Fife

The Kingdom of Fife is small but beautiful. And it’s a great place to bring up a family. Even if you don’t choose to live here – but, say, do the short commute from Edinburgh instead – you’ll find it an enriching, calming place to come to.

If you do decide to live in Fife, you’ll find that the housing is a lot cheaper and there are many excellent schools. But its semi-rurality is what really sets it apart as a place to live and work. If you’re looking to upgrade your quality of life, while taking on a new professional challenge, then Fife should feature high on your list.

First things first. Yes, Fife is known as the birthplace of golf – with the 600-year-old St Andrews being the most famous of our many world-class courses. But if that’s not your game, you needn’t worry. There’s much more to discover across the region, wherever your leisure interests lie.

For walkers, the Fife Coastal Path is a dream. Stretching 117 miles, from the Forth Estuary in the south to the Tay Estuary in the north, it is home to local wildlife – including grey seals as well as large seabird colonies – as well as many historic sites. There are also the myriad trails in the Lomond Hills Regional Park, where you can find the oddly-shaped Bonnet Stane and take in spectacular views from Fife’s highest hills.

There are forests and woodlands where you can go mountain-biking and horse-riding. And there are lots of great places where you can simply relax, including all three of Scotland's Blue Flag beaches: Elie Ruby Bay, Aberdour Silver Sands and Burntisland. We've a couple of Michelin starred restaurants and one of the best chip shops in Scotland too.

On a cultural level, there is the Kirkcaldy Museum & Art Gallery where you can see works by famous Scottish artists including William McTaggart, the Glasgow Boys and the Scottish Colourists. Go to Dunfermline, meanwhile, and you’ll discover how Andrew Carnegie – at one time the world’s richest man and the pioneer of modern philanthropy – at his Birthplace Museum.

Fife is well connected by road and rail, with airports in Edinburgh, Dundee and Glasgow easily accessible. Edinburgh is close by, linked to Fife by three bridges (with a fourth in Kincardine), while Dundee is linked by the Tay bridge. You can travel directly by rail to a number of towns and cities across Scotland, including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Aberdeen and Inverness. There are also good links to major English towns and cities on the east and west coast.

More information about the region and living in Fife can be found by exploring the Visit Scotland web site.

Healthcare

There are 365,000 people living in Fife and they are served by 55 General Practices with practice populations ranging in size from 2,000 to 20,000. Our Practices are grouped into seven clusters by preference & geography. There are 5 community hospitals (some of which are GP led), an established hospital at home service, expanding community geriatrician service and established access to both District General Hospital (DGH) and tertiary care centres. Our joining up care work is about transforming Out of Hours (OOH), community hospital organisation and the development of community hubs to better meet the needs of those we care for in Fife. The ScotGEM (Scottish Graduate Entry Medicine) programme is now embedding with local practices who are involved in delivering the clinical learning and this compliments the teaching and training Practice culture of Fife. The opportunities to be a General Practitioner in Fife are varied – opportunities to be part of a joined up approach whilst caring for individuals.

Living and working in Fife

Come to life in Fife