Postcode area · Kirkwall
Crime in KW
How much crime is recorded in KW, what kind, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
- Council
- Highland
- Region
- Scotland
- Population
- 52,503 (2024)
KWPostcode area · Kirkwall
How safe is KW
Police Scotland publishes recorded crime by council area only, so there is no neighbourhood figure for KW. In 2025-26, Highland recorded 43 crimes per 1,000 residents, below the 57 across Scotland.
Crimes per 1,000
43
Highland, 2025-26
Scotland
57
Per 1,000 residents
By type, per 1,000 residents
HighlandScotland
Non-sexual crimes of violence11.413.6
Sexual crimes3.03.0
Crimes of dishonesty12.521.3
Damage and reckless behaviour5.56.9
Crimes against society10.612.1
Source: Police Scotland recorded crime via statistics.gov.scot. Groups 1–5 are crimes; offences such as anti-social behaviour and road traffic are counted separately. Not comparable with figures for England and Wales.