Lochgilphead
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| Town andadministrative centre | |
 View of Lochgilphead at dusk | |
  Lochgilphead Location withinArgyll and Bute | |
| Population | 2,280 (2022)[1] |
| OS grid reference | NR 86284 88138 |
| • Edinburgh | 87 mi (140 km) |
| • London | 380 mi (612 km) |
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| Council area |
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| Lieutenancy area |
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| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Lochgilphead |
| Postcode district | PA30, PA31 |
| Dialling code | 01546 |
| UK Parliament |
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| Scottish Parliament |
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| 56°02′18″N5°25′56″W / 56.038292°N 5.4323450°W /56.038292; -5.4323450 | |
Lochgilphead (/lɒxˈɡɪlphɛd/;Scottish Gaelic:Ceann Loch Gilb[kʲʰan̪ˠl̪ˠɔxˈkʲilip]) is a town and formerburgh inArgyll and Bute, Scotland, with a population of around 2,300 people.[3] It is the administrative centre ofArgyll and Bute Council. The village lies at the end ofLoch Gilp (a branch ofLoch Fyne) and lies on the banks of theCrinan Canal. Lochgilphead sits on theA83, withArdrishaig 2 miles (3 km) to the south andInveraray24 miles (39 km) to the north-east;Oban lies 37 miles (60 km) north on the A816.
The council is based atKilmory Castle,[4] around which is located a woodland park and anIron Age fort.[citation needed]Forestry and Land Scotland also have an office there.
As a planned settlement, Lochgilphead was created in 1790, shortly after the completion of a road fromInveraray toCampbeltown. After the completion of theCrinan Canal in 1801, the town became more important as a link across theKintyre peninsula. When a road was completed in 1830, Lochgilphead was linked toOban. In 1831 a pier was built, promoting maritime transit between Lochgilphead and Glasgow, and other ports along theIrish Sea.
In 1975 Lochgilphead was chosen as the administrative headquarters of the Argyll and Bute District Council as part of local government reorganisation, due to its central location.
There are a large number ofNeolithic remains, includingcup and ring marks in the nearbyKilmartin Glen, andDunadd Hillfort (capital of theKingdom of Dál Riata) is also close.
Lochgilphead's facilities include a swimming pool, sports centre, fishing tackle shop,Bank of Scotland,Co-op Food & Tesco supermarket, an ethical food store with deli, two petrol stations, one homewear shop and one hardware shop, aRenault dealership, a community hospital run by the local GPs (with anA&E department and apsychiatric hospital), a nine-hole golf course, bowling club, a hydrotherapy pool, a regional landfill site at Dunchologan, andLochgilphead High School. There is also a local detachment of theArmy Cadet Force in the town, specifically a branch of theArgyll and Sutherland Highlanders in conjunction with theRoyal Regiment of Scotland.[5][6] Daily bus services operated byWest Coast Motors andScottish Citylink run from the town to other parts of Scotland, notablyGlasgow,Campbeltown, andOban.
Lochgilphead Joint Campus is sited on the outskirts of the town and has a capacity of 727, with the Secondary School section drawing pupils from the wider mid-Argyll region. The Campus opened in October 2007, replacing the separate Primary School and High School.
Argyll College has two sites in Lochgilphead, one in Lorne Street, and the purpose-built Construction Skill Centre in Kilmory Industrial Estate.
The total population of Lochgilphead was 3,825 in 2011, an increase of 3.2 per cent from 2001.
By industry of employment, a higher share of employment in construction, public administration and defence, and health and social work than the Highlands and Islands and Scotland. By occupation, a higher share of employment in caring, leisure and other services, and sales and customer services than the Highlands and Islands and Scotland. Unemployment rates have increased to above the Argyll and the Islands, Highlands and Islands and Scotland rates.
The annualised Jobseekers Allowance claimant count rate in 2013 was 4.0 per cent in Lochgilphead, 3.2 per cent in Argyll and the Islands, 2.4 per cent in Highlands and Islands and 3.7 per cent across Scotland. There is a smaller proportion of the adult population with no qualifications compared to Argyll and the Islands, the Highlands and Islands and Scotland, and more qualified with degree-level qualifications.
There are two hospitals in Lochgilphead:
The town is home toshinty teamKilmory Camanachd and football team, Lochgilphead Red Star.
In July 1982, Lochgilphead competed against teams fromPerth andOban in the then highly popularBBC TelevisionIt's a Knockout, presented byStuart Hall. The town's team won their round and later competed in the international version of the series, 'Jeux Sans Frontieres', which was recorded inSwitzerland.
The town annually hosts the Dalriada Provincial Mod each September. The event is a Gaelic festival organised by the local branch ofAn Comunn Gàidhealach, which provides opportunities for people of all ages to perform across a range of competitive disciplines including Gaelic music and song, highland dancing, instrumental, drama, sport, and literature.
In the World War Two film,633 Squadron, Lochgilphead's main street features briefly in an aerial shot, as the bombers of 633rd Squadron fly over the unnamed town en route to the target inNorway. The James Bond filmFrom Russia with Love used locations in Lochgilphead for shots. The local cinema was used to watch screen rushes each day for the cast and crew.
The town is one of the venues for the Mid Argyll Music Festival, which runs for around 2 weeks annually.
This annual winter event had developed into one of the major highlights in the Argyll area, attracting crowds from near and far. However, the Lantern Parade did not occur in November 2014 after the organising committee responsible for previous events announced they would not continue in May 2014.[7]
TheArgyll Turbo GT sportscar was built by Bob Henderson in Manse Brae.
Lochgilphead hosts The Mid-Argyll Agricultural Show, which is a major event held annually on the second Saturday in August.
Lochgilphead has anoceanic climate (Köppen:Cfb). As with most of the West Highlands, there are low sunshine levels and high amounts of rainfall, with around 1,150 sunshine hours and nearly 2,000 mm (80 in) of rainfall annually. The nearest weather station to Lochgilphead is at Lephinmore, which is 8 miles (13 km) to the north-east and 9 m (30 ft)above sea level.The 2 weather stations are at Lephinmore and the other at Dunchologan-Lingerton waste disposal landfill site. During some winter / spring high tides, coinciding with stormy weather, some of the buildings along the front short line can be susceptible to some flooding. The Badden Burn and Crinan Canal are the primary sources of river flood risk in the area to the north of the town, causing around £70,000 of damage each year to the (approx) 20 residential and 10 business properties at risk as well as the A816 leading north out of Lochgilphead.
| Climate data for Lephinmore (9 m asl, averages 1981–2010) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 7.0 (44.6) | 7.6 (45.7) | 9.0 (48.2) | 11.8 (53.2) | 15.1 (59.2) | 17.1 (62.8) | 18.6 (65.5) | 17.5 (63.5) | 15.8 (60.4) | 12.5 (54.5) | 9.3 (48.7) | 7.4 (45.3) | 12.4 (54.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 1.8 (35.2) | 2.0 (35.6) | 3.1 (37.6) | 4.1 (39.4) | 6.6 (43.9) | 9.4 (48.9) | 11.2 (52.2) | 10.7 (51.3) | 9.5 (49.1) | 6.8 (44.2) | 4.0 (39.2) | 1.9 (35.4) | 5.9 (42.7) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 240.0 (9.45) | 151.1 (5.95) | 192.6 (7.58) | 113.6 (4.47) | 82.5 (3.25) | 100.9 (3.97) | 100.9 (3.97) | 137.3 (5.41) | 168.9 (6.65) | 239.3 (9.42) | 204.6 (8.06) | 193.4 (7.61) | 1,925.1 (75.79) |
| Average rainy days(≥ 1 mm) | 21.2 | 14.8 | 18.5 | 13.7 | 12.7 | 15.2 | 15.9 | 15.6 | 18.8 | 19.2 | 18.7 | 18.4 | 202.7 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 37.4 | 59.6 | 82.5 | 141.3 | 180.0 | 157.9 | 138.3 | 119.0 | 86.4 | 71.6 | 47.2 | 28.3 | 1,149.5 |
| Source:Met Office[8] | |||||||||||||
Authority control databases: National |
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