East Craigs

East Craigs is a popular residential suburb of Edinburgh located in the north-west of the city. It lies next to the green belt, and prior to development was a working farm. Development of the area began in 1922 when East Craigs Farm was purchased by the Scottish Agricultural Science Agency (SASA) as a centre for agricultural research. However, much of the land was made available to housing developers from the 1930s onwards.

Buildings and Area

The oldest building in East Craigs is Craigs House, built in 1768 as a farmhouse. It now forms part of the SASA complex. Bungalows are numerous and were mostly built in the 1930s to 1960s. Further developments of small family-sized houses and low-rise flats were built in the 1970s and 1980s. Craigmount High School was built in 1970 to alleviate pressure on surrounding secondary schools. East Craigs Primary School was built in 1979 as a result of newly-built housing and increased population nearby.

The area is very green and open with several parks and trees. A stream (known as a burn in Scots) flows through the area. The names of many roads and developments in East Craigs reflect the area's farming past, e.g. Hayfield, Burnside, Mearnside.