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Highland Profile
This page contains some of the key facts and figures about Highland. You can view a wide variety of other information by visiting the pages listed in the "In This Section" to the right.
Population
|
Population
in 2008 |
% change
1998-2008 |
| Badenoch & Strathspey |
12,611 |
11.5 |
| Caithness |
25,260 |
-1.8 |
| Inverness |
72,745 |
12.1 |
| Lochaber |
19,074 |
-2.8 |
| Nairn |
12,153 |
10.2 |
| Ross & Cromarty |
51,492 |
1.7 |
| Skye & Lochalsh |
12,594 |
5.1 |
| Sutherland |
13,471 |
3.0 |
| Highland |
219,400 |
5.3 |
| Source: GRO(S) mid-year estimates, 2008 & 1998 |
The latest General Register Office - Scotland (GRO(S)) population projection for Highland states that by 2028, the population of Highland will be 251,953 (a 14.8% increase from 2008).
Population density/area
|
Area (in square kilometres -
excluding inland water) |
Population density
(number of people per square kilometre) |
| Badenoch & Strathspey |
2,356 |
5.4 |
| Caithness |
1,805 |
14.0 |
| Inverness |
2,961 |
24.6 |
| Lochaber |
4,634 |
4.1 |
| Nairn |
424 |
28.7 |
| Ross & Cromarty |
5,108 |
10.1 |
| Skye & Lochalsh |
2,732 |
4.6 |
| Sutherland |
6,071 |
2.2 |
| Highland |
25,659 |
8.6 |
| Scotland |
77,925 |
66.3 |
| Source: GRO(S) mid-year estimates, 2008 |
Population by settlement
| Settlement |
Population |
| Inverness (incl. Culloden) |
60,282 |
| Nairn |
10,879 |
| Fort William |
9,762 |
| Wick |
7,961 |
| Thurso |
7,753 |
| Dingwall |
5,813 |
| Alness |
5,473 |
| Invergordon |
4,199 |
| Tain |
4,100 |
| Muir of Ord |
3,004 |
| Grantown-on-Spey |
2,995 |
| Aviemore |
2,963 |
| Conon Bridge |
2,745 |
| Portree |
2,141 |
| Golspie |
1,617 |
| Source: GRO(S) 2008 mid-year estimates for settlements |
Employment by Sector, Highland
| Sector |
Number of employees |
% of total employees |
| Agriculture, forestry and fishing |
1,900 |
1.7 |
| Energy and water |
900 |
0.8 |
| Manufacturing |
8,700 |
8.0 |
| Construction |
7,300 |
6.7 |
| Distribution, hotels and catering |
27,900 |
25.5 |
| Transport and communications |
6,500 |
5.9 |
| Banking, finance and insurance |
16,200 |
14.8 |
| Public administration, education and health |
34,000 |
31.1 |
| Other services |
5,800 |
5.3 |
| Total |
109,300 |
100.0 |
| Source: Nomis/Annual Business Inquiry, 2008 |
Car ownership, 2001 – 75% of households own 1 or more cars or vans (2001 Census)
Number of households, 2007 – 98,048 (GRO(S) Household Estimates, 2007)
Projected number of households by 2031 – 120,840 (GRO(S) Household Projections, 2006-Based)
Total land area – including all islands at low water is 26,484 square kilometres. This is 33% of Scotland and 11.4% of Great Britain. It is 10 times larger than Luxembourg, 20% larger than Wales, and nearly the size of Belgium.
Length of coastline – including islands (low water) is 4,905 kilometres, 21% of the Scottish total and excluding islands is 1,900 kilometres (49% of Scotland). Argyll and Bute has the next biggest coastline with 3,723 kilometres, then Western Isles with 3,716 kilometres.
Length of road network - you can view the latest roads return here, giving full details of the Highland road network.
Forested land cover - approximately 15% of Highland is forested, including over 300,000 hectares of commercial forest.
Nature Conservation Designations
| Designation |
Land area
(hectares) |
% of Highland
land area |
| Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) |
537,744 |
20.3 |
| Special Area of Conservation (SAC) |
409,356 |
15.5 |
| Special Protection Area (SPA) |
294,415 |
11.1 |
| National Nature Reserve (NNR) |
88,537 |
3.3 |
| National Scenic Area (NSA) |
539,774 |
20.4 |
| Source: Scottish Natural Heritage, December 2009 |
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