Annual Report 2025/26 - Locality Plan Activity Update

The Locality Plan includes indicators covering population and age balance, incomes, employment, volunteering, community morale and people’s experience of services.  Some align with indicators in the Shetland Partnership Plan, but data at island level can be difficult to obtain and interpret because the populations are very small.  Work with island representatives to refresh the Island Profiles is currently underway to provide additional local context alongside the annual survey findings.

The community survey, first introduced in 2020/21, was repeated in July 2026 to gather residents’ reflections on their experiences during 2025/26. It received 30 complete responses across all five islands, compared with 48 responses in 2025 and 87 in 2024. Although the overall number of responses was low, it represents a reasonable proportion of the islands’ combined population and was considered sufficient for the findings to be reported. Nevertheless, the results should be interpreted with caution because the number and distribution of responses varied between islands, and combined figures may mask important local differences.

2026 survey findings

• Community sentiment: 83% rated their community as a ‘Very Good’ or ‘Fairly Good’ place to live, compared with 69% in 2025.  A further 7% selected ‘Good’, meaning 90% gave a positive rating overall. The proportions agreeing that they have a sense of belonging and feel optimistic about the future of their community were both 80%, increases of 17 and 30 percentage points respectively.
• Public services: 50% were satisfied with healthcare provision, 53% with schools and education, and 53% with public transport.  Compared with 2025, satisfaction with healthcare increased by 4% and satisfaction with education by 24%, while satisfaction with public transport decreased by 12%.
• Connectivity:  90% reported access to 4G coverage and 57% to superfast broadband of 30Mbps or more, increases of 13 and 15 percentage points respectively.  Some 57% rated their broadband as adequate or very adequate, broadly unchanged from 56% in 2025, while 40% rated it inadequate or very inadequate.

Overall, the 2026 returns indicate stronger positive sentiment about place, belonging and optimism, alongside improved satisfaction with education and reported connectivity.  However, satisfaction with public transport fell and perceptions of service providers listening remain low.  The findings, together with the updated Islands Profiles and Issues Logs, will inform conversations between island communities, senior managers and partners and help to prioritise follow-up action.