Wanted: Remote lighthouse on Scottish island needs a custodian

For 200 years, it has kept sailors safe off the edge of a wild Scottish island.

Sumburgh Head Lighthouse on the southern tip of the Shetland mainland is looking for a custodian for its clifftop holiday accommodation. PIC: Creative Commons.

Now, Sumburgh Head lighthouse is looking for a custodian to welcome overnight guests to the old lighthouse keeper’s cottage on this very southern tip of the Shetland mainland.

Sumburgh Head Lighthouse is the oldest Stevenson lighthouse in Shetland and will mark its 200th anniversary next January.

The entire lighthouse complex is now a popular visitor attraction and illuminates the seafaring ways of Scotland’s most northerly islands with wildlife lovers also drawn to this dramatic cliff top site.

Now, due to retirement, a new team member is needed to keep the holiday accommodation on the site running smoothly.

The property has been rennovated to recreate a traditional lighthouse keepers cottage, where guests can enjoy the wild drama of the beating seas all around from the comfort of their holiday home.

Sandy Middleton, head of engagement at Shetland Amentity Trust, which runs Sumburgh Head Lighthouse, said: “We are really looking for someone who loves meeting people and is passionate for all things Shetland.

"The lighthouse is perched out on the promontory on the very southern tip of Shetland and it is one of the best places in Scotland to see puffins. You can be standing and see a puffin just one metre away.

“The cliffs, the environment and the views from here are just fantastic.. The wildlife is a huge draw here, but so is the heritage of the site.”

The lighthouse is surrounded by one of the most easy-to-reach seabird colonies in the country, where thousands of seabirds make their home during the summer. Passing minke whales, orcas and dolphins can also be seen in the surrounding waters.

The holiday cottage also appeared in BBC’s crime drama Shetland as the Sumburgh Lighthouse Hotel in series three of the show.

The custodians job is on a part-time basis and is not a live-in position.

For more information about the role, contact [email protected]

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