The role will pay an £8K relocation fee for the successful candidate
11:26, 22 Aug 2025Updated 13:21, 22 Aug 2025
Fair Isle, Scotland’s most remote island(Image: SWNS)
A medical professional is being recruited to work on the UK’s most remote inhabited island – with perks including a car and an £8,000 relocation allowance. Fair Isle, a tiny island situated halfway between the Shetland and Orkney mainlands in Scotland, is currently home to just 50 residents.
The prospective nurse will be tasked with providing a comprehensive healthcare service to the island’s permanent population, as well as visiting tourists.
The position offers a salary range of £41,608 to £50,702, though this will be boosted by additional payments owing to Fair Isle’s remote location, reports the Daily Star.
The successful applicant, who will need to provide personal care in the absence of any social care services on the island, will receive a remote island allowance worth £2,482 per year, whilst up to £8,000 is on offer to help with relocation costs.
The island measures just three miles long and one-and-a-half miles wide, and a vehicle will be provided to get around. A two-bedroom traditional stone-built house will also be available for the post holder to rent.
Local resident Eileen Thomson, who grew up on Fair Isle and moved back to the island from Edinburgh with her young family eight years ago, said the vacancy was unlike any other healthcare role.
“On Fair Isle, you get to be so much more of a nurse than you would anywhere else,” she said.
“On the mainland, you might see a patient for five minutes, and not see them again for months, or even ever. But here, the nurse gets to really look after people.
“You get that continuity of care living and working alongside people, and you get that chance to look after your flock – it’s a wonderful opportunity for someone.”
A key quality for flourishing on the island, she noted, was the capacity to throw yourself wholeheartedly into its “vibrant” community atmosphere.
“We need people who are going to work hard and get on,” she said.
“If anyone wants solitude and isolation, they’re better off living in a city. On Fair Isle, we need people to chip in, who can help out, and who want to be sociable, because that’s how we all thrive.”
The island, which has been owned by the National Trust for Scotland since 1954, has kept a resident nurse since 1903. Prior to that period, Fair Isle inhabitants had to rely on a community medicine chest for their medical requirements.
Fair Isle, Scotland’s most remote island(Image: SWNS)
NHS Shetland, which is spearheading the recruitment drive for the latest role, described the district nurse/nurse practitioner position as an opportunity to join an island with a “truly welcoming atmosphere” and a “resilient community”.
The job description reads: “This is a unique opportunity to become a truly integral part of a forward-thinking, determined, resilient and hardworking remote island community, with a thriving primary school and transport links to and from the Shetland Mainland by ferry or by plane, (both weather dependent).
“You will be responsible for providing care in both planned and emergency situations, acting as first point of contact, providing effective nursing assessment and treatment during an emergency in liaison with the General Practitioners based in Levenwick on mainland Shetland or in collaboration with the Scottish Ambulance Service.
“The post holder may also be expected to provide personal care for islanders, as required, in the absence of on-island based social care provision. There is a small clinic in the centre of the island, and a car for the use of the post holder and visiting healthcare professionals. A full UK driving license is an essential requirement for this post.”
Earlier this year, the tiny island welcomed a new teacher for its primary school. In June, a company from Yorkshire was awarded a £5.6 million contract to build a new roll-on, roll-off ferry for Fair Isle, which is expected to be in service next year.