Best places to live in the UK

The UK is a beautiful country with a diverse variety of villages, towns and cities that cater to the wants of most lifestyles. We have historic cities like Durham and Stratford-upon-Avon, bustling cities like Manchester and London but also quiet and picturesque villages such as Bibury in the Cotswolds and Burnsall in Yorkshire. The best place to live depends entirely on you, and your individual needs, desires and values.

The Sunday Times consulted a panel of experts to rank the best places to live in the UK. When making the decision, they investigated the top factors people consider when moving to a new house; such as air quality levels, school league tables, and pricing of houses.

The overall winner was the city of Salisbury in Wiltshire. They won this position, not only due to the city’s high standard of schooling, historical attractions and interesting range of independent shops but due to its resilience in the face of the Novichok poisonings.

Although Salisbury is fantastic, history and good schools may not be your main motivator when picking a home. Also, it goes without saying that different locations in the UK have different things to offer. It is important to find a place that is compatible with your lifestyle; if you crave a close-knit community then village life may be your calling, but if you crave night life and being in the centre of the bustle – then city life may be for you. 

So, in the spirit of variety, see below for some other great places to live. These places have been crowned regional winners for the 2019 calendar year.

Best Places to Live – regional winners for 2019

6 things to consider before moving

The decisions and impending choices of moving can be overwhelming. It can be hard knowing what to consider when picking a destination to move to. Below, we have put together a list of 6 things you should consider when picking a location for your new home.

Consider not only the price of the property but also living costs that come with moving to that area, as these can vary greatly across the UK. While cities like London are expensive in terms of life and property, you will find that the prices are much lower in Wales, Ireland, and up in Scotland.

If you have a family or plan to have a family, then good schools should be pivotal in your decision of a location. This will require a bit of research on your part, as all over the country in different areas you will find exceptional schools, and not very far away, struggling schools.

Good healthcare amenities and great hospitals nearby are a major component to consider. If you become unwell or need care, you want to be well looked after. 

Depending on your qualifications and experience, you want to live somewhere that caters to your career needs. Some areas of the country are particularly strong for industry, but weaker in more progressive fields, such as IT and marketing. Others will be the complete opposite, so it’s important to make sure you’ll be able to find a new job wherever you are headed. 

You may want to be in a location which has an established community of your desire. Whether that be the local community, religion-based, or hobby-based (i.e. golf, sewing, rambling or sport), you’ll want to make sure that there will be something for you to join in on.

This is an important factor to consider when moving. You want to be in a location where you don’t feel your safety is under threat. Insurance premium price can also be heavily affected by a high rate of criminal activity in your area.