Stockport Voted 4th Happiest UK Town

Stockport has been named one of the top 10 places to live in the UK by a new survey.

Coming in 4th position, Stockport was beaten only by Inverness (3), Taunton (2) and the luxurious Yorkshire spa town, Harrogate, which took first place.

The poll, conducted by leading property portal Rightmove, quizzed around 50,000 people on how happy they are with their homes and surroundings, asking questions about amenities, safety and neighbourliness.

Stockport, which borders on Didsbury and Burnage, is only 10 miles from Manchester City Centre, making it an ideal refuge for those who work in the city but prefer to leave the hustle and bustle for the suburbs at the end of the day. Although it is a large town within its own right, Stockport has a greater supply of family-sized housing than central Manchester (where residential accommodation is predominantly apartment based) and it also provides easy access to the Peak District, making it a popular choice with families of all ages.

And Stockport wasn’t the only North West town to make it into the top 10, with Preston coming in at number 9.

Interestingly, there has been a marked shift in opinions since the same survey was conducted last year. Then, the majority of the top 10 towns were in the South, with places like Exeter and Bath scoring well.

This year, 7 of the 10 best scorers were in the Midlands or above, suggesting that one of the factors affecting residents’ happiness is value for money when it comes to property; areas like Stockport and Preston have comparatively low asking prices for houses, in contrast with the booming bubble in London at present.

The survey is good news for the reputation of Greater Manchester and of the North West more broadly. It is notable that all ten of the places deemed most unhappy in the survey were in Greater London. As itv.com stated of the survey, perhaps it’s “not so grim up North”!

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