Ribble Valley named happiest area in the UK following new research

A recent study has revealed that the Ribble Valley is the area in the country where residents enjoy the highest levels of happiness and well-being.

The ranking of happiness was based on a number of different categories such as green spaces, weekly earnings, crime rates and unemployment rates.

Lancashire’s Ribble Valley came in first after ranking highly in all of these areas, beating out the likes of Wokingham and Mole Valley.

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The study, which was conducted by GoSmokeFree, used ONS and the Catchment Based Approach (CaBA) which provides valuable insights into the regions fostering exceptional quality of life. 

A spokesperson for GoSmokeFree said: “The study highlights the multifaceted nature of happiness and well-being and emphasises the importance of considering various factors in assessing quality of life.

“This data also wants to underline that this top 10 coincides with the areas where the population can conduct a life which is more stress-free than others, making, in turn, more likely a reduction of the risk of criminality, smoking and drug use, as well as depression and other mental health conditions."

An index was created based on the rates and percentages of the categories to create a score out of 100. 

The Lancashire borough scored an outstanding total of 78.95 out of 100 boasting the lowest crime rate of the list of 37.1 incidents per 1,000 population.

There is also an abundance of green and blue spaces in the Ribble Valley (751.4 hectares per 1,000 population), as well as one of the highest weekly earning rates in the top 10 (£825) and the lowest unemployment rate of 1.9.

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Following closely behind are Wokingham and Mole Valley in second and third places, with scores of 71.94 and 71.20, respectively.

Situated in Berkshire, Wokingham strikes a balance between economic vitality and environmental sustainability. 

Wokingham can count on favourable factors such as a low unemployment rate of 2.3% and one of the highest weekly earning averages of £785.8.

The GoSmokeFree spokesperson said: “While this is not an absolute rule, it’s important to give credit where credit is due, recognizing the significance of these places’ commitment to provide a happy environment to live in.”