Edinburgh South West

§ This page provides a baseview of UK constituency, bringing together various information and resources to help you better understand the area of Edinburgh South West.

Overview ⁞ This area stretches from city suburbs into the Pentland Hills Regional Park. Colinton and Balerno offer village charm, while landmarks include the Union Canal, Edinburgh Napier University’s Craiglockhart campus, and scenic walking trails in the Pentlands. The blend of urban living and countryside access is a key feature.

Constituency Map and Boundary Information

Below is an interactive map showing the boundary of the Edinburgh South West parliamentary constituency. The boundary data is sourced from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), using the latest official geographic definitions.

You can explore official statistics for this area on the ONS Explore Local Statistics page, or view its location on the UK Parliament constituency map.

Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Boundary data: Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2024; Contains Office for National Statistics data © ONS 2024, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Wards in Edinburgh South West

Edinburgh South West is divided into 8 wards, listed below in alphabetical order.

  • Almond
  • City Centre
  • Colinton/Fairmilehead
  • Drum Brae/Gyle
  • Fountainbridge/Craiglockhart
  • Morningside
  • Pentland Hills
  • Sighthill/Gorgie

Edinburgh South West is a constituency that covers these wards in City of Edinburgh.

Wards and constituencies: wards are the smallest electoral areas used to elect local councillors who make decisions about local services, while parliamentary constituencies are much larger areas used to elect one MP to represent them in the House of Commons. In simple terms, wards are for local council elections, and constituencies are for national parliamentary elections.

Population by age group

The most recent data for constituencies in England and Wales comes from mid-year estimates for 2022. This tells us what the population was estimated to be on 30 June 2022.

Population by age group, June 2022
Age Band Constituency (Number) Constituency (%) Scotland (Number) Scotland (%)
0 to 17 17,346 16.31% 1,006,212 18.47%
18 to 24 15,330 14.42% 466,541 8.56%
25 to 34 18,257 17.17% 695,519 12.77%
35 to 49 20,842 19.60% 1,011,614 18.57%
50 to 64 17,848 16.79% 1,170,419 21.48%
65 and over 16,709 15.71% 1,097,395 20.14%

Population by ethnic group

The most recent census asked people about their ethnic group. The census was carried out in March 2021 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and in March 2022 in Scotland.

Population by ethnic group March 2021
Ethnic Group Constituency (Number) Constituency (%) Scotland (%)
White Scottish 64,184 59.97% 77.70%
Other White British 12,571 11.75% 9.38%
Other White 7,724 7.22% 3.01%
Indian, Indian Scottish or Indian British 3,712 3.47% 0.97%
White Polish 3,136 2.93% 1.67%
Chinese, Chinese Scottish or Chinese British 2,934 2.74% 0.87%
African: Other African 2,539 2.37% 0.97%
Mixed or multiple ethnic group 2,358 2.20% 1.12%
White Irish 1,864 1.74% 1.05%
Pakistani, Pakistani Scottish or Pakistani British 1,423 1.33% 1.34%
Other Asian 1,234 1.15% 0.59%
Other ethnic group 1,130 1.06% 0.50%
Arab, Arab Scottish or Arab British 970 0.91% 0.41%
Bangladeshi, Bangladeshi Scottish or Bangladeshi British 640 0.60% 0.13%
African: African, African Scottish or African British 229 0.21% 0.11%
Caribbean or Black: Other Caribbean or Black 193 0.18% 0.07%
Caribbean or Black: Caribbean, Caribbean Scottish or Caribbean British 113 0.11% 0.04%
Gypsy/ Traveller 49 0.05% 0.06%
Caribbean or Black: Black, Black Scottish or Black British 27 0.03% 0.01%

Edinburgh South West compared with other constituencies

Edinburgh South West has a population of 106,332 (2024 mid-year estimate by ONS). The population of the UK is 69,281,400 as of mid-2024. There are 650 constituencies, so the average population per constituency is around 106,600.

Population of 650 Constituencies
Population of 650 Constituencies (2024 mid-year estimate) sorted ascending

Compared with the other 649 constituencies, Edinburgh South West has a population higher than 314, lower than 226, and similar to 110 constituencies (±2,500, including itself).

This Constituency Baseview is automatically generated using data from multiple official sources and stored in our database. The underlying programme was last updated on 4 December 2025. We continue to enhance these pages and add new insights, so feel free to check back for updates.