These Are The Happiest Places To Live In The UK

The Office for National Statistics updated its annual survey this year, and instead of just asking UK residents about their wellbeing, they decided to check if they were happy, too. Participants were quizzed on how satisfied they are with their lives, how happy and anxious they felt yesterday, and whether they feel the things they do in their life are worthwhile. As an answer, people had to give a score out of ten.

On the happiness scoreboard, Rushmoor came out on top as the happiest place to live in Britain, with residents scoring the sleepy Hampshire town 8.34 out of 10. Meanwhile, Fenland in Cambridgeshire came out as one of the most miserable towns, ranking just 6.7 out of 10.

The 95,800 residents of Rushmoor were also the second-least anxious in the UK after Newry, Mourne and Down in Northern Ireland, according to ONS. Meanwhile over in London, people had a lower sense of feeling that the things they do in life are worthwhile. It also found women reported a higher level of anxiety than men.

“An important part of our work is looking beyond the economic health of the country to how its people are faring and inequalities in society,” Silvia Manclossi, Head of Quality of Life Team at the Office for National Statistics said of the survey. "Today, for the first time, we have identified how factors such as health, access to services, and crime levels may affect how people rate their well-being in different parts of the UK. This can help local authorities and other organisations to better understand where services could be targeted to help improve the well-being of people in their area.”
But life in Rushmoor isn’t all peachy. According to the Guardian, Aldershot – which is part of Rushmoor and has a strong military presence – like plenty of small UK towns, has been hit hard by the closure of many of its shops, due to the reducing number of troops in the town. Its Marks & Spencer shut down in 2015, while Poundworld closed this summer after the retailer went bust.

But despite the lack of opportunities for a little retail therapy, plenty of residents seemed pretty content to be living in the area. Harka Gurung, a former Gurkha who settled in Aldershot after leaving the military, said: “It’s a very nice life here in Aldershot. Most of the Gurkhas who leave the army stay here and many other Nepalese come here because of the community.” A Rushmoor resident added he was “delighted and not totally surprised” to see his town at the top, and is “very happy to live in Rushmoor”.