Salisbury in Wiltshire has been crowned the best place to live in the UK, according to the annual 2019 Sunday Times guide.
While the 2019 Halifax Quality of Life Survey unveiled Orkney as the best new place to call home based on employment, crime rate, affordability, population density and wellbeing, the 2019 Sunday Times report has put a real focus on community spirit along with convenience and culture.
So why did Salisbury win? 'This cathedral city is divinely attractive, has a distinguished history and offers top-class schooling, but this year we’re honouring its resurgent community spirit — and its glorious surrounds,' reads the report.
Salisbury has topped the list for showing 'real collective spirit' in the wake of the Novichok poisoning attack which thrust the city into the global spotlight last year. Former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were poisoned with the nerve agent last March. They survived the ordeal but it later claimed the life of Dawn Sturgess who had also been exposed to the chemical agent.
Helen Davies, Sunday Times home editor, said: 'Salisbury has shown real collective spirit in dealing with a chemical attack that saw the cathedral city become the centre of world headlines for all the wrong reasons.
'There are still parts of the city where the clean-up continues, but to bounce back and be even stronger is a sure sign of a very special community, which is one of the reasons we have chosen Salisbury as the best place to live in Britain in 2019.
'It remains a divinely attractive and welcoming place. It's handy for coast, countryside and London, has some of the best schools in the southwest, a great market and it's very strong culturally, too.'
While Salisbury is the overall winner, Sunday Times also produced a regional breakdown of the best places to live. These are the winners:
The East: Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk
• A friendly, lively place that’s easy on the eye and wears its colourful history on its billowing sleeve.
London: Isle of Dogs
• In the loop and on the up, this Docklands district offers Thames-side living at reasonable prices (at least for zone 2).
Midlands: Edale, Derbyshire
• This Peak District village isn’t just the start of the Pennine Way: it’s a creative community with a rare sense of humour.
North and Northeast: York, North Yorkshire
• A Gigabit City with beauty and brains, this mini metropolis has schools and connections to match its rich history.
Northern Ireland: Holywood, Co Down
• Join the new wave of buyers heading for this beachside bolthole, which really does offer the best of both worlds.
Northwest: Kirkby Lonsdale, Cumbria
• An unbeatable Lake District location, bags of community spirit and one of the cleanest high streets in the country.
Scotland: Dundee
• The new V&A has set the seal on the city’s status as Scotland’s new (and affordable) creative heartland.
Southeast: Petworth, West Sussex
• This upwardly mobile South Downs hotspot has thrown off its dusty, antiquey reputation in style.
Southwest: Topsham, Devon
• Independently minded (and independently wealthy), this port town is an ideal berth. Just don’t call it a suburb of Exeter.
Wales: Crickhowell, Powys
• Top of our shopping list in Wales, the market town has the best high street in the UK thanks to its enterprising locals.
'Finding our very own best place to live now feels more important than ever, for our wellbeing and wealth, happiness and health. Wherever you are on the property ladder, The Sunday Times has championed 101 locations across the UK, and crowned one lucky winner, that we think is a great place to make a home,' said Helen Davies.
Previous winners who have topped The Sunday Times Best Places to Live report include York in 2018, Bristol in 2017 and Hampshire in 2016.
Olivia Heath is the Daily Editor at House Beautiful. Heading up all things digital, Olivia loves nothing more than uncovering tomorrow's biggest design trends and revealing the best tips and tricks to help you decorate your home like an interior designer. Week by week Olivia shares the most stylish high street buys to help you get the look for less (while compiling her very own, and rather lengthy, homeware lust list) and showcases the best makeovers (who doesn't love a before & after?), as well as the hottest and most unique properties on the market.
Prior to making the switch to interiors on House Beautiful, Olivia worked at Reveal magazine, where she reported on celebrity and entertainment news by day, and attended showbiz parties and red carpet events by night! Olivia has an MA in Journalism with an NCTJ qualification, as well as a BA in Journalism and Media & Cultural Studies.
