Factfile - Population
Introduction
The General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) estimates that in June 2009, the population of the Outer Hebrides was 26,180. This figure represents a decrease of 20 persons since 2008. This is a smaller decrease than in 2007 (-50) and 2008 (-100). The long term trend is one of a declining and ageing population. The graph below illustrates GROS population estimates over the last ten years (1999-2009) for the Outer Hebrides.
In 2009, the ‘average age’ in the Outer Hebrides was estimated to be 42 years for males and 45 years for females with the following age group breakdowns by sex: Males (17% under 16 years; 64% of working age; 19% of pensionable age); Females (17% under 16 years; 52% of working age; and 31% of pensionable age).
The estimated decrease in the population of the Outer Hebrides from 2008-2009 can be attributed to negative natural change (more deaths (333) than births (252) and positive net migration (more in-migration than out-migration) which was estimated to be 61. The graph below illustrates the net migration estimated for the population between June 1999 and June 2009.
On census night in 2001 the resident population of the Outer Hebrides was 26,502; in comparison this figure was 29,600 on census night in 1991. Thus over the period 1991 to 2001 the Outer Hebrides experienced a decline in population of -10% (the highest percentage decline of any Local Authority area in Scotland over the period)
Population decline was due to an approximately equal combination of a decline in natural change (more deaths than births) and also net out-migration (more people leaving the Islands than coming in). The overall net migration figure for the 1990s masks a particular trend, that of a much higher rate of young adults between the ages of 18 and 30 leaving the islands than across other age groups. This is a long running characteristic of the population with the young historically leaving the islands for further education or employment purposes.
The Outer Hebrides is not unique in this respect and the population of Scotland as a whole has been experiencing a slow rate of decline since around 1974 Annual Review of Demographic Trends . In the last decade, the main reason for the fall in population in Scotland has been a decline in the number of births, resulting in 'natural' population decrease (more deaths than births). In contrast to this, migration, while fluctuating year on year, has not had the same marked downwards effect on the Scottish population. Although the rate of decline in the Scottish population is relatively slow, a much more pronounced change is occurring in the age structure and geographical distribution of the population. In general this is marked by, an increasing proportion of older people in the population and a combined shift from the larger cities and most remote rural and islands areas to areas surrounding large urban centers.
The situation in the Outer Hebrides is however more marked than elsewhere in Scotland. Compared to the national average, the Outer Hebrides population also has a higher percentage of individuals in the older age groups and correspondingly less in the younger age groups. In 2001 the average age of residents in the Outer Hebrides was three years older than in Scotland. Demographic Overview.
The only large town in the Outer Hebrides is Stornoway (Steòrnabhagh) with approximately 5,530 people. Almost 30% of the total population of the Outer Hebrides, nearly 8,000 people, live within the Greater Stornoway area encompassing Laxdale (Lacasdal), Sandwick (Sanndabhaig) and Newmarket. The remaining population is scattered throughout over 280 townships. Stornoway is the only settlement, which can really be described as having any 'urban' characteristics.
