Change of Scene? Ranger Needed on Remote Scottish Island

Looking to get away from it all? Handa Island needs a ranger. Accommodation’s free. The Scottish Highlands are stunning. And you have 120,000 breeding birds, dolphins, and sharks to care for.

Credit: lovefromscotland.co.uk

The Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) is looking to fill a six-month role for a very small uninhabited island in the North West Scottish Highlands, reports the BBC. The 760-acre island has been uninhabited since the 19th century and is located just off the west coast of the Scottish Highlands.

Unsurprisingly, the job requires a good knowledge of wildlife and involves monitoring the wildlife with a team of volunteers that you would lead. But more surprisingly for an uninhabited island, you would need excellent people skills. Rab Potter, SWT’s reserves area manager, explains that this is because the island is so isolated that you need to be comfortable with communal living. The people you work with during the day will be those you socialise with in the evening. Plus, your people skills are also important for managing the summer visitors - roughly 8,000 each year.

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The ranger will be paid £26,000 (around $35,000) and the ideal candidate needs to be resourceful. The weather is changeable, and sometimes that means no ferries for days at a time. This small boat runs from about April to September and takes about 10 minutes. There's no service on Sundays or in bad weather. You'd also need to head out to the mainland for washing, shopping, and supplies of bottled gas for cooking and heating.

Fancy applying? Head to the SWT website before 7 January 2026. Anticipated start date for this role is 16 March 2026.