Kirkcaldy

Kirkcaldy ( ; ; ) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, making it Fife's second-largest settlement and the 11th most populous settlement in Scotland.

Kirkcaldy has long been nicknamed the Lang Toun (; Scots for "long town") in reference to the early town's main street, as indicated on maps from the 16th and 17th centuries. The street would finally reach a length of nearly , connecting the burgh to the neighbouring settlements of Linktown, Pathhead, Sinclairtown and Gallatown, which became part of the town in 1876. The formerly separate burgh of Dysart was also later absorbed into Kirkcaldy in 1930 under an act of Parliament.

The area around Kirkcaldy has been inhabited since the Bronze Age. The first document to refer to the town is from 1075, when Malcolm III granted the settlement to the church of Dunfermline. David I later gave the burgh to Dunfermline Abbey, which had succeeded the church: a status which was officially recognised by Robert I in 1327. The town only gained its independence from Abbey rule when it was created a royal burgh by Charles I in 1644.

From the early 16th century, the establishment of a harbour at the East Burn confirmed the town's early role as an important trading port. The town also began to develop around the salt, coal mining and nail making industries. The production of linen which followed in 1672 was later instrumental in the introduction of floorcloth in 1847 by linen manufacturer, Michael Nairn. In 1877 this in turn contributed to linoleum, which became the town's most successful industry: Kirkcaldy was a world producer until well into the mid-1960s. The town expanded considerably in the 1950s and 1960s, though the decline of the linoleum industry and other manufacturing restricted its growth thereafter.

Today, the town is a major service centre for the central Fife area. Public facilities include a main leisure centre, theatre, museum and art gallery, three public parks and an ice rink. Kirkcaldy is also known as the birthplace of social philosopher and economist Adam Smith who wrote his magnum opus The Wealth of Nations in the town. In the early 21st century, employment is dominated by the service sector: the biggest employer in the town is PayWizard, formerly known as MGT plc (call centre). Other main employers include NHS Fife, Forbo (linoleum and vinyl floor coverings), Fife College, Whitworths (flour millers) and Smith Anderson (paper making).

History

Toponymy

The name Kirkcaldy means "place of the hard fort" or "place of Caled's fort". It is derived from the Pictish * meaning "fort", *, which is Pictish "hard" or a personal name, and , a suffix meaning "place of". may describe the fort itself or be an epithet for a local "hard" ruler. but this is also incorrect. What probably made this location ideal was its natural terraces stretching away from the sand bay, and the close proximity of the East Burn to the north and the West (Tiel) Burn to the south.

Medieval

thumb|250px|[[Ravenscraig Castle was begun in 1460]]

The first document to recognise the town was issued in 1075, when the King of Scots, Malcolm III (reigned 1058–93) granted the shire of Kirkcaladunt, among other gifts, to the church at Dunfermline. The residents were expected to pay dues and taxes for the church's general upkeep. During these discussions, the town may have been referred to as "one of the most ancient of burghs". By 1451, Kirkcaldy was awarded feu-ferme status. Under the status, responsibility would now lie with the bailies and council to deal with the routine administration of the town and its fiscal policies; conditional on an annual payment of two and a half marks (33s 4d) to the Abbot of Dunfermline. According to treasurers' accounts of the early 16th century, timber imported via the harbour—possibly from the Baltic countries—was used at Falkland Palace and Edinburgh Castle, as well as in shipbuilding. were exported from the town until well into the 17th century. Ships from Kirkcaldy brought wine and spices from Spanish ports including Cádiz. In April 1598, the Grace of God, belonging to James Birrell of Kirkcaldy, was attacked off the Cape St. Vincent by the English Green Dragon of Bristol. Birrell's ship sank and the mariners who reach the shore were in danger of being made captive by Turkish authorities.

A charter issued by Charles I granting royal burgh status in 1644 resulted in the end of the Abbey's jurisdiction over the town. As a gesture, the king bequeathed of common muir suitable for "bleaching of linen, drying of clothes, recreation and perpetuity". In 1638, under the reign of Charles I, the town subscribed to the National Covenant, which opposed the introduction of episcopacy and patronage in the Presbyterian church. Support for the Covenanting cause cost the town over 250 men at the Battle of Kilsyth in 1645. In the mid-19th century, whaling became important to the town for a short time. To cope with increasing imports of flax, timber and hemp, and exports of coal, salt and linen, between 1843 and 1846 a new wet dock and pier was built at the harbour. In 1847 a canvas manufacturer, Michael Nairn, took out a licence on Frederick Walton's patent for the production of floorcloth, and opened a factory in nearby Pathhead. When the patent expired in 1876, Nairn and other floorcloth manufacturers began the manufacture of linoleum. The smell of the linoleum factories was notorious, giving rise to the famous lines in Mary Campbell Smith's 1913 poem The Boy in the Train: "For I ken mysel' by the queer-like smell / That the next stop's Kirkcaddy!".

The expansion of the town led in 1876 to the extension of the royal burgh's boundaries. The town absorbed its neighbouring settlements of Linktown, in the parish of Abbotshall; Invertiel in the parish of Kinghorn; and Pathhead, Sinclairtown and Gallatown in the parish of Dysart. These formerly separate settlements had once been forbidden by the old guild rights to sell their goods in Kirkcaldy. In 1922–1923 a seawall and esplanade were constructed, funded by the Unemployment Grants Commission and built by unemployed residents. In 1930, the town would further expand to include the former royal burgh of Dysart under the (20 & 21 Geo. 5. c. xciii) when its own town council became bankrupt.

During the 1950s and 1960s, new housing estates were built north-west of the town. This was followed by the redevelopment of the town centre in the 1960s and 1970s, which destroyed much of the old high street. There was speculation that the town's population could increase to around 55–60,000 by 1970. When Kirkcaldy was awarded royal burgh status in 1644, the duties of the provost were initially performed by bailies, councillors, and magistrates. One bears the motto Vigilando Munio ("I secure by watching"), and the other displays the figure of Saint Bryce, Kirkcaldy's patron saint.

Kirkcaldy enjoyed royal burgh status until this rank was abolished in 1975 under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, in favour of a three-tier system of regions and districts. when the region became a unitary council area. The new Fife Council adopted the areas of the former districts as council management areas and created area committees to represent each.

thumb|[[Kirkcaldy Town House]]

Kirkcaldy is represented by several tiers of elected government. It is divided into six community council areas: Bennochy and Hayfield, Dysart, Kirkcaldy East, Kirkcaldy North, Kirkcaldy West, and Templehall. Of these, only Dysart, Kirkcaldy North and Kirkcaldy West have active community councils, which form the lowest tier, and whose statutory role is to communicate local opinion to local and central government. Together with the nearby village of Thornton, the town forms the civil parish of Kirkcaldy and Dysart, although civil parishes now have no administrative functions, and are used mainly for statistical purposes.

Fife Council, based in Glenrothes, the unitary local authority for Kirkcaldy, is the executive, deliberative, and legislative body responsible for local governance. Kirkcaldy Town House is the main administrative headquarters for the Kirkcaldy area within the local authority. The Kirkcaldy area also sends 11 councillors, elected from three wards, to Fife Council. Beyond the tiers of local government, the Scottish Parliament is responsible for devolved matters from the Parliament of the United Kingdom, such as education, health, and justice. Prior to the Act of Union in 1707, Kirkcaldy sent a Member of Parliament to the old Scottish Parliament, which usually met in Edinburgh. Under the Reform Act 1832, the constituency of Kirkcaldy Burghs was created. Robert Ferguson of Raith was re-elected as Member of Parliament. Kirkcaldy forms part of the county constituency of Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy, electing one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom by the first past the post system. Since the 2017 General Election, Lesley Laird of the Labour Party has been Member of Parliament for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath.

Kirkcaldy forms part of the Kirkcaldy constituency of the Scottish Parliament (or Holyrood), and is one of nine within the Mid Scotland and Fife electoral region. Each constituency elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first–past–the–post system of election, and the region elects seven additional members to produce a form of proportional representation. The Kirkcaldy seat was won at the 2011 Scottish Parliament elections by David Torrance for the Scottish National Party (SNP). Following a review of Scottish Parliament constituency boundaries, the Kirkcaldy constituency was extended along the coast, taking in the Buckhaven, Methil, and East and West Wemyss villages ward, ahead of the 2011 elections. Prior to Brexit in 2020 it was part of the pan-Scotland European Parliament constituency, which elected seven Members of the European Parliament (MEPs).

Geography

thumb|centre|780px|View of Kirkcaldy Bay seen from the beach near Invertiel

Kirkcaldy curves around a sandy cove between the Tiel (West) Burn to the south and the East Burn to the north, on a bay facing southeast onto the Firth of Forth. The town lies south-southeast of Glenrothes, east-northeast of Dunfermline, west-southwest of Dundee and north-northeast of Edinburgh. The town adopted its nickname of the lang toun from the single street, recorded on early maps of the 16th and 17th centuries. The street eventually reached a length of nearly , linking the burgh to its neighbouring suburbs of Linktown, Pathhead, Sinclairtown and Gallatown.

Historians are not sure where the medieval centre of Kirkcaldy was located, but it may have been at the corner of Kirk Wynd and the High Street. This would have been the site of the town's Mercat cross and focal point of the burgh. The linear market was important not only to the town itself but to the nearby hinterland.

|source 2 = Starlings Roost Weather

|date=May 2026

Demography

Towards the end of the 16th century, a detailed assessment on the size of the townscape was carried out. The population of the burgh was recorded as 4,785 in the 1841 Census, and had risen to 34,079 by 1901. By the time of the 1951 Census, the figure stood at 49,050.

{| class="wikitable" id="toc" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; width: 40%; font-size: 90%;" cellspacing="5"

!colspan="4"|Kirkcaldy compared according to UK Census 2011

!style="padding:2px;"|Kirkcaldy

!style="padding:2px;"|Fife

!style="padding:2px;"|Scotland

! style="text-align:left;"|Total population

|49,709||365,198||5,295,403

! style="text-align:left;"|Percentage Scottish identity only

|66.6%||63.8%||62.4%

! style="text-align:left;"|Over 75 years old

|8.8%||7.9%||7.7%

! style="text-align:left;"|Unemployed

|6.4%||4%||4.8%

According to the 2001 UK Census, the census locality of Kirkcaldy has a total resident population of 46,912 representing 13.4% of Fife's total population. It hosts 21,365 households. 14.8% were married couples living together, 16.4% were one-person households, 18.8% were co-habiting couples and 7.9% were lone parents. A 2010 assessment estimated that the town had a population of 49,560. This had increased to 49,709 by the time of the 2011 UK Census. The total population in the wider Kirkcaldy area was estimated at 59,784 in 2016, with a projected increase of 18% by 2026. The number of households in the Kirkcaldy area in 2016 was recorded at 29,246; 67% of which were owner occupied, 27% social rented and 5% private rented. 36% of people live alone and 16.1% are on a low income. The median weekly income is calculated at £335 for the area. Compared with the average demography of Scotland, Kirkcaldy has low proportions of immigrants, and has higher proportions for people over 75 years old. Recent Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) figures indicate that the most deprived datazone in Fife is Gallatown and Sinclairtown which has a rank of 82, meaning that it is amongst the 5% most deprived areas in Scotland. Linktown, Seafield, Hayfield, Smeaton and Templehall East areas in Kirkcaldy fall within the 5–10% banding of most deprived communities in Scotland.

In June 2017, there was a recorded 1,000 Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) claimants in the Kirkcaldy area representing a 2.8% rate, which was higher than the Fife and Scottish averages.

Economy

{| class="wikitable" id="toc" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; width: 40%; font-size: 70%;" cellspacing="5"

!colspan="4"|Kirkcaldy Industry Employed compared according to UK Census 2011

!style="padding:2px;"|Kirkcaldy Area

!style="padding:2px;"|Fife

!style="padding:2px;"|Scotland

! style="text-align:left;"|Area Committee Total Population (2011)

|59,795||366,910||5,327,700

! style="text-align:left;"|All Persons 16–74 in Employment (2011)

|27,040||167,326||2,516,895

! style="text-align:left;"|% Primary Industry Employment (2011)

|1.6%||2.4%||3.3%

! style="text-align:left;"|% Manufacturing Employment (2011)

|10.1%||10.0%||7.7%

! style="text-align:left;"|% Utilities Employment (2011)

|1.2%||1.4%||1.6%

! style="text-align:left;"|% Construction Employment (2011)

|8.3%||8.2%||8.0%

! style="text-align:left;"|% Wholesale, Retail & Transport Employed (2011)

|21.0%||18.6%||19.9%

! style="text-align:left;"|% Accommodation and Food Employed (2011)

|5.3%||5.6%||6.3%

! style="text-align:left;"|% ICT Employed (2011)

|2.7%||3.0%||2.7%

! style="text-align:left;"|% Finance & Professional Employed (2011)

|18.1%||19.1%||20.1%

! style="text-align:left;"|% Public Sector Employed (2011)

|7.4%||7.8%||7.0%

! style="text-align:left;"|% Education & Health Employed (2011)

|24.4%||23.8%||23.4%

The first industries to develop in the town were coal mining and salt panning, which date back to the early 16th century. The Fife Pottery, built by Andrew and Archibald Grey in 1817, produced Wemyss Ware, named after the family who owned Wemyss Castle.

The production of heavy canvas was started in 1828 by Michael Nairn at a small factory. When the patent belonging to Frederick Walton expired, Nairn's were able to manufacture linoleum from 1877 onwards. Other factories producing floorcloth and later linoleum were established by former employees of Michael Nairn. The local economy is dominated by service sector businesses. Other important economic sectors in the Kirkcaldy area are retailing and construction with moderate levels of jobs in financial and business services. The largest employer in the town is MGt plc. Other important local employers include NHS Fife, Forbo (vinyl floor coverings), Fife College (education), Whitworths Holdings (flour millers) and Smith Anderson (paper making). thumb|right|Kirkcaldy's High Street The principal industrial and business estates include Mitchleston, Randolph, Hayfield, and John Smith Business Park. Local industrial activity has also increased with the reopening in 2011 of Kirkcaldy Harbour to cargo ships. This has been facilitated through a partnership between Forth Ports Ltd (the owners of the harbour), Hutchison's parent company of Carr's Flour Mills, and Transport Scotland, who provided a freight facilities grant of over £800,000. The work included new silos and conveyors to allow fast delivery from coastal ships. Eligible businesses voted in favour of a BID (Business Improvement District) scheme for the town centre in 2010. The High Street, which runs parallel to the Esplanade, is home to the Mercat Shopping Centre. A separate project has also created a 'green corridor' to link the main railway station and bus station with the High Street. The budget for the entire project was £4 million, £2 million of which was provided through the Scottish Government's Town Centre Regeneration Fund.

An out-of-town retail park constructed in 1997 north-west of the town on Chapel Level, off the A92 is home to a number of warehouse retailers. The retail park was purchased by Hammerson, a London-based property developer for £75 million in April 2005. In 2011, the building was closed to allow a £2.4 million renovation which was completed in June 2013. The work resulted in the integration of the facilities within the building through a single entrance and reception desk. The building also adopted its present name.

The Adam Smith Theatre, the town's main auditorium, plays host to theatrical and musical productions as well as showing a selection of arthouse and commercial films. Originally known as the Adam Smith Halls, the theatre adopted its present name in 1973 after a renovation of the building in time for the 250th anniversary of the birth of Adam Smith.

The Links Market originated as a farmers market on Links Street, before moving to its present site in 1903 on the Esplanade (then known as Sands Road). The market visits the town every April and celebrated its 700th anniversary in 2004. There are plans for a joint celebration to recognise the 50th anniversary of the town's twinning with Ingolstadt in 2012. This was part of a £50,000 bequest from linen manufacturer and provost Michael Beveridge, who died in 1890. On 24 September 1892 a crowd of over 10,000 came to see the park's opening hosted by his widow, the provost, magistrates, and the town council of the royal burgh. The park includes a boating lake, a formal garden with fountain, a skateboard park, rugby ground, football pitches and woodland walks. The park was awarded a green flag award in both 2010 and 2011.

:Ravenscraig Park, to the east of the town was formed from the estate of Dysart House. The grounds were bequeathed to the town by the linoleum manufacturer Sir Michael Nairn in 1929. It is adjacent to Ravenscraig Castle.

:Dunnikier Park, to the north of the town, purchased by the town council in 1945, consists of an area around Dunnikier House and is home to many woodland walkways. Dunnikier House was built around 1790 for James Townsend Oswald, M.P.

Religion

There are several places of worship in Kirkcaldy including:

Church of Scotland

Abbotshall
Bennochy
Linktown linked with Auchtertool
Pathhead
St Bryce Kirk
Templehall, Torbain and Viewforth linked with Thornton

Roman Catholic

St Marie's
St Pius X

Baptist

Whyte's Causeway Baptist Church
Pathhead Baptist Church

Other Churches

Connect Church
Kirkcaldy Free Church
Newcraigs Evangelical Church
Redeemed Christian Church of God
St Peter's Episcopal Church
Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses

Islam

Kirkcaldy Central Mosque

On film and TV

Unveiling of Kirkcaldy War Memorial (c1925) 10 mins – Kirkcaldy crowds and soldiers between the wars.
Road Races (1951–1952) 15 mins – Includes shots from Beveridge Park.
Kirkcaldy Youth Pageant (1952) 12 mins – Includes the Lang Toun Lass and Laddie with "Groucho Marx"
The Scottish footballer of the year (1957) Willie McNaught of Raith Rovers
The Queen Among Miners (1958) Includes shots of Queen Elizabeth II in a white boiler suit at Rothes Colliery.
Fine Floors (c1963) 26 mins – A promotional film for the linoleum manufacturers, Michael Nairn and Company Ltd. See also this derivative.
Kirkcaldy (1975) 22 mins – Guided by a cartoon disc jockey, the film looks at the Fife town of Kirkcaldy
The 700th (2005) 56 mins – The 7th centenary of the Links Market
The Town that Floored the World (first shown: BBC2 21 May 2018) 1 hour – Kirkcaldy and the linoleum industry.

Sport and leisure

thumb|right|[[Stark's Park, home ground of Raith Rovers]] Raith Rovers F.C. is the town's professional football team. They play in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of Scottish football, at their Stark's Park ground. Founded in 1883, the club were elected to the Scottish Football League in 1902. They reached their highest league position in the 1921–22 season, when they were placed third in the Scottish Football League. They achieved a British scoring record of 142 goals in 34 matches in the 1937–38 season. This gained them qualification to the UEFA Cup in the following season, where they reached the second round before losing to Bayern Munich. Kirkcaldy United were also a senior team based in the town, which dissolved in 1916.

Kirkcaldy RFC are the senior rugby team and play at Beveridge Park in Scottish National League Division Two, the third tier of Scottish club rugby. The team, who play at the Fife Ice Arena, have been members of the Elite League since the 2011–12 season. Dunnikier Cricket Club play at Dunnikier Park and a flag football club play at Beveridge Park. The town has a range of leisure facilities such as a swimming pool, an ice rink, and two golf courses (Kirkcaldy and Dunnikier). Steel offer a number of age groups within the club and play in numerous National and Regional level competitions. Currently, the club are represented in both the Lothian Basketball League and Basketball Tayside and Fife League - both 3rd tier competitions.

A new £15 million leisure centre on the town's Esplanade opened its doors in September 2013. This has replaced the old Kirkcaldy Swimming Pool from the 1970s. The decision to build a new leisure centre on this site was controversial, as it resulted in the loss of a public car park. A petition organised by the campaign group Save The Car Park collected over 7,000 signatures in favour of keeping the car park open. The group said that the closure of the car park would discourage shoppers from coming to the High Street and raised issues over the loss of shopowners' right of access to the car park.

Local running clubs include Kirkcaldy Wizards, which is both a JogScotland group and the Kirkcaldy area training group for Fife Athletic Club.

Landmarks

thumb|Square Norman (west) tower of the Old Kirk

The oldest church in Kirkcaldy is the Old Kirk, the old parish church, on Kirk Wynd. The earliest mention of the Old Kirk is the record of its consecration in 1244 to St Brisse and St Patrick by David de Bernham, Bishop of St Andrews. Only the square western tower, which dates from around 1500, was retained and is now the oldest building to have survived within the old burgh.

Kirkcaldy Town House on Wemyssfield is the centrepiece of the town's main civic square. The building was designed in the late 1930s by David Carr and William Howard of Edinburgh. With the advent of World War II, work was delayed on the building until 1950.

Kirkcaldy War Memorial in War Memorial Gardens unveiled in 1925 was gifted to the town by John Nairn, linoleum manufacturer and grandson of Michael Nairn. It was dedicated to Ian Nairn, the son of John Nairn who died in the First World War. A Second World War memorial, designed by Thomas Hubbard, was later added and unveiled in 1958. Forming a centre piece to these gardens is Kirkcaldy Galleries, formerly known as Kirkcaldy Museum and Art Gallery, which was also donated by Nairn. The Merchant's House or Law's Close at 339–343 High Street; once owned by the Law family, is one of the best surviving examples of a 16th-century town house in Scotland. Sailors' Walk, at 443–449 High Street; These two houses were once divided into four dwellings; three of which were owned by the Oliphant family and the fourth by James Ferguson of Raith.

North of the harbour area, on The Path, are two examples of distinctive architectural styles. Path House, originally known as Dunnikier House, is a three-storey L-plan tower house designed by John Watson in 1692 for his bride, Euphan Orrock. In 1703 Watson sold the house to the Oswald family, who had important links with the town. To the south-west of Kirkcaldy is Raith House, built in the late 17th century by Sir Alexander Raith, 4th Earl of Raith and Melville, for his wife, Barbara Dundas. The house remains a private residence of the Munro-Ferguson family. King James II began construction of the castle in 1460 for his queen, Mary of Guelders. It was also a means of defending the upper reaches of the Forth, including the port of Dysart. To a lesser extent it protected the harbour of Kirkcaldy against piracy and English rivalry. Following the death of the King at the siege of Roxburgh Castle (1460), work continued on Ravenscraig, and it became a home for Mary of Gueldres until her death in 1463. In 1470 King James III granted the castle and lands to William Sinclair, Earl of Orkney and Caithness, in exchange for the castle in Kirkwall and the right to the Earldom of Orkney. Until premises were found, pupils were taught in the minister's house. Notable pupils include Robert Adam and Adam Smith. The school was located at Hill Street before being rehoused in a new building on St Brycedale Avenue in 1843. A Government list of 1872 described the school as being of 'higher class'. Other schools were established in the town, including girls schools, subscription schools, and apprentice schools. Other educational facilities include a private school and a school for children with learning difficulties. Kirkcaldy High School, the oldest secondary school, serves pupils living in the north of the town and has occupied a site on Dunnikier Way since 1958. Balwearie High School opened as a junior secondary school in 1964 and was upgraded to a high school in 1972. The school serves pupils living in the western end of the town and neighbouring Kinghorn and Burntisland. Work will be funded through the Building Fife's School Project for completion in August 2016. St Andrews RC High School, which opened in the late 1950s is one of two Roman Catholic secondary schools in Fife. This caters to pupils living in the eastern half of Fife, from St Andrews to Burntisland and Lochgelly.

Further education is provided by Fife College who have their main campus on St Brycedale Avenue. The college was created in August 2013 from the merger of Adam Smith College, Fife and Carnegie College, Dunfermline. The University of Dundee also has a campus in the town which specialises as a School for Nursing and Midwifery. Originally built by the Fife Health Board for the use of the old Fife College of Further and Higher Education, this campus was taken over by the university in 1996.

Public services

Waste management is handled by the local authority, Fife Council. Kerbside recycling operates in the town. A four-bin collection is in place for the majority of residents. Kirkcaldy has one recycling centre and several recycling points, all operated by Fife Council. Non-hazardous waste is sent to landfill at Lochhead near Dunfermline, and Lower Melville Wood, near Ladybank.

Health care is supplied by NHS Fife, who have their main headquarters in the town at Hayfield House. The Victoria Hospital which is situated north of the town centre, is the town's acute general and maternity hospital. A new £152.5 million extension to the hospital was completed in February 2012. This new wing contains a maternity unit, children's department, 11 operating theatres and a new Accident and Emergency Department. Within the grounds of the hospital, a Maggie's Centre, under the name of Maggie's Fife, specialises in care for cancer patients. The centre, which was completed between 2004 and 2006, was the first building in the UK designed by Zaha Hadid, the Iraqi-born architect. Whyteman's Brae Hospital, which is also part of the complex, serves psychiatric and elderly patients.

Statutory emergency fire and rescue services are provided by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. The main fire station in the town is on Dunnikier Road. Policing in Kirkcaldy is operated by

Police Scotland. The main police station in the town is on St Brycedale Avenue. Kirkcaldy is also served by the East Central Region of the Scottish Ambulance Service, which covers Tayside, Forth Valley, and Fife.

Media

There are three radio stations in the town. Kingdom FM broadcasts from its studios at Elizabeth House in the town. Victoria Radio Network a hospital radio station based in Victoria Hospital and K107, a community radio station.

Transport

thumb|Main entrance (south platform), Kirkcaldy railway station

Railway

Kirkcaldy railway station is to the north-west of the town centre and is on the route for the Fife Circle Line and the East Coast Main Line.

Other services run to locations such as Aberdeen and Inverness to the north, and south as far as London King's Cross and Penzance. Nearby stations such as Burntisland and Kinghorn are to the south and west of the town.

Roads

The A92, which connects Dunfermline to the west with Glenrothes and Dundee to the north, passes immediately north of Kirkcaldy. The A910 road connects it to the western and central parts of the town. At Redhouse roundabout, the A921 connects the A92 to the eastern side of Kirkcaldy. It continues via St Clair Street and The Esplanade on to Kinghorn, Burntisland, and Aberdour to the south-west. The main route through the north of the town, the B981, runs roughly parallel to and one kilometre to the south of the A92. This road also connects to the A910 and the A921, from Chapel Junction via Chapel Level and Dunnikier Way to Gallatown. From here the A915, known locally as the Standing Stane Road, connects the town to St Andrews and Leven to the north-east. The A955 runs along the coast from Dysart to East Wemyss and Buckhaven to the north-east.

Buses

The main bus station, next to where the Postings Shopping Centre once stood, is located between Hill Place and Hunter Street.

Notable residents

thumb|160px|Bust of Adam Smith in the town's theatre named in his honour

Kirkcaldy is the birthplace of social philosopher and economist Adam Smith, who wrote The Wealth of Nations at his mother's house at 220 High Street between 1765 and 1767. Architect and designer Robert Adam (and his father, William) came from the town. Sir Sandford Fleming, (1827–1915), engineer and inventor behind the development of worldwide standard time zones and who worked on much of the Intercolonial Railway and the Canadian Pacific Railway was born in the town before emigrating to Canada. Explorer John McDouall Stuart, who led six expeditions into the centre and from the south to north of Australia, was born in nearby Dysart.

Politicians who come from the town include Henry Balnaves (ca.1512–1570) a Scottish politician, Lord Justice Clerk and religious reformer; Ronald Munro Ferguson, the Governor-General of Australia from 1914 to 1920; David Steel, leader of the Liberal Party from 1979 to 1988 and former Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament; and Bertha Wilson, the first female judge of the Supreme Court of Canada and Court of Appeal for Ontario. The former Chancellor of the Exchequer, Prime Minister and MP for the town's constituency until his retirement in 2015, Gordon Brown, was brought up in the town from the age of three.

The mathematician Edward Sang was born in Kirkcaldy in 1805.

Patrick Don Swan (1808–1889) founder of Swan Brothers shipbuilders. Son of William Swan, Provost of Kirkcaldy. Patrick served as Provost of Kirkcaldy for 37 years and was its most prominent person through most of the 19th century.

The Scottish crime writer Val McDermid was born in the town.

Guy Berryman, bassist of the alternative rock band Coldplay, was born and brought up in the town until the age of thirteen.

Richard Park, the chief executive of Global Radio and the headmaster on the BBC talent show Fame Academy was born in the town.

Sportsmen include the two-time world darts champion Jocky Wilson, footballer Colin Cameron, professional golfer Peter Whiteford, professional ice hockey player Adam Walker and stock car driver Gordon Moodie. William Arnott (1827–1901), a biscuit manufacturer in Australia, also came from the town. David Potter, sports historian and author, was not born in Kirkcaldy but has lived there for over 40 years. David Danskin, who grew up in Kirkcaldy, was a principal founding member of Dial Square FC, later renamed Royal Arsenal, the team that are today known as Arsenal. Raith Rovers F.C. footballer Lewis Stevenson was born in Kirkcaldy. He is the only footballer in the history of his former club Hibs to have won both the Scottish League Cup and Scottish Cup, in 2007 and 2016 respectively. He made more than 300 appearances for the Edinburgh club before moving to Raith Rovers.

Frederick Coutts (18991986), the 8th General, or international leader, of the Salvation Army was born in Kirkcaldy.

The eminent zoologist, Prof David Raitt Robertson Burt (1899–1983) was born and raised in Kirkcaldy, as was the botanist John Muirhead Macfarlane FRSE (1855–1943).