Town

Living in Rothesay: Liveability Score 39/100

Last updated 7 August 2026

Our overall score for Rothesay is 39/100, built from 8 categories. Its biggest lead over the typical UK town is healthcare: 58/100 against a national town median of 18/100. Furthest below the national norm is economic health, at 15/100 against a town median of 67/100.

That is the highest score of the 3 places in the PA20 postcode district. That is 11 points below the national benchmark of 50, the middle half of all UK towns and villages. Broadband (10), transport (18) and schools (19) all fall below 30/100. The same breakdown for the wider area is on the PA20 postcode district.

39
OUT OF 100
Below Avg
Score for:

Settlement area

The built-up area boundary and the postcodes its score is averaged from, each shaded by its own score. Clustered pins are other settlements. Tap one to view or compare it, or zoom in to reveal more.

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Each postcode is coloured by its own overall score on the default weighting. Scores are filled in as postcodes get searched on the site, so a blue dot just means that postcode hasn't been scored yet.

Rothesay scores 39 but individual postcodes tell the full story

See the exact score for any postcode, side by side with Rothesay.
Or compare:
PA20 0AH PA20 2AA PA20 9AA PA20

Score breakdown

Safety & Environment

Safety
—

Crime is scored from the last 12 months of police street-level data. Police Scotland does not publish this, and there is no Scottish equivalent of the Police UK open data service, so crime has been left out of the score for this area. This is a gap in published data, not a sign of low crime.

Environment
64
Air Quality NO₂ 2.4 · PM2.5 4 · PM10 6.4 µg/m³
85
Green Space 15
Parks Adequate 2
Sports Pitches Some 1
Allotments None
Golf Courses Some 1
Tennis Courts None
Bowling Greens Some 1
Playgrounds Some 2

Services

Schools
19
1 school in area
1Good
  • St Andrew's Primary SchoolPrimary · inspected 2019
    Good
Healthcare
58
A&E departmentsCumberland Infirmary104.7 mi
Community Paramedic Service128 mi
Hexham General Hospital130.6 mi
Hospital waitsUniversity Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust92.9 mi
Routine referral (median)9 wks
Treated within 18 weeks69.4%
A&E seen within 4 hrs64.2%
1 GP surgery in area
GP capacity1,513 patients per GP

A&E, dentist and pharmacy data, and CQC ratings, are currently available for England only, not Scotland.

Broadband
10
Full fibre (FTTP)21.8%
available across Argyll and Bute
Gigabit-capable · incl. cable
0%
Ultrafast (300+ Mbps)
0%
Superfast (30+ Mbps)
99.1%
Ofcom Connected Nations · 135 postcodes · full fibre at local-authority level

Economy & Bills

Economic Health
15
Employment rate47%
Below the Great Britain average of 57.3% of residents aged 16+
Economic activity (16+)
Employed46.5%Unemployed2.6%Retired32.1%Student2%Other inactive16.7%
Occupation mix
Professional & managerial25.5%Skilled & technical33.7%Routine & elementary40.8%
Degree-level (Level 4+) qualifications21%
Home ownership44.8%
Among the most-deprived 20% of areas in Scotland
Census 2021/22 (Great Britain) · deprivation: IoD 2025 / SIMD
Bills
76
Council tax Argyll & Bute · 2025-26
A £1,084
B £1,265
C £1,445
D £1,626
E £2,136
F £2,642
G £3,184
H £3,984
Energy South Scotland region
Typical bill regional £1,641/yr
Ofgem price cap, GB average · Apr–Jun 2026
Typical home efficiency local EPC band C
Water Scottish Water
Average bill regional £456/yr
Combined water & sewerage · GB average £520

Transport

Transport
18
Wemyss Bay 7.1 mi
Largs 7.9 mi
Inverkip 8.7 mi
J31 M8 20.2 mi
J31 M8 20.6 mi
J30 M8 22.7 mi

Lifestyle

Lifestyle
36
Pubs & Bars Adequate 4
Restaurants & Cafes Ample 13
Supermarkets & Convenience Adequate 4
Retail Shopping Ample 41
Takeaways Adequate 4
Fitness Adequate 2

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House Prices

Not published for Scotland

Sold-price data isn't available for Rothesay. HM Land Registry's Price Paid dataset covers England and Wales only. Scottish sales are recorded separately by Registers of Scotland, which we don't yet include. This is a gap in the data we hold, not a sign of an inactive market.

Nearby places

Craigmore 35 1.1 mi away ⇄
Port Bannatyne 29 1.6 mi away ⇄
Toward 35 3.7 mi away ⇄
Innellan 38 5.5 mi away ⇄
Skelmorlie 41 7.0 mi away ⇄
Wemyss Bay 36 7.4 mi away ⇄
Millport 40 7.5 mi away ⇄
Largs 40 7.9 mi away ⇄
Kames 37 8.2 mi away ⇄
Tighnabruaich 37 8.5 mi away ⇄
Inverkip 38 8.9 mi away ⇄
Fairlie 38 9.7 mi away ⇄

Frequently asked questions

Is Rothesay a nice place to live?

Rothesay has some challenges compared to many UK areas. Our liveability score for Rothesay is 39/100, placing it among a below-average areas in the UK across nine categories: safety, schools, healthcare, environment, transport, broadband, lifestyle, economic health, and bills.

What are the best schools in Rothesay?

Among the top-rated schools in Rothesay is St Andrew's Primary School, rated Good by Ofsted. There are 1 rated schools in Rothesay in total.

Postcode districts in Rothesay

PA20 37 ⇄

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