Rosyth facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Rosyth
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| Town and Garden City | |
 Photo of Rosyth Dockyard. |
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 Rosyth
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| Area | 3.2 sq mi (8.3 km2) |
| Population | 13,570 (2020) |
| • Density | 4,241/sq mi (1,637/km2) |
| OS grid reference | NT108831 |
| • Edinburgh | 10.5 mi (16.9 km) S |
| • London | 340 mi (550 km) S |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | DUNFERMLINE |
| Postcode district | KY11 |
| Dialling code | 01383 |
| Police | Fife |
| Fire | Fife |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| EU Parliament | Scotland |
| UK Parliament |
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| Scottish Parliament |
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Rosyth (pronounced "ruh-SYTHE") is a town in Fife, Scotland. It sits right on the coast of the Firth of Forth, which is a large sea inlet. Rosyth is special because it was Scotland's very first "Garden City." This means it was planned to have lots of green spaces and a good quality of life for its residents.
Rosyth is part of the larger Dunfermline area. It's about 3 miles south of Dunfermline and 10 miles northwest of Edinburgh. To its west is Limekilns, and to its east is Inverkeithing.
The town of Rosyth was built around the Rosyth Dockyard, which opened in March 1916. It started as a big naval base for battleships during World War I. It played a key role in protecting the North Sea. After the war, a huge German naval fleet surrendered here. Rosyth was also important in World War II, especially during the German occupation of Norway. Later, the dockyard was updated to work on both regular and nuclear submarines. Rosyth celebrated its 100th birthday in 2016!
Rosyth is located near the narrowest part of the Firth of Forth. This made it a very important place for defense for a long time. You can still see this history at the 15th-century Rosyth Castle. The town has 12 Historic Scotland listed buildings, which are important historical sites. It's also on parts of the Fife Coastal Path and the Fife Pilgrim Way, which are long walking routes.
Today, Rosyth is a busy town where many people live and travel to work in Edinburgh and Dunfermline. Rosyth Railway Station is on the Fife Circle Line, and the M90 motorway goes around the town. Rosyth has about 13,570 people (as of 2022), making it the 5th largest town in Fife.
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How Rosyth is Governed
Rosyth is part of the Cowdenbeath area for the Scottish Parliament. This is where laws for Scotland are made. The current representative for this area is Annabelle Ewing from the Scottish National Party. Rosyth is also part of a larger area called Mid Scotland and Fife.
For the UK Parliament, which makes laws for the whole United Kingdom, Rosyth is in the Dunfermline and Dollar constituency. The person who represents Rosyth there is Graeme Downie from the Labour Party. He was elected in 2024.
Rosyth also has three local representatives on the Fife Council. These are Brian Goodall and Tony Jackson from the Scottish National Party, and Andrew Verrecchia from the Labour Party. They help make decisions for the local area.
Rosyth's Dockyard and Military History
Rosyth is most famous for its large Naval Dockyard, which used to be called the Royal Naval Dockyard Rosyth. The town itself was planned as a "garden city" to provide homes for the workers who built and worked at the dockyard. Today, the dockyard is huge, covering about 2.2 square kilometers. A lot of this land was actually created by filling in parts of the sea during its construction.
Rosyth, along with nearby Inverkeithing and Charlestown, was a major place for breaking up old ships. This included parts of the German fleet that were sunk at Scapa Flow, as well as famous ships like the Cunard Line's RMS Mauretania and the White Star Line's RMS Olympic.
The military naval base at Rosyth closed in 1994. No Royal Navy ships are permanently based there anymore. However, some ships, like the Sandown-class minehunters and the large Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers, still come back to Rosyth for repairs and maintenance.
The Rosyth dockyards were the first in the Royal Navy to become a private company. This happened in 1987 when Babcock International took over the site. Before that, the dockyard had helped defend the United Kingdom for almost 80 years. It played a big part in two World Wars and the Cold War with the Soviet Union. During the Cold War, Rosyth was a key place for maintaining nuclear submarines.
After the last submarine repair finished in 2003, a project began to safely take apart the old nuclear submarine facilities. This project was completed in 2010, ahead of schedule and under budget. However, some nuclear materials still remain at the dockyard.
The dockyard was also the place where the two huge Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers for the Royal Navy were put together.
Military Locations in Rosyth
There are several Ministry of Defence buildings and military bases in and around the Naval dockyard in Rosyth.
In 2016, the UK Government said that MoD Caledonia would close. But on April 1, 2023, it was renamed HMS Caledonia, and it will now stay open.
Rosyth also has youth groups called Sea, Army, and Air Cadets. The Sea and Air cadets are located inside HMS Caledonia in the Naval Dockyard. The Army cadets are located near Park Road Primary School.
Traveling from Rosyth
Starting in 2002, an overnight ferry service connected Rosyth with Zeebrugge in Belgium. This service stopped in 2008 but started again in 2009 with a new company. They offered three trips a week in each direction.
Later, the company was taken over by DFDS Seaways, who then only carried cargo (goods, not people) three times a week. This service ended in 2018 after a fire on one of the ships.
In June 2022, there were talks about bringing the ferry route back. It was hoped that a cargo service would start in early 2023, with passenger service by summer 2023. However, as of 2024, the passenger service has not yet started.
Building Rosyth's Homes
The old 15th-century Rosyth Castle stands near the dockyard and the ferry terminal. It used to be almost completely surrounded by the Firth of Forth. But in the early 1900s, land was reclaimed (created from the sea) for the docks, changing its surroundings.
The Scottish National Housing Company (SNHC) was created in 1915. Its job was to build homes for the workers at the Rosyth naval dockyard. Building these homes was delayed for a while because of disagreements about who should pay for them. Some workers even lived in temporary huts called 'tin town'.
From the very beginning, it was suggested that Rosyth should be built like a "Garden City." This plan was approved in 1915, and the first houses were ready in 1916. Raymond Unwin, a famous planner, advised on the project. Rosyth became the largest permanent housing project in Scotland from World War I. His assistant, Alfred Hugh Mottram, designed over 1,400 cottage-style houses. Mottram also designed the Rosyth Parish Church in 1930.
Rosyth's Economic Growth
Scottish Enterprise Fife is now working with different private companies to plan for Rosyth's future. They are looking for ways to expand the ferry services to more places in Europe and within Scotland. They also want to help create new businesses and buildings in and around Rosyth. This will bring more jobs and money to Fife and beyond.
The main dock area, run by Forth Ports, has a lot of potential for growth. Since it opened in 1997, more and more ships carrying timber and other goods have used the port. Its warehouses and logistics facilities make it a great choice for companies that import and export goods.
A private company also built an £80 million business park called Rosyth Europarc. Over 13,000 square meters of office space and high-tech manufacturing areas have already been built. Companies like Intelligent Finance and Bank of Scotland are located there. To help with this growth, a new £8.4 million road was built to connect the park to the nearby M90 motorway.
Getting Around Rosyth
The M90 motorway and A823(M) motorway go around Rosyth. These roads connect Rosyth to Dunfermline, Perth, and Kinross to the north. They also link to South Queensferry and Edinburgh to the south.
The main road through Rosyth is the A985 road. This road connects the town to Inverkeithing and Dalgety Bay to the east. It also links to the Kincardine Bridge to the west, which connects Rosyth to Falkirk, Stirling, and Glasgow.
There are plans to build a new "Park and Choose" facility near Rosyth railway station. This would allow for more bus and train connections. It would also help reduce pressure on other busy bus stations in Dunfermline and Inverkeithing. This new facility could bring new bus routes to Rosyth and increase the number of passengers using public transport.
Train Connections
Rosyth has one train station, Rosyth railway station, located in the northern part of the town. It is part of the Fife Circle Line. Trains from Rosyth mainly go on two routes:
- To Glenrothes with Thornton: This train stops at Dunfermline City, Dunfermline Queen Margaret, Cowdenbeath, Lochgelly, and Cardenden.
- To Edinburgh Waverley: This train stops at Inverkeithing, North Queensferry, Dalmeny, Edinburgh Gateway, South Gyle, and Haymarket.
- Once a day, usually near midnight (except Sundays), there is a train to Perth. This train stops at the same places as the Glenrothes route, plus Markinch and Ladybank.
Bus Connections
Rosyth has many bus connections to different places in Scotland.
East Scotland Stagecoach Bus connections:
- X51 to Dunfermline and X51 to Livingston.
- X52 to Dunfermline and X52 to Edinburgh.
- X55 to Dunfermline and X55 to Edinburgh.
- 7 / 7A to Dunfermline and 7 / 7A to Kirkcaldy and Leven.
- 7B / 7C / 7D to Kelty.
- 7B / 7C to Dalgety Bay.
- 7D to North Queensferry.
- 6A to Dunfermline.
- 5 to Halbeath and 5 to Ferrytoll Park and ride.
- 19 to Ballingry and 19 to Rosyth.
- 88 / 88A to Inverkeithing and 88 / 88A to Kincardine.
Ember Coaches: Ember Coach buses run all day and night to Dundee. They stop in Kinross, Bridge of Earn, and Perth. They also go to Edinburgh, including the terminal at Edinburgh Airport at night. During the day, they stop at Ingliston Park and Ride, and your ticket includes a free tram ride to the airport terminal. As of November 2024, a new service connects Rosyth directly to Aberdeen. This route stops at the same places as the Dundee route, plus Forfar, Brechin, Drumlithie, Newtonhill, and Portlethen.
Education in Rosyth
Rosyth has four primary schools and a Fife College Campus located within the Dockyard area.
The primary schools in Rosyth are:
- Park Road Primary School
- King's Road Primary School
- Camdean Primary School
- St John's RC Primary School
Currently, students from these primary schools go to Inverkeithing High School after Primary 7. However, starting in August 2026, students will begin attending the new Rosyth / South West Fife High School, which is currently being built.
There is also a special education school called The Bridges Centre located in the Dockyard.
New Rosyth / South West Fife High School
Construction for a new high school began on July 11, 2024, in Caledonia Heights, Rosyth. This new school will replace the 50-year-old Inverkeithing High School in the nearby town of Inverkeithing. It is planned to open for students by August 2026. The current name for the school is South West Fife High School, but this might change. It is expected to hold 1,735 students, which is more than Inverkeithing High School currently has. The new school will likely teach students from Rosyth, Inverkeithing, Hillend, Dalgety Bay, North Queensferry, Aberdour, High Valleyfield, and also from southern Dunfermline.
Sports in Rosyth
The town has a rugby union club called Rosyth Sharks. They play in the Caledonia Midlands Three league. Rosyth also has a football club called Rosyth FC that plays in the East of Scotland Football League.
Famous People from Rosyth
- Robert Buchan: A Scottish-Canadian mining engineer and businessman. He was also the Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University.
- Gregory Burke: A playwright and author, known for his play Black Watch.
- Stevie Crawford: A professional footballer who played for Dunfermline Athletic and the Scotland national team.
- John Hay Munro: An author and evangelist.
- Barbara Dickson: A famous singer and actor.
- Andy Penman: A professional footballer who played for the Scotland national team.
Images for kids
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Picture of Rosyth Dockyard - HMS Queen Elizabeth
See also
In Spanish: Rosyth para niños
