Scottish Islands Data Overview (2025)
The Scottish Islands Data Dashboard has been updated following a review of available data. This report summarises the findings. It highlights changes between data available in 2025 and data first collated in 2023 and gives an overview of longer term trends in Scotland's Islands.
3 Comparisons between 2023 and 2025 overview publications
This section sets out the key changes between data published in the Scottish Islands Data Dashboard in 2023 and the data in the 2025 dashboard update. These are organised by strategic objective of the National Islands Plan (2019). In some instances there has been no updated data available or no significant changes to report.
3.1 Population
Population change amongst Scottish Island Regions is varied. Some are experiencing population growth, and others decline. Updated time series population data is currently available at council area (Population estimates time series data (NRS)) but not below that. Updated data for the Scottish Island Regions will be available by Spring 2026.[6]
3.2 Sustainable Economic Development
The previous dashboard showed that Gross Value Added[7] was declining across island regions. However, across most island regions, this value is now increasing, reflecting the recovery from the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) related decline. The number of private sector businesses in the islands has remained fairly static.
3.3 Transport
Data from the Scottish Islands Survey (2023) shows that perceptions of the quality of public transport have declined in the islands compared to 2020. Perceptions of the reliability of public transport and access to information about transport have also broadly declined. Whilst most people do not think the fares for bus services, inter-island ferries, and inter-island flights are value for money perceptions are more positive than previously.
3.4 Housing
In the Scottish Islands Survey (2023), islanders had worse perceptions of housing availability and affordability than in the National Islands Plan Survey (2020). However, rates of house building are increasing across most island local authorities (apart from Highland Council). After increasing in a steady trend across all island regions from 2019 to 2022, house prices decreased in three of nine island regions between 2022 and 2024 and fluctuated significantly in two others. Notably, Scottish Islands generally have a higher proportion of cash sales than mainland Scotland.
3.5 Fuel Poverty
No update
3.6 Digital Connectivity
Digital connectivity is improving in island regions. Islanders believe that mobile signal and internet speed is improving, while internet reliability is maintaining. 4G coverage is improving significantly in rural Scotland. For example, the percentage of total 4G geographic coverage in Comhairle nan Eilean Siar rose 36-percentage points between 2024 and 2025.
3.7 Health and Wellbeing
Life expectancies have seen some fluctuation but remain predominantly higher in the islands than the Scottish average. Diet and physical activity levels are also static, although four island local authorities now fall below the Scottish average for activity levels compared to two in the original dashboard. Newly available data from the Health and Care Experience Survey suggests that most islanders are able to make GP appointments in advance. Furthermore, islanders generally have lower waiting times for urgent GP appointments than the Scottish average, apart from in the Highland Islands and Orkney – Mainland and connected. Suicide rates in Island Councils continue to be higher than the rate for Scotland with the exception of Shetland Islands Council.
3.8 Environment and Biosecurity
Recycling rates are slightly increasing in island local authorities; however, most areas still fall significantly below the Scottish average. Comhairle nan Eilean Siar continues to send the most waste to landfill of any Scottish local authority area. Nevertheless, data from SEPA shows that carbon impact per person is declining across all island local authorities.
3.9 Climate Change
Total renewable electricity generation (MWh) rose in two of the three islands-only local authorities between 2021 and 2024.[8]
3.10 Community empowerment
The number of community owned assets increased across all island local authority regions between 2020 and 2024. A high number of people report a strong sense of community belonging. However, significantly fewer islanders report feeling a strong sense of community belonging in the 2023 Scottish Islands Survey, declining from 82% in 2020 to 71% in 2023. The Scottish Household Survey, which can now provide islands-level data, also suggests that more islanders feel connected to their community than the Scottish average.
3.11 Arts Culture and Language
Understanding of Scots and Gaelic is declining, while understanding of local dialects is maintaining. However, these figures vary across island regions.
3.12 Education
Schools in the islands continue to have above average attendance, and literacy and numeracy levels are generally improving in island schools.
Conclusion
This section has highlighted some changes between the data published in the Scottish Islands Data Dashboard in 2023 and the data in the 2025 dashboard update. In most instances the changes are not substantially different from the data reported in 2023 and follow the same general patterns. This is to be expected in a relatively short time frame.
The chapters that follow provide a more detailed report of the data held under each strategic objective of the dashboard at the time of publishing in September 2025.