Inverclyde community settlement officer could ease population decline

The role, which is for an initial two-year period, will be jointly funded by both the Scottish Government and Inverclyde Council.

Community Settlement Officers already operate successfully in Argyll and Bute, the Highlands, and Western Isles which have also been hit by population declines.

A June meeting of Inverclyde Council’s policy and resources committee was told that the officer’s role will involve identifying ways of keeping people in Inverclyde and also attracting new residents.

One proposal is to encourage successful asylum applicants to remain in Inverclyde after their cases have been heard.

The same meeting also heard concerns that Inverclyde’s population is being regularly underestimated and could be out by up to 2.5 per cent.

READ MORE: 'I left Inverclyde due to the long commute and lack of opportunities'

Twenty-four council areas have populations that are either overestimated or underestimated.

The City of Edinburgh had the largest overestimated population at 3.7 per cent while Inverclyde had the largest underestimated population.

Councillors were told that one way of measuring population was by numbers registered with GP practices.

This can lead to inaccuracies with people being counted in the wrong council area or if they fail to register with a GP or delay registration.

The Scottish Government agency National Records of Scotland (NRS), who compile population figures, has been asked to explain why Inverclyde’s population has been repeatedly understated.

Concerns were also expressed that population underestimates could impact on public services.

(Image: George Munro)

Councillors were also told that as of June 2022, Inverclyde’s population was estimated to be 78,340, a drop of 60 since March that year due to more deaths than births.

Further updates on the Community Settlement Officer appointment and NRS figures are to be given at the next committee meeting in August.

The council says it is working hard to reverse the population decline through a local task force set up to tackle the problem.

A spokesperson said: “There are many factors spanning several decades associated with depopulation but a major contributor is loss of jobs and lack of employment opportunities.

“The Inverclyde Socio-Economic Task Force was established by the council to bring together key local and national stakeholders, including both governments, to look at issues affecting Inverclyde, such as depopulation and employment, and to see what can be done collectively to tackle these issues and create new opportunities for the area to try and reverse the population decline.

“There are four key elements linked to that and they are: businesses, business locations, skills, and houses.

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“We need businesses to operate locally to create jobs that keep people in the area and attract people to the area.

“In order to do that, we need suitable locations and facilities for businesses to move into, to equip people with the necessary skills to provide a workforce for businesses, and for more housing to accommodate employees.

“Through the task force, we are continuing to make the case for the further investment in Inverclyde that is required to make Inverclyde an even better place to live, work, visit and do business.”

Meanwhile, the Scottish Government claim they are already taking measures to arrest Inverclyde’s population decline.

Equalities minister Kaukab Stewart added: “There are no quick fixes to the challenges that lead to population decline, and as every place is affected differently, there is no one solution that would work for every area.

“The Scottish Government has committed to working with Inverclyde Council to begin addressing challenges around population attraction and retention in Inverclyde.

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“As part of this, we have offered part-funding towards the establishment of a Community Settlement Officer post in Inverclyde, which would focus on locally-identified priorities to retain new cohorts of people within the local community.

“The Scottish Government remains committed to participation in the ongoing work of the Inverclyde Task Force.

“Driving economic growth and opportunity can play a key part in stabilising the local population.”

Scottish Enterprise say they are supporting the regeneration of Inverclyde through partnerships with Glasgow City Region Innovation Action Plan, Inverclyde Council, Innovate, and National Manufacturing Institute Scotland.

READ MORE: Businessman says drop in footfall is linked to de-population and poor road links

The government agency’s most recent high profile funding was £13.7 million in 2020 to Greenock-based semiconductor manufacturer Diodes.

The cash injection followed Diodes’ acquisition of Texas Instruments in the town, safeguarding all 300 jobs.

The company also received £169,500 from Inverclyde Council to assist with development of the site.

At the time Scottish Enterprise said the funding reinforced Inverclyde as a prominent and important area for manufacturing and business.

The economic development agency also say Inverclyde has benefited from recent investment in Ferguson’s and through the Glasgow City Region Deal including the new cruise ship visitor centre and gallery at Greenock Ocean Terminal.