The housing scheme at Niddrie Mains was created through the Housing (Scotland) Act of 1924, with lands bought from the Wauchope Estate. The area was designed and laid out by the then City Architect, Ebenezer James MacRae from 1927. The Craigmilllar estate, immediately below the castle, was planned in 1936. Until around 2008, the area consisted mainly of inter-war and post-war public housing schemes, ranging from private bungalows to Edinburgh Council-owned high rise tower blocks. The City of Edinburgh Council is now well into a regeneration programme which has seen the demolition of the earlier estates and the area has benefited from many initiatives aimed at tackling the social deprivation that has characterised the area for many years.