Editing Renfrewshire

{{Short description|Council area of Scotland}}
{{For|the historic county and lieutenancy area|Renfrewshire (historic)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name                    = Renfrewshire
| native_name             = {{native name|gd|Siorrachd Rinn Friù}}
| settlement_type         = [[Subdivisions of Scotland#Council areas|Council area]]
| image_skyline           = 
| imagesize               = 
| image_alt               = 
| image_caption           = 
| image_flag              = 
| flag_alt                = 
| image_shield            = Coat of Arms of Renfrewshire.svg
| shield_alt              = 
| shield_link             = 
| image_blank_emblem      = 
| blank_emblem_size       = 
| blank_emblem_type       = 
| blank_emblem_link       = 
| etymology               = 
| nickname                = 
| motto                   = 
| image_map               = Renfrewshire UK location map.svg
| map_alt                 = 
| map_caption             = Renfrewshire shown within [[Scotland]]
| coordinates             = {{coord|55.829858|N|4.542838|W|region:GB_type:adm2nd|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type        = [[Sovereign state]]
| subdivision_name        = [[United Kingdom]]
| subdivision_type1       = [[Countries of the United Kingdom|Country]]
| subdivision_name1       = [[Scotland]]
| subdivision_type2       = 
| subdivision_name2       = 
| subdivision_type3       = [[Lieutenancy areas of Scotland|Lieutenancy area]]
| subdivision_name3       = [[Renfrewshire (historic)|Renfrewshire]]
| subdivision_type4       = 
| subdivision_name4       = 
| established_title       = Unitary authority
| established_date        = [[Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994|1 April 1996]]
| established_title1      = 
| established_date1       = 
| established_title2      = 
| established_date2       = 
| named_for               = 
| seat_type               = Administrative{{nbsp}}HQ
| seat                    = Renfrewshire House, [[Paisley, Renfrewshire|Paisley]]
| parts_type              = 
| parts                   = 
<!-- Government -->
| government_footnotes    = <ref name="Council leadership">{{cite web |url=https://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/article/2006/Your-Council |title=Your Council |website=Renfrewshire Council |access-date=7 September 2024}}</ref>
| government_type         = [[Local government in Scotland|Council]]
| governing_body          = [[Renfrewshire Council]]
| leader_title            = [[Political make-up of local councils in the United Kingdom|Control]]
| leader_name             = {{UK council control|GSS=S12000038}}
| leader_title1           = 
| leader_name1            = 
| leader_title2           = 
| leader_name2            = 
| leader_title3           = [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|MPs]]
| leader_name3            = {{Collapsible list |title=2 MPs
 |[[Alison Taylor (politician)|Alison Taylor]] ([[Labour Party (UK)|L]])
 |[[Johanna Baxter]] ([[Labour Party (UK)|L]])
 }}
| leader_title4           = [[Member of the Scottish Parliament|MSPs]]
| leader_name4            = {{Collapsible list |title=3 MSPs
 |[[George Adam]] ([[Scottish National Party|SNP]])
 |[[Natalie Don]] ([[Scottish National Party|SNP]])
 |[[Tom Arthur (Scottish politician)|Tom Arthur]] ([[Scottish National Party|SNP]])
 }}
<!-- Area -->
<!-- ALL fields with measurements have automatic unit conversion -->
| area_footnotes          = <ref name="popstats">{{UK subdivision statistics citation}}</ref>
| area_total_km2          = {{UK subdivision area|GSS=S12000038}}
| area_land_km2           = 
| area_water_km2          = 
| area_rank               = [[Subdivisions of Scotland#Council areas|{{Scottish council area rank|GSS=S12000038}}]]
<!-- Population -->
| population_footnotes    = <ref name="popstats" />
| population_as_of        = {{UK subdivision statistics year}}
| population_total        = {{UK subdivision population|GSS=S12000038}}
| population_rank         = [[Subdivisions of Scotland#Council areas|{{Scottish council population rank|GSS=S12000038}}]]
| population_density_km2  = {{UK subdivision density|GSS=S12000038}}
| population_demonym      = 
<!-- demographics (section 1) -->
| demographics_type1      = 
| demographics1_footnotes = 
| demographics1_title1    = 
| demographics1_info1     = 
<!-- demographics (section 2) -->
| demographics_type2      = 
| demographics2_footnotes = 
| demographics2_title1    = 
| demographics2_info1     = 
| timezone1               = [[Greenwich Mean Time|GMT]]
| utc_offset1             = +0
| timezone1_DST           = [[British Summer Time|BST]]
| utc_offset1_DST         = +1
<!-- Codes -->
| postal_code_type        = [[Postcodes in the United Kingdom|Postcode areas]]
| postal_code             = 
| area_code_type          = [[Telephone numbers in the United Kingdom|Dialling codes]]
| area_code               = 
| iso_code                = [[ISO 3166-2:GB|GB-RFW]]
| blank1_name             = [[GSS coding system|GSS code]]
| blank1_info             = S12000038
| website                 = {{URL|renfrewshire.gov.uk}}
}}

'''Renfrewshire''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|ɛ|n|f|r|uː|ʃ|ɪər|,_|-|ʃ|ər}}) ({{langx|sco|Renfrewshire}}; {{langx|gd|Siorrachd Rinn Friù}}) is one of the 32 [[council areas of Scotland]]. Renfrewshire is located in the west [[central Lowlands]]. It borders [[East Renfrewshire]], [[Glasgow]], [[Inverclyde]], [[North Ayrshire]] and [[West Dunbartonshire]], and lies on the southern bank of the [[River Clyde]]. The current council area of Renfrewshire was established in 1996. The town of [[Paisley, Renfrewshire|Paisley]] is the area's main settlement and [[administrative centre|centre of local government]]. The area also contains the historic [[county town]] of [[Renfrew]].

The council area has the same name as the [[Renfrewshire (historic)|historic county of Renfrewshire]], which had been abolished for local government purposes in 1975, but the modern council area only covers the central part of the historic county. The eastern part of the pre-1975 county is covered by the [[East Renfrewshire]] council area, and the western part by the [[Inverclyde]] council area.

The term Renfrewshire may also be used to refer to the larger historic county, which was established in the fifteenth century. The three council areas of Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, and East Renfrewshire together form the [[Lord Lieutenant of Renfrewshire|Renfrewshire lieutenancy area]]. The same area also has a joint valuation board area for electoral registration and local tax valuation purposes. The three council areas together are sometimes referred to as Greater Renfrewshire to distinguish them from the council area called Renfrewshire.

==Toponymy==
The name Renfrewshire derives from being the [[shires of Scotland|shire]] (the area controlled by a [[sheriff principal|sheriff]]) administered from the [[royal burgh]] of [[Renfrew]]. The name Renfrew has been attested since the Roman occupation of Britain. The name is believed to originate from [[Common Brittonic]]/[[Cumbric]], from ren, as in [[Scottish Gaelic]]: ''rinn'', or as in [[Welsh language|Welsh]]: ''rhyn'' (a point or cape of land) and from frew, as in [[Welsh language|Welsh]]: ''fraw'', or ''ffrau'' (flow of water). This suggests a point of land near the flow of water, such as at the confluence of the Cart and Clyde rivers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s1OpF1IdcgQC&q=etymology+of+ren%27+frew&pg=PA222|title=Local Etymology: A Derivative Dictionary of Geographical Names|work=R.S. Charnock, London, 1859|last1=Charnock|first1=Richard Stephen|year=1859}}</ref>

==History==
{{for|the history of the pre-1975 county|Renfrewshire (historic)}}
The historic county of Renfrewshire was abolished for local government purposes in 1975. The county was divided to become three of the nineteen [[districts of Scotland|districts]] in the [[Strathclyde]] region, being [[Eastwood, Strathclyde|Eastwood]], Inverclyde, and [[Renfrew (district)|Renfrew]].<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=act|act=Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973|year=1973|chapter=65|accessdate=6 February 2023}}</ref>

In the debates leading to the local government reforms of the [[Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994]], the government initially proposed replacing these three districts with two council areas: "West Renfrewshire", covering Inverclyde district and the western parts of Renfrew district (including Paisley, [[Johnstone, Renfrewshire|Johnstone]], and Renfrew), and "East Renfrewshire", covering Eastwood district and the eastern parts of Renfrew district (including [[Barrhead]], [[Neilston]] and [[Ralston, Renfrewshire|Ralston]]). The proposals were criticised, with West Renfrewshire having three times the population of East Renfrewshire; the accusation was made in parliament that the proposed changes constituted [[gerrymandering]], with East Renfrewshire only being kept separate because it had more [[Scottish Conservative|Conservative]] voters.<ref>{{cite web |title=Local Government (Scotland and Wales) Volume 233: debated on Monday 22 November 1993 |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1993-11-22/debates/505ea6bb-9416-4179-ac1c-209fd64ea7d4/LocalGovernment(ScotlandAndWales) |website=Hansard |publisher=UK Parliament |access-date=6 February 2023}}</ref>

The proposals were not supported locally, with Inverclyde successfully campaigning to be allowed to form its own council area, and the Ralston area voting in a referendum not to be transferred to East Renfrewshire.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ralston stays with Paisley! |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/ |access-date=6 February 2023 |work=Paisley Daily Express |date=17 May 1994 |page=1}}</ref> When the government conceded to allow Inverclyde to continue as a separate authority, the name West Renfrewshire was dropped. The central district was instead named Renfrewshire, despite only covering the central part of the historic county of that name. The new Renfrewshire covered the former Renfrew district except for the Barrhead [[wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom|electoral division]] (which also included Neilston) which went instead to East Renfrewshire. The new council areas came into effect on 1 April 1996.<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=act|act=Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994|year=1994|chapter=39|accessdate=6 February 2023}}</ref>

The [[Braehead]] shopping centre was built in 1999 straddling the boundary between Renfrewshire and Glasgow, leading to a dispute between the two councils. It was agreed that the boundary should be changed to place the whole centre in one council area, but both authorities wanted it. In 2002, the [[Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland|Local Government Boundary Commission]] eventually redrew the boundary to include all of the centre in Renfrewshire.<ref>{{cite news|title=Glasgow MSPs lose Braehead battle|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1973915.stm|access-date=13 June 2012|newspaper=BBC News|date=7 May 2002}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2002/156/article/5/made |accessdate=13 September 2021| title=The Glasgow City Council and Renfrewshire Council Boundaries (Braehead) Amendment Order 2002 | year=2002 | website=legislation.gov.uk }}</ref>

==Settlements==
{{Location map+|Scotland Renfrewshire
 |caption={{left|The largest settlements in Renfrewshire.}}
 |float=right
 |width=500
 |places =
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55|50|44|N|04|25|26|W|}}|position=left|label='''[[Paisley, Renfrewshire|Paisley]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.878|-4.389|}}|position=left|label='''[[Renfrew]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.83461|-4.50272|}}|position=top|label='''[[Johnstone]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.908|-4.464|}}|position=top|label='''[[Erskine, Renfrewshire|Erskine]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.847|-4.502|}}|position=top|label='''[[Linwood, Renfrewshire|Linwood]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.908622|-4.5045200|}}|position=left|label='''[[Bishopton, Renfrewshire|Bishopton]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.86697|-4.55207|}}|position=top|label='''[[Houston, Renfrewshire|Houston]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.83061|-4.48421|}}|position=right|label='''[[Elderslie, Scotland|Elderslie]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.856511|-4.577666|}}|position=bottom|label='''[[Bridge of Weir]]'''|label_size=}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.8362|-4.5537|}}|position=bottom|label='''[[Kilbarchan]]'''|label_size=}}

<!-- Bordering council areas -->
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.951|-4.53|}}|position=right|label=''[[West Dunbartonshire#Settlements|West Dunbartonshire]]''|marksize=0|label_size=120}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.848|-4.373|}}|position=right|label=''[[Glasgow City council area#Settlements|Glasg.]]''|marksize=0|label_size=120}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.785|-4.48|}}|position=right|label=''[[East Renfrewshire#Settlements|East Renfrewshire]]''|marksize=0|label_size=120}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.785|-4.76|}}|position=right|label=''[[North Ayrshire#Settlements|North Ayrshire]]''|marksize=0|label_size=120}}
  {{Location map~|Scotland Renfrewshire|coordinates = {{coord|55.86|-4.72|}}|position=right|label=''[[Inverclyde#Settlements|Inverclyde]]''|marksize=0|label_size=120}}

}}

Largest settlements by population:

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+
!Settlement
!Population ({{Scottish settlement population citation|year}})<ref>{{Scottish settlement population citation}}</ref>
|-
|[[Paisley, Renfrewshire|Paisley]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Paisley}}
|-
|[[Renfrew]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Renfrew}}
|-
|[[Johnstone]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Johnstone}}
|-
|[[Erskine, Renfrewshire|Erskine]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Erskine}}
|-
|[[Linwood, Renfrewshire|Linwood]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Linwood}}
|-
|[[Bishopton, Renfrewshire|Bishopton]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Bishopton}}
|-
|[[Houston, Renfrewshire|Houston]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Houston}}
|-
|[[Elderslie, Scotland|Elderslie]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Elderslie}}
|-
|[[Bridge of Weir]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Bridge of Weir}}
|-
|[[Kilbarchan]]
|{{Scottish locality population|name|POP=Kilbarchan}}
|-
|}

==Communities==
The area is divided into 25 [[List of community council areas in Scotland|community council areas]], 20 of which have [[community council]]s as at 2023 (being those with asterisks in the list below):<ref>{{cite web |title=Elections to Community Councils |url=https://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/article/9270/Elections-to-Community-Councils |website=Renfrewshire Council |access-date=8 February 2023}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
*[[Bishopton, Renfrewshire|Bishopton]]*
*[[Bridge of Weir]]*
*[[Brookfield, Renfrewshire|Brookfield]]*
*[[Charleston, Paisley|Charleston]]
*[[Elderslie, Scotland|Elderslie]]*
*[[Erskine, Renfrewshire|Erskine]]*
*[[Ferguslie Park|Ferguslie]]*
*[[Foxbar|Foxbar and Brediland]]
*[[Gallowhill]]
*[[Glenburn, Paisley|Glenburn]]
*[[Hawkhead|Hawkhead and Lochfield]]*
*[[Houston, Renfrewshire|Houston]]*
*[[Howwood, Renfrewshire|Howwood]]*
*Hunterhill
*[[Inchinnan]]*
*[[Johnstone]]*
*[[Kilbarchan]]*
*[[Langbank]]*
*[[Linwood, Renfrewshire|Linwood]]*
*[[Lochwinnoch]]*
*[[Paisley, Renfrewshire|Paisley]] East and Whitehaugh*
*Paisley North*
*Paisley West and Central*
*[[Ralston, Renfrewshire|Ralston]]*
*[[Renfrew]]*
{{div col end}}

==Demographics==
{| class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"
|+ 
! rowspan="2" |Ethnic Group
! colspan="2" |[[2001 United Kingdom census|2001]]<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Census Dissemination Unit |first=Mimas |date=5 May 2011 |title=InFuse |url=https://infuse2011gf.ukdataservice.ac.uk/ |access-date=24 June 2022 |website=infuse2011gf.ukdataservice.ac.uk |language=English}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |[[2011 United Kingdom census|2011]]<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Scotland's Census 2011&nbsp;– Table KS201SC |url=http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ods-web/standard-outputs.html |publisher=scotlandscensus.gov.uk |access-date=3 November 2015 |archive-date=7 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107044126/https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ods-web/standard-outputs.html%20 |url-status=live }}</ref>
! colspan="2" |[[2021 United Kingdom census#2022 census for Scotland|2022]]<ref name="2022census_Scot">{{cite web |url=https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/media/trbdxzme/scotland-s-census-2022-ethnic-group-national-identity-language-and-religion-chart-data.xlsx |title=Scotland's Census 2022 - Ethnic group, national identity, language and religion - Chart data |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=21 May 2024 |website=Scotland's Census |publisher=[[National Records of Scotland]] |access-date=21 May 2024 }} [https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/search-the-census#/search-by Alternative URL] 'Search data by location' > 'Local Authority (CA2019)' > 'Renfrewshire' > 'Ethnic group, national identity, language and religion' > 'Ethnic Group'</ref>
|-
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
!Number
!%
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
![[White people|White]]: Total
!170,728
!98.76%
!170,127
!97.27%
!171,816
!94.78%
|-
|White: [[Scottish people|Scottish]]
| 161,395
| 93.36%
| 159,708
| 91.31%
| 147,073
| 81.13%
|-
|White: [[White British|Other British]]
| 5,956
| 3.45%
| 5,805
| 3.32%
| 12,959
| 7.15%
|-
|White: [[Irish Briton|Irish]]
| 1,877
| 1.09%
| 1,643
| 0.94%
| 1,290
| 0.71%
|-
|White: [[Irish Traveller|Gypsy/Traveller]]{{efn|name=auto|New category created for the 2011 census}}
| –
| –
| 70
| –
| 70
| –
|-
|White: [[White Polish|Polish]]{{efn|name=auto}}
| –
| –
| 1,298
| 0.74%
| 5,568
| 3.07%
|-
|White: [[White Other (United Kingdom Census)|Other]]
| 1,500
| 0.87%
| 1,603
| 0.92%
| 4,853
| 2.68%
|-
![[Asian people|Asian]], [[Asian-Scots|Asian Scottish]] or [[British Asian|Asian British]]: Total
! 1,509
! 0.87%
! 3,110
! 1.78%
! 5,056
!
|-
|Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: [[British Indian|Indian]]
| 461
| 0.27%
| 1,028
| 0.59%
| 1,315
| 0.73%
|-
|Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: [[British Pakistani|Pakistani]]
| 497
| 0.29%
| 965
| 0.55%
| 2,338
| 1.29%
|-
|Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: [[British Bangladeshi|Bangladeshi]]
| 8
| –
| 19
| –
| 45
| –
|-
|Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: [[British Chinese|Chinese]]
| 440
| 0.25%
| 823
| 0.47%
| 810
| 0.45%
|-
|Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: [[British Asian|Asian Other]]
| 103
| 0.06%
| 275
| 0.16%
| 548
| 0.30%
|-
![[Black people|Black]], [[Black Scottish people|Black Scottish]] or [[Black British]]{{efn|Category restructured for the 2011 census}}
!30
! –
! –
! –
! –
! –
|-
![[Black people|African]]: Total
!113
!0.07%
!804
!0.46%
!1,439
!0.79%
|-
|African: [[Black people|African]], [[Black Scottish people|African Scottish]] or [[Black British|African British]]
| –
| –
| 782
| 0.45%
| 165
| 0.09%
|-
|African: [[Black British|Other African]]
| –
| –
| 22
| –
| 1,274
| 0.70%
|-
![[British African-Caribbean community|Caribbean]] or [[Black British|Black]]: Total
!–
!–
!119
!0.07%
!163
!0.09%
|-
|[[British African-Caribbean community|Caribbean]]
| 54
| –
| 64
| –
| 68
| –
|-
|[[Black British|Black]]
| –
| –
| 47
| –
| 15
| –
|-
|Caribbean or Black: [[Other Black|Other]]
| –
| –
| 8
| –
| 80
| –
|-
![[British Mixed|Mixed or multiple ethnic groups]]: Total
!285
!0.16%
!437
!0.25%
!1,912
!1.05%
|-
!Other: Total
!148
!0.09%
!311
!0.18%
!888
!0.49%
|-
|Other: [[British Arabs|Arab]]{{efn|name=auto}}
| –
| –
| 194
| 0.11%
| 329
| 0.18%
|-
|Other: Any other ethnic group
| –
| –
| 117
| 0.07%
| 559
| 0.31%
|-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!Total:
!172,867
!100.00%
!174,908
!100.00%
!181,278
!100.00%
|}

==Culture==
[[File:Paisley Abbey from North West - Leaning western gable - 125mp.jpg|thumb|[[Paisley Abbey]]]]
Renfrewshire contains several places of interest. In the west of Renfrewshire, [[Castle Semple Loch]] at Lochwinnoch and the wider [[Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park]] are natural areas of interest, as is the [[Gleniffer Braes]] country park in the south.

Paisley contains several historic buildings and notable sites, including [[Paisley Abbey]], Paisley Museum and Coats Observatory, [[Paisley Town Hall]], Coats Memorial Church, Sma' Shot Cottages and [[St Mirren Park]] (home of [[St Mirren F.C.]]). Outside of Paisley, [[Elderslie, Scotland|Elderslie]], the claimed birthplace of Scottish knight [[William Wallace]], contains a monument in his honour, while the [[Kilbarchan|Weaver's Cottage]] at [[Kilbarchan]] is in the care of the [[National Trust for Scotland]]. The town of [[Johnstone]] is notable for [[Johnstone Castle]], Johnstone High Parish Church and for containing a museum within a supermarket.

The [[Braehead Arena]] in Renfrewshire close to the boundary with [[Glasgow]] is home to leading professional [[basketball]] team, the [[Scottish Rocks]], who compete in the [[British Basketball League]]. The arena was also host to the [[2000 Ford World Curling Championships]].

==Governance==
{{main|Renfrewshire Council}}

==Wider politics==
===UK Parliament===
The two [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|parliamentary]] constituencies covering Renfrewshire are [[Paisley and Renfrewshire North]] and [[Paisley and Renfrewshire South]], being represented by [[Scottish Labour Party|Labour Party]] politicians [[Alison Taylor (politician)|Alison Taylor]] and [[Johanna Baxter]] of the respectively. Created in 2005, both seats had held by the Labour Party, until they were won by [[Gavin Newlands]] and [[Mhairi Black]] with swings of over 26% in the SNP landslide at the [[2015 United Kingdom general election|2015 general election]]. Both seats returned to Labour following the 2024 general election.

{{election table|title=UK general election results in Renfrewshire 2005–2024}}
|-
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" style="text-align:left;" | Party
! colspan="6"|Votes cast
! colspan="6"|%
! colspan="6"|Seats
|-
!2005
!2010
!2015
!2017
!2019
!2024
!2005
!2010
!2015
!2017
!2019
!2024
!2005
!2010
!2015
!2017
!2019
!2024
|-
| style="background:#dc241f;"|
| style="text-align:left;" | [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]]
| '''38,601'''
| '''47,455'''
| 34,389
| 29,265
| 22,409
| '''39,144'''
| '''49.0'''
| '''56.7'''
| 35.6
| 33.1
| 24.2
| '''47.3'''
| '''2'''
| '''2'''
| 0
| 0
| 0
| '''2'''
|-
| style="background:{{party color|Scottish National Party}};"|
| style="text-align:left;" |[[Scottish National Party|Scottish National]]
| 14,349
| 15,621
| '''49,149'''
| '''34,419'''
| '''44,990'''
| 26,284
| 18.2
| 18.6
| '''50.8'''
| '''39.0'''
| '''48.5'''
| 31.7
| 0
| 0
| '''2'''
| '''2'''
| '''2'''
| 0
|-
| style="background:#0087dc;"|
| style="text-align:left;" | [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]
| 8,754
| 10,360
| 9,709
| 20,964
| 18,788
| 4,878
| 11.1
| 12.4
| 10.0
| 23.7
| 20.3
| 5.9
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|-
| style="background:#fdbb30;"|
| style="text-align:left;" | [[Liberal Democrat (UK)|Liberal Democrat]]
| 14,136
| 8,409
| 2,065
| 2,803
| 6,579
| 2,689
| 18.0
| 10.0
| 2.1
| 3.2
| 7.1
| 3.2
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|-
| style="background:#e9e9e9;"|
| style="text-align:left;" | Others
| 2,905
| 1,920
| 1,376
| 876
| N/A
| 9,807
| 3.7
| 2.3
| 1.4
| 1.0
| N/A
| 11.9
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| N/A
| 0
|-
! colspan="2" style="text-align:left;" |Margin
! 24,252
! 31,834
! 14,760
! 5,154
! 22,581
! 12,860
! 30.8
! 38.1
! 15.2
! 5.9
! 24.3
! 15.6
! 2
! 2
! 2
! 2
! 2
! 2
|-
! colspan="2" style="text-align:left;" | Total
! 78,745
! 83,765
! 96,688
! 88,327
! 92,766
! 82,802
! 100%
! 100%
! 100%
! 100%
! 100%
! 100%
! 2
! 2
! 2
! 2
! 2
! 2
|}

===Scottish Parliament===
Following the establishment of the [[Scottish Parliament]] in 1999, the Labour Party held the three seats covering Renfrewshire, although with lower majorities than their House of Commons equivalents.

Constituency boundaries were redrawn for the [[2011 Scottish Parliament election]], with the new constituencies of [[Renfrewshire North and West (Scottish Parliament constituency)|Renfrewshire North and West]] and [[Paisley (Scottish Parliament constituency)|Paisley]] being gained by [[Derek Mackay]] and [[George Adam]], who became the first SNP parliamentarians in Renfrewshire. The remaining Labour seat, [[Renfrewshire South (Scottish Parliament constituency)|Renfrewshire South]], was gained by the SNP's [[Tom Arthur (Scottish politician)|Tom Arthur]] at the [[2016 Scottish Parliament election|2016 Scottish election]]. Arthur and Adam were re-elected in [[2021 Scottish Parliament election|2021]] winning over half the vote in their respective seats, while Mackay was replaced by Renfrewshire Councillor [[Natalie Don]].

Renfrewshire is also contained with the [[West Scotland (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|West Scotland]] which elects seven additional members.

===Referendum results===
A majority of Renfrewshire rejected independence in the [[2014 Scottish independence referendum]], although with 55,466 (47.2%) votes cast in favour and 62,067 (52.8%) against, the ''Yes'' vote was higher than the national result. The turnout was 117,612 or 87.3%, the highest recorded in the democratic era.

With a turnout of 69.2% (88,197), Renfrewshire voted to remain in the [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|2016 European Union membership referendum]] with 64.8% (57,119) of votes cast in favour of remaining while 35.2% (31,010) were for leaving. This was the sixth highest vote for ''Remain'' out of Scotland's 32 councils.

==Education==
Renfrewshire contains the [[University of the West of Scotland]], a [[new universities|new university]] that was granted university status in 1992 as the University of Paisley. Prior to this, the Paisley Technical College and School of Art was a [[Central Institution]] or [[Polytechnic (United Kingdom)|polytechnic]]. In 2007 the university merged with [[Bell College]], a further education college in [[Hamilton, South Lanarkshire|Hamilton]], South Lanarkshire and the UWS name was adopted. The university today has sites across the west of Scotland, notably also in [[Ayr]] and a joint campus in [[Dumfries]]; the main campus remains in Paisley.

[[File:Paisley Grammar School - geograph.org.uk - 427193.jpg|thumb|Paisley Grammar School]]
[[Further education]] is provided by Paisley Campus of [[West College Scotland]] in [[Paisley, Renfrewshire|Paisley]], which caters to around 20,000 students. The college also has sites in [[Inverclyde]] and [[West Dumbartonshire]].<ref>[http://www.reidkerr.net/college_information]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724031634/http://www.reidkerr.net/college_information|date=24 July 2011}}</ref>

Renfrewshire contains eleven state secondary schools: Castlehead High School, Gleniffer High School, Gryffe High School, Johnstone High School, Linwood High School, Paisley Grammar School, Park Mains High School, Renfrew High School, St Andrew's Academy, St Benedict's High School, and Trinity High School. It also has 51 primary schools and three schools for [[Special education in the United Kingdom|children with additional support needs]].

==Transport==
[[File:GlasgowAirportFromAir.jpg|thumb|Glasgow International Airport]]
Renfrewshire is home to Scotland's second busiest airport, [[Glasgow International Airport]], at Abbotsinch between [[Paisley, Renfrewshire|Paisley]] and [[Renfrew, Scotland|Renfrew]]. The presence of the airport and the proximity to Glasgow means that Renfrewshire supports one of the busiest transport infrastructures in Scotland.

The airport is served by the [[M8 motorway (Scotland)|M8 motorway]], which terminates in the area, just east of [[Langbank]], and is a major artery between northwest and southwest Scotland, via the [[Erskine Bridge]].

Developments to ease traffic flow have included a lifting of tolls on the [[Erskine Bridge]], original plans to [[Glasgow Airport Rail Link|extend the rail network to connect to the airport]] have been cancelled and the latest suggestion in 2019 is a metro line connecting Paisley to the airport then on to Glasgow via Braehead. Also the [[M74 motorway|M74]] extension was completed to handle traffic from Renfrewshire heading south, diverting it away from [[Glasgow city centre]].<ref>[http://www.spt.co.uk/garl/garl-background.html] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060623000756/http://www.spt.co.uk/garl/garl-background.html|date=23 June 2006}}</ref> Renfrewshire also has bus links provided by [[FirstGroup]], [[McGill's Bus Services]] and other smaller operators.

==Places of interest==
* [[Auchenbathie Tower]]
* [[Barr Castle]]
* [[Barshaw Park]]
* [[Belltrees Peel]]
* [[Castle Semple Church]]
* [[The Peel of Castle Semple|Castle Semple Loch Peel Tower]]
* Climbzone
* [[Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park]]
* [[Coats Observatory]]
* [[Coats Paisley]]
* [[Craigends Yew]]
* Craigie Linn waterfall
* [[Erskine Bridge]]
* [[Fountain Gardens, Paisley]]
* [[Gleniffer Braes]]
* [[Johnstone Castle]]
* Kenmure Hill Temple
* Lagoon Leisure Centre
* [[Meikle Millbank Mill]]
* [[Paisley Abbey]]
* [[Paisley Museum and Art Galleries]]
* Paisley Thread Mill Museum
* [[Paisley Town Hall]]
* [[Ranfurly Castle]]
* Renfrew Museum
* [[Robertson Park]]
* [[Paisley shawls#Sma' Shot Cottage|Sma' Shot Cottages]]
* [[St Fillan's Kirk, Seat and Well]]
* [[St Matthew's Church, Paisley]]
* [[St Patrick's Rock]]
* [[St Peter's Well, Houston]]
* [[Windy Hill, Renfrewshire|Windy Hill]]
* Weaver's Cottage

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.whatsonrenfrewshire.co.uk Renfrewshire Events Guide]
* [http://www.paisleydailyexpress.co.uk Paisley Daily Express] local daily newspaper
* [http://www.the-gazette.co.uk The Gazette Newspaper] weekly
* [http://www.renfrewshire24.co.uk Renfrewshire24.co.uk], online only news and events website

{{Renfrewshire}}

{{Navboxes
| title = Articles relating to [[Renfrewshire|Renfrewshire council area]]
| list =
{{Renfrewshire settlements}}
{{Rugby union in Renfrewshire}}
{{Strathgryffe}}
{{Lists of listed buildings in Renfrewshire}}
{{Renfrewshire elections}}
}}

{{Scotland subdivisions}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Renfrewshire| ]]
[[Category:Council areas of Scotland]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1996]]
[[Category:1996 establishments in Scotland]]