EAST KILBRIDE & STRATHAVEN

Not an official council region, but worthy of its own place at the high table of west Scottish regions

East Kilbride is Scotland's largest town, and it deserves a website section to itself for a number of reasons. Having become easily the largest conurbation in the whole of Lanarkshire, in recent years, it has begun to gain critical mass, drawing in an ever-larger proportion of South Lanarkshire's investment and infrastructure.

In terms of retail, you can buy pretty much anything you can think of. From Scotland's largest indoor shopping centre to a wealth of retail estates right down to compact village-style squares lined with local stores and services, this is a town for the shopper. It's also home to many thousands of desirable properties - flats are mostly concentrated in the older districts, and there's been an explosion in executive housebuilding, typified by Lindsayfield, which continues to grow as a credible rival to Stewartfield on the other side of town - believed to be Western Europeís largest private housing estate.

And for something completely different, just ten minutes south along the A726, lies Strathaven. A traditional and community-led village, it's one of the region's most affluent addresses, full of century-old houses in immaculate condition, served by a quaint village square lined with boutique stores and family-owned enterprises. It provides the perfect foil to East Kilbride's slick futurism - a haven from the rigours of modern life, in fact.