Kirkwall West and Orphir electoral ward · May 2026 boundaries. Every figure carries its own date.
What stands out here?
People aged 16+ with a degree or higher: 29.2% here, compared with 31.8% across Orkney Islands (2.6 percentage points lower).
Qualifications show local skills, not whether people have secure jobs or use those skills at work. Scotland uses its own qualification categories.
20 March 2022 · ward and council use the same source, measure and date.
Why this comparison is valid
The difference is in percentage points. The wider figure is the published council total, not the average of its wards. Differences describe groups, not every resident.
People aged 65 or over: 22.8% here, compared with 24.8% across Orkney Islands (2.1 percentage points lower).
Age helps locate demand for accessible homes, transport and support. Being older does not itself mean someone needs care.
20 March 2022 · ward and council use the same source, measure and date.
Why this comparison is valid
The difference is in percentage points. The wider figure is the published council total, not the average of its wards. Differences describe groups, not every resident.
People aged 16+ with no qualifications: 17.7% here, compared with 17.6% across Orkney Islands (0.1 percentage points higher).
Formal qualifications are only one part of someone's skills. Training decisions also need current vacancies, employment and residents' experience.
20 March 2022 · ward and council use the same source, measure and date.
Why this comparison is valid
The difference is in percentage points. The wider figure is the published council total, not the average of its wards. Differences describe groups, not every resident.
UK Facts calculation: output-area counts summed using the official NRS 2022 geography index only when every required cell is numeric. The source dash has no verified definition in the archive or its disclosure notes, so affected sums are withheld; it is not treated as zero. Dash-cell counts are retained in diagnostics. Cells are privacy-adjusted and may not add to independently published totals. Each percentage uses its own table denominator.
A required output-area cell contains an undefined dash; the affected aggregate is withheld, not treated as zero.
Show the workings
UK Facts calculation: output-area counts summed using the official NRS 2022 geography index only when every required cell is numeric. The source dash has no verified definition in the archive or its disclosure notes, so affected sums are withheld; it is not treated as zero. Dash-cell counts are retained in diagnostics. Cells are privacy-adjusted and may not add to independently published totals. Each percentage uses its own table denominator.
UK Facts calculation: output-area counts summed using the official NRS 2022 geography index only when every required cell is numeric. The source dash has no verified definition in the archive or its disclosure notes, so affected sums are withheld; it is not treated as zero. Dash-cell counts are retained in diagnostics. Cells are privacy-adjusted and may not add to independently published totals. Each percentage uses its own table denominator. Scottish degree-or-higher excludes HNC/HND and is kept distinct from the wider Level 4+ measure used elsewhere.
UK Facts calculation: output-area counts summed using the official NRS 2022 geography index only when every required cell is numeric. The source dash has no verified definition in the archive or its disclosure notes, so affected sums are withheld; it is not treated as zero. Dash-cell counts are retained in diagnostics. Cells are privacy-adjusted and may not add to independently published totals. Each percentage uses its own table denominator. Scottish degree-or-higher excludes HNC/HND and is kept distinct from the wider Level 4+ measure used elsewhere.
A required output-area cell contains an undefined dash; the affected aggregate is withheld, not treated as zero.
Show the workings
UK Facts calculation: output-area counts summed using the official NRS 2022 geography index only when every required cell is numeric. The source dash has no verified definition in the archive or its disclosure notes, so affected sums are withheld; it is not treated as zero. Dash-cell counts are retained in diagnostics. Cells are privacy-adjusted and may not add to independently published totals. Each percentage uses its own table denominator.
Homes rented from a council or housing association
Not available
20 March 2022 · Kirkwall West and Orphir
A required output-area cell contains an undefined dash; the affected aggregate is withheld, not treated as zero.
Show the workings
UK Facts calculation: output-area counts summed using the official NRS 2022 geography index only when every required cell is numeric. The source dash has no verified definition in the archive or its disclosure notes, so affected sums are withheld; it is not treated as zero. Dash-cell counts are retained in diagnostics. Cells are privacy-adjusted and may not add to independently published totals. Each percentage uses its own table denominator.
Police.uk street records do not cover ordinary Police Scotland crime. Scottish recorded-crime figures use their own definitions and are shown separately where available.
The chart below covers the whole council area. It is context for this ward, not a ward total.
Crimes recorded by Police Scotland
1996/1997 to 2025/2026
Orkney Islands council area · recorded crimes
Reviewed figures: 1996/1997 to 2025/2026. The chart opens on the latest 30 years; choose All history for the full reviewed record.
Shown on this chart: 442 recorded crimes in 1996/1997; 539 recorded crimes in 2025/2026. These are recorded counts; check the coverage notes before comparing periods.
327.3540.9754.5
1996/19972025/2026
The line joins consecutive published observations.
Hover or tap the chart for a value. Use the date slider with touch or arrow keys. Escape closes the chart label.
Data table and workings
Published Scottish annual recorded crimes, separately from offences. Different recording/counting rules from England and Wales; no UK crime ranking.
Council-area annual totals; not street-level mapped incidents.
Scottish crimes and offences are distinct categories. These figures are not directly comparable with England/Wales mapped crime.
The table retains the full reviewed history when the chart is shortened. Preset ranges end at this measure’s latest published period. Yearly windows count published annual periods; monthly windows count months. Gaps are never filled with estimates.
Crimes recorded by Police Scotland — Orkney Islands council area: full reviewed history
