rank-direction-confirmed

Date: 2026-09-10. Status: implemented.

Decision. Rank 1 is the most deprived data zone in all six editions.

Reason. The PHS rank is identical to the official Scottish Government rank on every zone in every edition, which contradicts the PHS documentation sentence about 2004 and 2006.

Evidence. SIMD_Plan_Gap_Closure.md section 4.

Columns (6): simd2004_rank, simd2006_rank, simd2009v2_rank, simd2012_rank, simd2016_rank, simd2020v2_rank