decline in commercial and domestic rental yields in Aberdeen, which could impact upon the 1
The Location Quotient (LQ) is a measure of a region’s industrial specialisation (in this case Aberdeen City and Shire) relative to a larger geographic unit (in this case Scotland). initial viability of some projects within the Masterplan. Retail
The UKCES forectasts suggest that employment in the retail and wholesale sector in the Aberdeen City and Shire region is expected to remain relatively stable between 2012 and 2022, with only 200 additional jobs created over this period. FinanceandBusiness
Similarly, the finance and business sector is also expected to remain relatively unchanged between 2012 and 2022. In fact, the UKCES data shows that employment in the sector is expected to grow by around 200 jobs over ten years between 2012 and 2022.
CreativeandDigital
The creative and digital sector employed around 9,200 people in the Aberdeen City and Shire region in 2012. It is expected that over by 2022 this sector will grow by around 100 jobs. Insert Baseline Paper Name here PublicSector
The decline of public sector spending has already result in significant public‐sector job cuts, not only in the Aberdeen City and Shire region but throughout the whole of the United Kingdom. Further public sector cuts are expected over the next few years. The UKCES data shows that public sector cuts will result in around 900 job losses between 2012 and 2022. 13 many cases may be supporting the oil and gas sector), are based inside Aberdeen City administrative boundary, but not necessarily within the city centre. This reflects a trend of employment moving out from the city to large business parks on the periphery such as Prime Four in Westhill. Figure 1.3 Overview of business registrations, de‐
registrations and net change for 2013 Figure 1.4 Prime Four 2.6 Enterprise The figure below highlights the high levels of enterprise in Aberdeen city, with significantly more business start‐ups than Scotland as a whole. Despite this, in initial consultations, partners suggested that the city centre itself did not feel like and enterprising location and that a lack of small business workplace may be hindering business growth other than that which occurs organically within target sectors. Source: ONS, Business Demography, 2013, ONS, Mid Year Population Estimates, 2013 WAP: Working Age Population 2.7 Business Investment and City Perceptions Consulteees, suggested that currently Aberdeen suffers from some negativity in how it is perceived externally. Common misconceptions which have been reported related to the weather, isolation and the fact that Aberdeen is just an oil city. 2.8 Employment Geography Figure 1.1 above highlighted that a greater number of the high value oil and gas (extraction) jobs and professional, scientific and technical jobs (which in Source: www.primefour.co.uk In the following map it is clear to see this significant movement from the centre to the periphery even over recent years. 14 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline Figure 1.5 Employment change between 2008 and 2012 Table 1.3 Employment change (000s) 2008 to 2012 Aberdeen City Centre Aberdeen City Aberdeens
hire Aberdeen City & Shire Change 2008 ‐ 2013 No. % 2008 2013 37.7 38.4 +0.8 +2.1% 185.8 182.2 ‐3.6 ‐1.9% 92.1 101.9 +9.7 10.6% 277.9 284.1 +6.1 +2.2% Source: ONS, Business Register and Employment Survey, 2012 Source: ONS, Business Register and Employment Survey, 2008 & 2013 This is a concerning trend for city centre sustainability, and as the figures below show, there has been a significant movement of employment out to Aberdeenshire, with the City losing 3,600 jobs and the Shire gaining 9,700 over 2008‐13. 2.9 Emerging Messages for the City Centre Masterplan: Business and Sectors Energy will remain the primary driver of prosperity for Aberdeen. The Masterplan needs to ensure the sector is sustained and remains at the heart of Aberdeen’s future. This needs to enable the transition in the coming years and decades to decommissioning and exporting skills and knowledge in oil and gas as well as enabling transition into other energy sectors To avoid over‐reliance on the energy sector, other growth sectors require focus, likely to include life sciences, food and drink and tourism. The first two are unlikely to require a significant presence in the city centre, but the offer both can be enhanced by the existence of a stronger, higher quality centre. Spatially, there has been a move of employees out of the city centre in recent years, as a range of new business parks at the city periphery have proven more attractive for many companies. In many respects, the city centre is no longer the commercial heart of the functional economic area; the Masterplan must recast the centres role to respond to this. To enable a high quality city centre which is an asset to economic development of the city and region, it would be beneficial to partially reverse this trend and seek to increase business and employment in the city centre, even if this is stimulated by other sectors or indigenous small business growth and start‐ups. 15 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline 3. Population and Housing Figure 1.6 Population change 1981‐2013 (1981 = 1.0)
Figure 1.7 Age structure in 2011 Whilst business growth and inward investment will drive the bottom line economy of the centre, to become a more prosperous and inclusive location the city centre will need to be more than just a commercial location. An important part of this diversification will be becoming a better place for people to live. This section draws together evidence in relation to the population who live within the boundary of the city centre. It looks at the make‐up of the current population and how this might change over time. This section also considers current housing provision within Aberdeen city centre. 3.1 Population The diagram below shows change in the Aberdeen City and Shire indexed population change since 1981. Source: National Records of Scotland, Mid‐year Population Estimates, 1981‐2013 The population within the City has changed very little over this period, at a time where the Shire has grown consistently. In this respect Aberdeen has bucked the national trend (certainly within the last decade) towards urban living. Economically, a static population could provide some cause for concern and will almost certainly limit growth within the non‐retail service sectors. Source: National Records of Scotland, Scotland Census 2011 Despite limited population growth, the city centre itself, still has a younger population than its surroundings, with 84% of the city centre population being of working age. This is, in part as a result of the high number of students living in the city centre on the day of the 2011 census. Indeed, at this time, as the chart below shows, the vast majority (66%) of the population of the city centre population were under the age of 34, compared to 33% and 21% in Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire respectively 16 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline Figure 1.8 Detailed age structure for Aberdeen City centre, 2011 Source: National Records of Scotland, Scotland Census 2011 NationalityMix
The table below shows country of birth for people in the City Centre, City, Shire and Scotland at the time of the 2011 Census. Only 58% of residents in Aberdeen City Centre were born in Scotland, compared to 75% in the City and over 80% in the Shire and Scotland as a whole. The City Centre has around four times the number of residents born in EU14, EU Accession or other countries, arguably making it one of the more cosmopolitan places in the country. Table 1.4 Country of birth City Centre City
Shire Scotland
UK
70.6%
84.1%
94.0% 93.0%
England
11.2%
8.1%
12.5% 8.7%
Northern Ireland Scotland
1.1%
0.6%
0.5% 58.0%
75.0%
80.5% 83.3%
Wales
0.3%
0.3%
0.5% 0.3%
Republic 2.3%
of Ireland EU15
4.1%
0.6%
0.2% 0.4%
2.2%
1.0% 1.1%
EU 6.7%
Accession Other 16.3%
Countries 4.3%
2.0% 1.5%
8.9%
2.8% 4.0%
0.7%
Source: National Records of Scotland, Scotland Census 2011 TransientPopulation
Although it is difficult to accurately track, the scale of Aberdeen’s transient population is significant. With a student population of around 50,000 and 30‐
40,000 offshore jobs ‘based’ in the city, partners have suggested that the population of the City and Shire) can vary by 50,000 at any given time. In terms of non‐UK migrant workers, research by Aberdeen City Council (2013) showed that of 58,000 non‐UK workers in the City and Shire, 45,000 of them resided in the City. Clearly, there is a lack of people putting down roots in the city centre and staying there for a prolonged period of time. Directly, this will influence local expenditure (as people move out when they can afford to) bit will also limited the secondary benefits of an embedded economically active population (such as increase business starts) and stronger local communities. StudentPopulation
The two universities are clearly critical element of the city’s economic offer. Partners have reported that 1 in 9 people within the wider city boundary either study or work at one of the universities. 2012/13 scholastic year there were 28,400 students studying at the University of Aberdeen and the Robert Gordon University. 
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c. 74% of all students are doing an undergraduate degree. c. 24% of all students in Aberdeen are foreign. 36% of these are non‐EU students doing a post‐graduate Insert Baseline Paper Name here degree, 42% are EU students doing an undergraduate degree. Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) also has a campus in Aberdeen at Craibstone Estate, and the city is also home to North East Scotland College. Despite the scale of the population, there is very little formal student accommodation within the city centre. Despite this, the census shows that over 2,000 students live in the centre, mostly in private rented accommodation. Student surveys suggest that satisfaction with city centre offer is low, suggesting that the Aberdeen is not capitalising upon the economic and social benefits that this population can offer. 3.2 Population Projections A key challenge for the Masterplan will be accommodating a growing populations (particularly in light of static growth in the city over the last two decades). Projections generated by National Record for Scotland are outlined below. Table 1.5 Population projections 2012 to 2037 (000s) Aberdeen City Aberdeens
hire Aberdeen City & Shire 225
236
250
Change 2012‐37 289 +28.4%
256
264
274
300 +17.3%
480
500
524
589 +22.5%
17 Figure 1.9 Tenancy breakdown in Aberdeen City Centre, 2011 2012 2017 2022 2037 Source: National Records of Scotland, Population Projections for Scottish Areas (2012‐based) These projections are significantly higher than the projected growth in Scotland as a whole (9%) over the same period, illustrating that accommodating growing populations will be one of the key challenges of this Masterplan. Source: National Records of Scotland, Scotland Census 2011 Analysis below, considers the currently residential mix in Aberdeen City Centre and projected and planned development. This shows a high proportion of private rented housing. The proportion of social rented accommodation is also higher than the national average. The fact that two thirds of residents are living in some form of rented accommodation provides further evidence of a lack of embedded within the city centre population. ResidentialMix
3.3 Residents and Housing The chart below, shows the current tenancy breakdown within Aberdeen City Centre: 18 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline Table 1.6 Property type in Aberdeen City Centre, 2011 No %
Detached 50 0.8%
Semi‐Detached
90 1.5%
120 2.1%
Flat, Maisonette or Apartment Shared Dwelling
5,520 95.2%
20 0.3%
Total 5,800 100.0%
Terraced different, with over 95% of properties in the city centre being of this type. Source: National Records of Scotland, Scotland Census 2011 Figure 1.10 Property type in Aberdeen, Glasgow and Dundee City Centres Compared to Glasgow and Dundee, Aberdeen has a higher proportion of detached and semi‐detached (in relation to Glasgow) properties. These however, only total 140 in the city centre area. Anecdotally, the lack of diversity within the City Centre stock (and the lack of affordable housing), has been identified as a barrier to vibrancy, prosperity and growth within the city centre. The projected growth in number of households, is again predicted to increase at a rate above that of Scotland as a whole. Clearly, maintaining a consistently high level of housing completions will be important. The chart below shows the quantum of recent completions within the City administrative area: Figure 1.11 Housing completions in Aberdeen City 2009‐2013 GrowthProjectionsandCompletions
The two charts below show the projected growth in housing units to 2037 and recent housing completions. Table 1.7 Household projections 2012 to 2037 (000s) Source: National Records of Scotland, Scotland Census 2011 It is normal for urban areas to have a particularly high proportion of flats/apartments; Aberdeen is no Aberdeen City Aberdeen
shire Aberdeen City & Shire 104
111
118
140 Change 2012‐37 +35.1%
106
111
116
129 +21.7%
210
222
234
269 +28.3%
2012 2017
2022
2037 Source: National Records of Scotland, Household Projections for Scotland, by Council Area, 2012‐2037 Source: Aberdeen City Council, Draft Housing Land Audit 2014; Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeen Local Housing Strategy 2012‐
2017 The last four recorded years of completions (see above) in Aberdeen City have been lower than the targets in each year, with a growing deficit Insert Baseline Paper Name here between the target and actual number of homes built. This under‐supply of housing, not only contributes to increases in prices, it also underpins instances of overcrowding recorded in the map below. Figure 1.12 Percentage of overcrowded dwellings Source: National Records of Scotland, Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, 2012 Here, it is evident that in and around the city centre there are a higher proportion of properties which are over‐crowded. This is particularly true in the centre’s northern hinterland, although this will, in part be due to the larger student population in this area (note: the hinterland refers to the Aberdeen city area outside the city centre). HousingAffordability
Housing affordability is unanimously identified by partners as one of the key economic issues for both the City and the wider Aberdeen area (including the Shire). Figures provided by Rettie and Co for Financial Times (18th April, 2014) said that Aberdeen had seen the biggest regional house price rise in the UK; 120% over the preceding decade (this compares to 82% in London). This sort of house price growth, alongside increase in demand for social rented accommodation and the number of people on the homeless waiting list, has led to Aberdeen City Council, concluding that the city has severe affordability issues (Housing Demand and Need Study, 2010). 3.4 Emerging Messages for the City Centre Masterplan: Population and Housing The lack of growth within the population growth within the city centre over the last 30 years is of some concern given the growth in urban living over this last two decades. Economically successful city centres are busy hives of activities where people aspire to live and work; this is something Aberdeen needs to target specifically through this Masterplan. One opportunity within the city centre’s demographic profile is the high proportion of young people and students who make up the resident population. The Masterplan needs to provide some focus on activity for the cohort, supporting the development of spaces and facilities which provide both leisure and employment opportunities for these groups. The transience of the population is also an important challenge for the Masterplan. An ever changing population impacts upon the development of social cohesion and the establishment of strong communities within the city centre. 19 20 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline Encouraging more people to stay in the city centre for longer periods in their lives, will help support a more vibrant, cosmopolitanand desirable centre. It is however, housing (and affordability of housing) which is perhaps the most significant economic challenge for Aberdeen city centre. The scale of the supply and affordability issues is significant and the response (through the Masterplan) will require some thought and innovation. 21 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline 4. Skills and Employment Realising aspirations for further investment, business growth and diversification will ultimately lead to a change in the employment and skills profile in Aberdeen City Centre. Importantly, the employment profile and skills base within the city centre (and wider commuter area) will also be a consideration for potential Aberdeen businesses. This chapter covers key data and policy analysis relating to employment and economic activity, skills mix and key skills gaps. 4.1 Employment The chart below highlights the strength of workforce in Aberdeen city and shire. Economic activity levels – that is the proportion of working age people who are employed or actively seeking employment‐ are over 80%, higher above the level for Scotland as a whole. Figure 1.13 Economic activity rate for people 16‐64, 12 months to March 2014 Figure 1.14 Unemployment rate for people 16‐64, 12 months to March 2014 Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey, 2014 Similarly, unemployment is also lower in Aberdeen City and Shire than across Scotland as a whole (see below). It is notable however, that unemployment is higher in the City, which may partly reflect the out movement of employment from the city to the shire discussed in section 2 above. Source: ONS, Annual Population Survey, 2014 4.2 Skills CurrentSkills
The chart below highlights that Aberdeen has a strong skills base within its workforce. The City has a greater proportion of people with highest level skills (NVQ4+) and a smaller proportion of people with no skills, than Scotland as a whole. 22 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline Figure 1.16 Change in highest level of qualification 2001 to 2011 Figure 1.15 Skills Levels of Workforce 50
45
40
35
30
25
20
much of the recruitment at this level will be through intermediaries (HR consultants, head‐hunters etc) the relative proportion suggests that that recruitment of management may be an issue for some Aberdeen companies.. 15
10
5
0
No Qualifications
NVQ1
Aberdeen
NVQ2
Aberdeenshire
NVQ3
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Scotland
Source: Annual Population Survey, 2013 Furthermore, as the chart below shows, between the 2001 and 2011 census’ Aberdeen City and Shire significantly increased the numbers of people with highest levels skills within the area. Source: National Records of Scotland, Scotland Census 2011 SkillsGaps
The high levels of employment and the impact of the oil and gas industry paying above market prices for certain skills sets in Aberdeen have left skills shortages where some businesses report having difficulty finding available skilled people to fill certain positions. Data on the sort of occupation of current job seekers (Claimant Counts Data, August 2014) shows that, compared with Scotland as a whole, Aberdeen has very few unemployed people seeking corporate management roles. Notwithstanding the fact that there Conversely, Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire have a notably higher proportion of people seeking sales occupations compared with Scotland as a whole, with 47% of all unemployed people in Aberdeen seeking employment in this occupation. This is particularly interesting given that retailers have suggested that recruiting and retaining good staff has been a problem before. Graduate Intake and Retention In 2012/13 there were a total of over 28,000 students at the University of Aberdeen and Robert Gordon University. This high number of graduates entering the labour market each year provides a major opportunity for Aberdeen’s economy. Insert Baseline Paper Name here Aberdeen City Council has reported that graduate retention in the City is around 43%. This is still reasonable when compared to Manchester which is not much higher (c50%). Although given Scotland’s has a good rate of retention nationally (and a higher propensity to stay at home and study), Consultees have however, suggested that graduate retention is too low and that more needs to be done to keep students in the city. 4.3 Emerging Messages on Skills and Employment Overall, Aberdeen City and Shire have a highly skilled workforce and experience low levels of unemployment. It is notable however, that unemployment is higher within the central area. Whilst this is perhaps not unsurprising given the loss of jobs from the city centre recently, it is a likely contributor to the relative deprivation which is observed in some locations in the vicinity of the centre (See following section). Connecting residents in these locations to new jobs within the centre is and important challenge for the Masterplan. With unemployment low, and the distorting effect on the labour market of the oil and gas sector, there are skills gaps emerging, where local employers (in service industries in particular) are unable to find adequately skilled people to fill key roles. The city needs to be able to ensure it can attract in skilled people to fill these skills gaps, and the future skills needs of key industries, in order to be successful, and the Masterplan will play a key role in enhancing quality of life to ensure this can be achieved. Ensuring that the centre is the fulcrum of a city that students want to stay, live and work, is also an important aim of the Masterplan. A larger graduate population will potential support a number of secondary benefits, in particularly higher rates of business starts within the city centre. 23 24 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline 5. Quality of Life Aberdeen’s quality of life is identified by a number of partners as being one of the key selling points to investors and businesses. With access to green space and accessible beaches, alongside proximity to high quality leisure infrastructure, Aberdeen is identified has having all of the ingredients of a quality place to live. This section considers how Aberdeen performs in relation to quality of life; looks at deprivation in and around the city centrew, and considers some of the other factors which make Aberdeen a better place to live and work. Whilst Aberdeen is clearly competitive in the UK context, the relative performance (in terms of these rankings) suggests that Aberdeen is not currently differentiating in terms of quality of life to the extent where a commercial benefit can be realised. Locally, the 2014 ‘City Voice’ survey reported that 67.7% of residents rate their quality of life as being either 5,6 or 7 out of seven (where 1 is very poor and 7 is very good). This represents a fall of around 6pp from 2013, when 74% gave similar scores. There are a number of different rankings of cities looking at relative quality of life, these include Mercers, EIU and Monacle. Mercers also produce a ranking of the same 221 cities in terms of cost of living. In 2013, Aberdeen was ranked 94th, a similar position to Washington DC and Lisbon and 20 places higher (meaning more expensive) than Glasgow. In Mercers (2012), Aberdeen was ranked 56 of 221 cities globally, placing it in a very similar position to Glasgow and Birmingham. Nationally, in 2011, Bank of Scotland ranked Aberdeen in the top 5 local authority areas for quality of life in Scotland. The ‘City Voice’ survey reports cost of living (alongside affordable housing, traffic congestion and attractiveness of the city centre) as being one on key areas of low satisfaction. 83% of residents surveyed reported that the cost of living had got worse in the last 2 years (65% 5.1 Relative Quality of Life also reported that the city centre had gotten worse in this period). 5.2 Deprivation Statistically, Aberdeen is the least deprived of all Scotland’s cities (in terms of the proportion of data zones within the top 15% most deprived nationally). Figure 1.17 Overall SIMD, 2012 Source: National Records of Scotland, Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, 2012 The number of data zones in Aberdeen within the top 15% most deprived nationally has however, increased in the last 8 years to 2012 (from 18‐22). There are now 2,500 more people living in these deprived areas than was the case in 2004. Insert Baseline Paper Name here Whilst the core City Centre area itself does not exhibit significant deprivation, as the map above shows, there is some notable clustering of deprived areas in area close to the centre. Most notable is Torry to the South East of the centre and a northern arc including areas such as Old Aberdeen, Tillydrone and Seaton. One specific domain, where Aberdeen does experience higher relative deprivation is housing. Figure 1.18 Housing domain SIMD 2012 Source: National Records of Scotland, Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, 2012 All of the city centre and the area to the north (as far as the River Don) is within the 20% most housing deprived areas in Scotland. Consultees suggested that in ten of the population live in poverty and that that Aberdeen is becoming an increasingly polarised location. This ‘social gap’ was cited as impacting upon the vibrancy of the city. 5.3 Digital Connectivity Digital connectivity is an increasingly important part of our daily lives and is now seen as a necessity amongst a large part of the population. Its importance has already been recognized by partners and it is identified one of the key goals in the Aberdeen Strategic Infrastructure Plan. Broadband uptake in Aberdeen is amongst the highest levels in the UK at 74%. Speeds however, are not as high as in other locations with average speeds of around 7‐8 Mbps. The 2014 City Voice survey reported reasonable levels of satisfaction with broadband, although only 35% reported an improvement in the last two years. Accelerate Aberdeen program: multi‐
stream project that seeks to provide the region with world class digital infrastructure it requires, with economic growth and development at its core. This aims to improve speeds by ten times. 5.4 Education Aberdeen has a range of school provision, with a number of notable institutions located within the city centre boundary. As well as independent schools, Aberdeen City Centre has an International School and a specialist (French) school. Reflecting the diversity of the workforce, these types of institution, often reflect successful longer term FDI into a location and can contribute to ongoing inward investment success. Recently, Aberdeen City Council has reported a significant improvement in success at schools, in particular in terms of those achieving Higher and Advanced Higher Grades. Skills Development Scotland reports that Aberdeen City now has 91% of students leaving schools to positive destinations. 25 26 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline Although this is less than Aberdeenshire (94%), but is on a par with City of Edinburgh (91%) and better than Dundee (88%) and Glasgow (85%). 5.5 Health The 2013 Single Outcome Agreement identifies Aberdeen as having a higher than average (for Scotland) life expectancy. That said, like much of the country health remains an important issue which needs to be acknowledged within the Masterplan. The following table compares overall / general health in Aberdeen city with health in Aberdeenshire and Scotland. The proportion of the City population who have their lives limited by illness is similar to Scotland as a whole. That said, given the younger age profile of the population in the city centre, it is probably fair to assume that the quantum of the population with limiting conditions is lower. 5.6 Crime and Disorder The diagram below identifies the main conditions people suffer from. Again, this profile is similar to that seen elsewhere in Scotland. Figure 1.21 Crime domain SIMD 2012 Data about crime from the 2012 SIMD shows that a large part of the City Centre falls within the 5% most deprived areas in Scotland. Six of the city centre’s data zones are within the 5% most deprived in Scotland, with an additional one within the 10% most deprived. Figure 1.20 Health Conditions by Age in Aberdeen City Figure 1.19 Comparative Impacts of Poor Health Source: National Records of Scotland, Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, 2012 The table below shows that the level of recorded crime in Aberdeen City has declined by 13% between 2004 and 2011. In the City Centre, recorded crime increased by over 13% over the same period. Source: National Records of Scotland Source: National Records of Scotland Insert Baseline Paper Name here Table 1.8 Recorded crime 2004 to 2011 2004/ 2005 2007/ 2008 2010/ 2011 Change Aberdeen 13,749 12,893 11,955 ‐13.0% City City 2,491 2,775 2,821 13.2% Centre A freedom of Information request published by the Grampian Police2 shows that in 2011 around half of all recorded crime in the city centre was related to vandalism, fire raising and malicious mischief. A quarter of recorded crime was violence against the person (eg murder, attempted murder, assault, robbery and cruelty to children). 5.7 Culture Participation I addition to improving cultural provision as a means of increasing visitor numbers and growing the city’s economic base. Partners in Aberdeen have previous identified links between cultural participation and quality of life. Cultural participation in Aberdeen has historically been low. The 2008 Scottish Arts Council’s (now Creative Scotland) Taking Part study showed that only 51% of adults in the North East participated in cultural activity, compared with 71% in Scotland as a whole. In terms of visual arts and crafts, the rates of participation are 12% and 14% respectively. Despite Aberdeen’s large and growing student population, Universities have suggested that student surveys show that the city is not attractive to students. Consultees have suggested that the city centre has not kept pace with an increasingly sophistical student market. 5.8 Emerging Messages for the City Centre Masterplan: Quality of Life Aberdeen has all of the assets to legitimately claim to be delivering a high quality of life for its residents. This is certainly backed up by the opinions of residents; low levels of deprivation and strong educational provision within the city centre. 2
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/ request/104221/response/255293/attach/3/
FOI.49.12.Reply.pdf 27 Aberdeen however, does not rank as highly for quality of life as might be expected given the availability of amenities and leisure and also the high cost of living. Indeed stakeholders have suggested that the City Centre could improve as a central service centre for the surrounding area. Based on the evolution of other Energy Hubs, quality of life factors will become increasingly important in anchoring the activities in the city, particularly as and when oil production begin to red7 uce. Other cities such as Stavanger, Perth and Calgary have recognised this and responded with appropriate investment Whilst the Masterplan must be a means of improvising quality of life as way of encouraging investment, it is also important that it acknowledges issues in some of the areas in the vicinity of the city centre, improving quality of life for all Aberdeen residents. 28 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline 6. Summary – SWOT Analysis The table below sets out a headline summary of key strengths, opportunities, weaknesses and threats facing Aberdeen and in particular the city centre, drawing on the findings from this baseline analysis Topic Strengths / Opportunities Enterprise 
Very high start‐up rates compared with Scotland / UK Innovation 
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Strengths around life sciences through University of Aberdeen High numbers of patents granted (4th of all UK cities) 
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One of the key world business hubs for the oil and gas sector High supply chain spend from oil and gas – retail, food, accommodation etc Energetica is a key growth area and opportunity for energy sector Oil, Gas, Energy 
Other Sectors Inward Investment Population & Demographics Skills Employability / Deprivation 
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Food and Drink – strong sector across the shire & nationally Life Sciences – strong sector linked to University strengths Visitor Economy – significant growth opportunity eg given hotel stock and weekend vacancies (see separate visitor economy baseline document) Creative industries – growing sector nationally Strong investment from the oil and gas sector Strong economy, meaning commercial development is more viable than in other cities Young population in the city centre – high working age population Graduate retention is reasonably strong (43%) but still lower than some other cities Large number of non‐UK residents – creating a strong international feel to the centre 
Skills levels are very high 
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One of the least deprived cities in Scotland Unemployment is very low – although higher in the city than in the shire 
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Weaknesses / Threats Some partners suggest city centre doesn’t feel like an enterprising location and that there is shortage of small business workspace Environment for innovation ie strong centre as a meeting point for knowledge workers, is less strong (cluster theory). Availability of a skilled workforce and affordability of living are key threats to future oil and gas industry in Aberdeen Over‐reliance on oil and gas (one report suggests 60% of employment in Aberdeen city and shire is from direct, indirect and induced impacts of oil and gas) Food and drink sector needs strong place image and outlets (eg Michelin star restaurant) to support growth, which city is not currently strong on City centre is currently not catering well for creative / cultural / visitor economy businesses – clearer strategy needed Negative perceptions amongst some, relating to cost of living, lack of culture, idea that it is purely an ‘oil city’, weather and isolation. 
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City is nevertheless facing skills shortages in certain sectors Oil and gas sector faces recruitment challenges in several key areas and issues of an ageing workforce 
Pockets of deprivation remain and connectivity to employment / employability support is still key for these areas Insert Baseline Paper Name here Topic Housing (Also see separate property baseline document) Employment Land / Premises (Also see separate property baseline document) Transport (Also see separate transport baseline document) Broadband Public Realm (Also see separate townscape baseline document) Education, Health, Crime Culture and Leisure
(Also see separate culture baseline document) Income / Cost of Living Low Carbon Place Strengths / Opportunities 
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Lot of investment in recent years in new employment space (although much has been outside the city centre) 
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Broadband uptake is very high Plans in development for Aberdeen to become a ‘Gigacity’ with significantly enhanced broadband speeds. 
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Insufficient business base in the city centre Businesses have been moving out to periphery 
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Too many cars in the city centre, crating congestion, pollution and unpleasant pedestrian environment Airport links to the city centre are poor Public transport connections between major employment sites and other hubs (eg universities) outside the centre are weak 
Broadband speeds are currently very low 
Poor quality and navigability of city centre – constrains growth of retail, culture etc No clear centre to the city Port and city kept separate 
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Education and health generally strong compared to other parts of Scotland Crime relatively low compared to other parts of Scotland 
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Great opportunities – green space, beach, port etc Opportunities for outdoor dining – Scandinavian style 
Median wages compare well to the rest of Scotland / UK 
Opportunity to develop Aberdeen as a low carbon city Weaknesses / Threats Insufficient stock and affordability challenges Not building enough and situation will worsen as population increases – most growth has been in the Shire Overcrowding in city centre housing an increasing problem Currently the city centre is not a sufficiently attractive place to live – quality of place, activities there 
Currently cultural and leisure offer is weak, and the centre needs to provide a more rounded cultural offer in order to attract and retain investment and skilled workers 
Cost of living is much weaker than rest of Scotland / UK – particularly housing 29 30 Aberdeen City Centre Masterplan & Delivery Framework Socio‐Economic Baseline Appendix A: Geographies Used in Analysis The following charts provides an overview of the way in which city centre boundaries have been approximated in the analysis in order to draw on key datasets needed for socio‐economic analysis. The smallest geography that UK Business Counts (enterprise data) is available at is Scottish Intermediate Zones. These areas are made up of an agglomeration of Scottish Data Zones, and cover larger areas. As such, for the following sections (enterprise) a different definition is used for Aberdeen City Centre (please see the map below). Comparison of geographies used in defining Aberdeen City Centre. Source: Contains National Records of Scotland data. Insert Baseline Paper Name here In this baseline the City Centre is defined using best‐fit (Scottish) data zones for Aberdeen City Centre boundary defined in the Aberdeen City Centre Development Framework published in 2011 (show in green in the diagram above), The following are the data zones used in defining the City Centre, represented by a grey border in the diagram above: S01000094, S01000098, S01000100, S01000102, S01000107, S01000109, S01000125, S01000126, S01000128, S01000129 and S01000138. Where data is not available at data zone level (Scottish) intermediate data zones were used. This alternative geography is shown as a shaded orange area in the diagram above, and is comprised of the following intermediate data zones: S02000018 and S02000024. 31 6
Aberdeen city centre masterplan report
Scott Mackenzie
Director of Architecture
BDP
15 Exchange Place
Glasgow
G1 3AN
United Kingdom
T: 0141 227 7949
E: [email protected]
www.bdp.com
DRAFT
.