Westhill, Aberdeenshire

The town of Westhill covers the area that was the Western Kinmundy and Blackhills Farming areas.

The creation of Westhill just outside Aberdeen was the idea of local solicitor Ronald Fraser Dean in 1963.[4] With the backing of the former Aberdeen District Council (see Aberdeen City Council), the Secretary of State for Scotland and supported financially by Ashdale Land and Property Company Ltd., the new settlement of Westhill was created upon the old farming land. Since construction of the first houses in 1968, Westhill has undergone a gradual expansion, much of which is tied to the North East's oil and gas economy. In 2007/8 a major expansion of the industrial estate brought several thousand workers to the area. Most of these are in specialist sub-sea engineering oil service companies, making Westhill a world centre in sub-sea engineering.

The name Westhill was created in 1859 when John Anderson from Strichen bought the adjoining small estates of Wester Kinmundy and Blackhills. Both of these names were very old, dating back to at least the 16th Century, but Anderson seems not to have liked them. He therefore created the name Westhill from the other two names. This is recorded in the Register of Sasines 2 December 1859.

Wester Kinmundy and Blackhills were established either side of a geographical area known as 'The Clash', this was a marshy bog, historically listed as being sited between Brodiach/Borrow(ed)stone area and (Now Kirkton of) Skene. It is commonly thought the remnants of this area is still apparent but nowadays named Denman Park.

Swimming Pool, Westhill

Major housing expansions are under way at Elrick and to the west of Westhill.[5][6] Many new housing estates are being built, primarily from well known companies such as Stewart Milne and Bett Homes.

Westhill Business Park is also growing, with an increasing number of companies creating offices in the park. Due to the demand for offices, many planning permission applications for using the unused land to the South-West have been submitted.[7] The growth has been such that the Postal Area formerly known as Skene has been renamed Westhill, so that for postal purposes, the once two-horse-hamlet of Westhill now covers many square miles.

During the 1980s the local authority boundaries were to be moved such that Westhill would fall within the City of Aberdeen. This was seen as a cost-cutting venture, however the community set up a "Don't Move Westhill" campaign, and successfully stopped the town's absorption into Aberdeen. No new attempt to move the boundaries to include Westhill have been made since.

Westhill Primary School

Westhill has three primary schools; Crombie Primary,[8] Elrick Primary,[9] and Westhill Primary (opened 1974).[10][11]

Westhill also has a secondary school, Westhill Academy. The academy services Westhill, Skene and pupils in the surrounding area. It was opened in 1979, and since then many improvements and extensions have been made to increase the capacity of the Academy. Currently the number of pupils is roughly 1,000, however this figure is expected to rise. In 2010 the school came 27th in the league tables for all independent schools in Scotland.

All the schools in Westhill are run by Aberdeenshire Council.

Second Gold Post Box on Westhill Drive, Westhill

Olympic canoeist Tim Baillie has a gold post box on Westhill Drive in commemoration of his gold medal in the canoe slalom C-2 event in the 2012 Olympics.[12]

In part of the Grampian Regional Council Brotherfield Nursery, is the 2.5-acre (1 ha) home of The Beechgrove Garden, a gardening based television programme broadcast since 1978 on BBC Scotland.[13][14][15] Episodes have broadcast from the site since 1996.[14]

Westhill has several active church congregations. Trinity Church is an ecumenical project that involved the Church of Scotland, the Scottish Episcopal Church[16] and the Roman Catholic Church. The Episcopal Church have moved to a new larger church to the west[17]

In addition, evangelical services are also held by the Westhill Baptist Church located at the Westdyke Leisure Centre. In 2016, a Buddhist centre established at Kinmundy, Varapunya Meditation Centre offering Buddhist practice and meditation.

• Westhill & District Residents Association Website
• Scottish Episcopal Church congregation, Trinity Church, Westhill
• Westhill Baptist Church, Westhill
• Westhill Marketing, Westhill
• Skene Heritage Society