Town

Living in Toward: Liveability Score 35/100

Last updated 7 August 2026

Toward comes out at 35/100 on the 7 categories we can score here. Measured against other towns, bills stands out most: 76/100 where the typical UK town scores 47/100. Broadband falls furthest short: 9/100 where the typical UK town reaches 60/100.

That makes it the 3rd highest-scoring of the 5 places in the PA23 postcode district. Against the wider PA23 district average of 43/100, that is 8 points below. That is 15 points below the national benchmark of 50, the bottom quarter of all UK towns and villages. For the surrounding area, see PA23 postcode district.

35
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.

Toward scores 35 but individual postcodes tell the full story

See the exact score for any postcode, side by side with Toward.
Or compare:
PA23 7AA PA23 8AA PA23 9AG PA23

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 1.6 · PM2.5 3.9 · PM10 6.3 µg/m³
86
Green Space 12
Parks None
Sports Pitches None
Allotments None
Golf Courses None
Tennis Courts None
Bowling Greens None
Playgrounds None

Services

Schools
9
1 school in area · 2 within 4km
1Good
  • Toward Primary SchoolPrimary · inspected 2018
    Good

Score reflects proximity-weighted access to rated schools within 4km: areas with more nearby schools score higher regardless of settlement boundary.

Healthcare
—
A&E departmentsCumberland Infirmary103.9 mi
Community Paramedic Service126.1 mi
Hexham General Hospital129.2 mi
Hospital waitsNorth Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust93.1 mi
Routine referral (median)12 wks
Treated within 18 weeks64.3%
A&E seen within 4 hrs62.6%
Nearest GP surgeryDr Rai's Practice3.7 mi
GP capacity1,577 patients per GP

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

Broadband
9
Full fibre (FTTP)21.8%
available across Argyll and Bute
Gigabit-capable · incl. cable
0%
Ultrafast (300+ Mbps)
0%
Superfast (30+ Mbps)
97.7%
Ofcom Connected Nations · 5 postcodes · full fibre at local-authority level

Economy & Bills

Economic Health
70
Employment rate42.8%
Below the Great Britain average of 57.3% of residents aged 16+
Economic activity (16+)
Employed43.6%Unemployed2.2%Retired46.2%Student1.4%Other inactive6.7%
Occupation mix
Professional & managerial43.3%Skilled & technical36.2%Routine & elementary20.5%
Degree-level (Level 4+) qualifications40.3%
Home ownership86.2%
Around the Scotland average for deprivation
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 D
Water Scottish Water
Average bill regional £456/yr
Combined water & sewerage · GB average £520

Transport

Transport
8
Wemyss Bay 3.6 mi
Inverkip 5 mi
Largs 6.8 mi
J31 M8 16.7 mi
J31 M8 17.1 mi
J30 M8 19.4 mi

Lifestyle

Lifestyle
4
Pubs & Bars None
Restaurants & Cafes None
Supermarkets & Convenience None
Retail Shopping None
Takeaways None
Fitness None

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House Prices

Not published for Scotland

Sold-price data isn't available for Toward. 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

Innellan 38 2.0 mi away ⇄
Craigmore 35 2.7 mi away ⇄
Port Bannatyne 29 3.5 mi away ⇄
Skelmorlie 41 3.7 mi away ⇄
Rothesay 39 3.7 mi away ⇄
Wemyss Bay 36 3.8 mi away ⇄
Inverkip 38 5.2 mi away ⇄
Dunoon 44 6.5 mi away ⇄
Largs 40 6.6 mi away ⇄
Sandbank 32 7.9 mi away ⇄
Millport 40 8.1 mi away ⇄
Gourock 56 8.3 mi away ⇄

Frequently asked questions

Is Toward a nice place to live?

Toward has some challenges compared to many UK areas. Our liveability score for Toward is 35/100, 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 Toward?

Among the top-rated schools in Toward is Toward Primary School, rated Good by Ofsted. There are 1 rated schools in Toward in total.

Postcode districts in Toward

PA23 43 ⇄

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