Glenrothes is one of the Scottish new towns, created in the post-war era circa 1948, from an amalgamation of small farming communities. Originally the main industry in Glenrothes and the surrounding area was coal mining, and it was populated by mining families moving from the West of Scotland, particularly the Glasgow area. However this has now been superseded by a plethora of electronics factories, and a whisky distillery. Since its development, the town has become the centre of Fife Council 's operations. Fife House and other Fife Council buildings are situated in Glenrothes' town centre.

Famous People include Henry McLeish, the former first minister who lived there, having been brought up in neighbouring Kennoway. Glenrothes town centre is home to the building at the crux of the notorious 'office gate' scandal, which led to his resignation in 2001.

Glenrothes' twin town is Böblingen in Germany. Glenrothes High School has operated a school exchange with the Albert Einstein Gymnasium in Böblingen for several years.

Census 2001 Analysis

Scotland's Census 2001 showed that Glenrothes has a population of 38,679. The demographic make-up of the population is much in line with the rest of Scotland, with 30-44 year olds forming the largest portion of the population (23%). Despite the aging population in Scotland, Glenrothes has 2% less pensioners than the Scottish average. Detailed information about Glenrothes from the Census can be obtained from this Executive website.