The Falkirk Braes () is a geographical and sociopolitical entity within the Falkirk local authority area in Scotland. The population (both suburban and rural) is approximately 32,000 (2018), about 20% of the total for Falkirk council area.Lower Braes (15,571), Scottish Government StatisticsUpper Braes (16,454), Scottish Government Statistics
Description
Covering an area of high ground within to the south and east of the county town Falkirk and south of Grangemouth, its core comprises a number of small villages including mining and quarrying communities,Polmont and Brightons, Falkirk Local History SocietyOS Six-inch 1st edition, 1843-1882, Explore georeferenced maps (National Library of Scotland)OS 25 inch Scotland, 1892-1905, Explore georeferenced maps (National Library of Scotland) which have each expanded to form a near-contiguous acentric suburban environment.OS National Grid Maps, 1944-1967, Explore georeferenced maps (National Library of Scotland) Historically within Stirlingshire, most of the Braes villages fell under Grangemouth parish,Parish of Grangemouth, Gazetteer for Scotland while Laurieston was part of Falkirk parishParish of Falkirk, Gazetteer for Scotland and the south-east including Maddiston was in Muiravonside parish.Parish of Muiravonside, Gazetteer for Scotland The largest village, with the majority of amenities such as health centre and library, is Polmont, but this is not at the geographical centre of the agglomeration and is itself spread over a wide territory, having grown in several places in different eras. The centre could be argued to be west of Polmont at the site of the Meadowbank Colliery and Brickworks,Stirling 1, Scottish Mining WebsiteRaewell Firebrick Works, Meadowbank Brickworks, Redding, Falkirk, Stirlingshire, Scottish Brick History nominally in Redding; due to its industrial history, it is one of the undeveloped parcels of land in the area.
In the 21st century, speculative housebuilding (including on brownfield sites such as the Nobel explosives works),Alfred Nobel in Scotland, NobelPrize.orgNobels Factory in Redding was an explosive place , Falkirk Herald, 17 April 2012Polmont, West Quarter And Redding Muir, Detonator Factories, Canmore has continued to fill most of the gaps between the settlements, owing to the location falling roughly midway between Glasgow and Edinburgh with links to both cities via the railway network (at , which falls on the boundary with Brightons) and motorways (M9) as well as employment locally at Falkirk and Grangemouth, which has been highlighted in marketing by developers.Residents plead with builders to finish work , Falkirk Herald, 2 April 2009Starter homes and incentives at Scottish new-build developments, What New Homes?The Braes Falkirk: Development Overview , Walker GroupKier Homes to unveil new show home at Redding Bank, Falkirk, easier.com, 2 June 2012New showhomes to view in Scotland, The Herald, 2 April 2016[Callendar Rise Phase 8 Web Brochure], Taylor WimpeyParkhall Meadow, Persimmon Homes
The area returns six representatives to Falkirk Council, three each representing the Lower BraesLower Braes (Ward 8), Falkirk CouncilLower Braes Local Community Policing Team , Police Scotland and Upper BraesUpper Braes (Ward 9), Falkirk CouncilUpper Braes Local Community Policing Team , Police Scotland wards, divided by the Union Canal which runs east–west through the territory; both wards (particularly Upper Braes) also include outlying rural villages such as Shieldhill, Slamannan and Whitecross in addition to the cluster of villages closer to Falkirk. In wider political contexts, as of 2019 the Braes falls wholly within the Falkirk East constituency at Holyrood,Falkirk East: Scottish Parliamentary Constituency (map, 2015), Falkirk Council but at Westminster is divided between Linlithgow and East FalkirkLinlithgow and East Falkirk: Westminster Parliamentary Constituency (map, 2015), Falkirk Council and Falkirk.Falkirk: Westminster Parliamentary Constituency (map, 2015), Falkirk Council
The local secondary school, with approximately 1,000 pupils and six feeder primaries across the Upper Braes, is Braes High School, located in ReddingmuirheadHome , Braes High SchoolSecondary Schools: Braes High School, Falkirk Council (adjacent to HMYOI Polmont). However, in the Lower Braes the eponymous primary schools in Laurieston, Westquarter and Whitecross, plus St Margaret's Primary in Polmont, are affiliated to Graeme High School in east Falkirk.Secondary Schools: Graeme High School, Falkirk Council
Muiravonside Country Park between Maddiston and Whitecross (featuring the Avon Aqueduct) is also within the area.Muiravonside Country Park, Falkirk Community Trust The River Avon flows through the park - it denotes the eastern and southern boundaries of the Braes territory.
List of localities Displaying 2011 census figures.
Villages in conurbation
Total 22,197 Brightons 4,461 Laurieston 2,633 Maddiston 3,099 Polmont 5,322 Redding 2,276 Reddingmuirhead 1,556 Rumford 884 Wallacestone 693 Westquarter 1,193
Isolated villages on periphery Avonbridge 652 Binniehill California 810 Limerigg 219 Shieldhill 2,523 Slamannan 1,382 Standburn 151 Whitecross 776
See also List of places in Falkirk council area
References
External links Braes local news at Falkirk Herald Falkirk Local History Society Dave Leask's Maddiston Pages (local history)