Rankings
Best places to live in the UK for families
Reweighted for families: schools count triple, safety double, and nightlife counts for less.
In short
The best UK places for families are ranked here by triple-weighting school attainment and double-weighting safety, ahead of housing and healthcare access. The current top three are Ilkeston (71), Maesteg (71) and Perth (71).
- Overall score reweighted: education x3, safety x2, housing x1.5, healthcare x1.5, lifestyle x0.6.
- Ranked from 539 indexed UK areas, rebuilt daily from the latest published figures.
- Every area links to a full report with the source behind each figure.
| # | Area | Nation | Score | Cost of living | Safety | Weather | Broadband |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| =1 | Ilkeston | England | 71 | 80 | 51 | 81 | 97 |
| =1 | Maesteg | Wales | 71 | 85 | 61 | 62 | 93 |
| =1 | Perth | Scotland | 71 | 86 | 59 | 67 | 60 |
| =4 | Boston | England | 70 | 82 | 47 | 77 | 80 |
| =4 | Burton upon Trent | England | 70 | 80 | 50 | 81 | 84 |
| =4 | Chester-le-Street | England | 70 | 92 | 53 | 78 | 88 |
| =4 | Chesterfield | England | 70 | 86 | 45 | 65 | 95 |
| =4 | Melton Mowbray | England | 70 | 83 | 56 | 81 | 83 |
| =4 | Porthcawl | Wales | 70 | 85 | 61 | 62 | 93 |
| =4 | Stockton-on-Tees | England | 70 | 86 | 38 | 78 | 94 |
Category scores are 0 to 100 and a dash means that dataset has not loaded for the area yet, in which case it is excluded from the overall score rather than guessed at. Open any area for the full report and its sources.
Best places to live in the UK for families: the full ranking
Showing only areas measured on all twelve categories. 326 otherwise-eligible areas are hidden because at least one category has no data - most often crime, which Greater Manchester Police do not publish at street level. Show all areas.
Best in Scotland
Best in England
Best in Wales
Ranked from 539 indexed areas by TrackPostcode.UK scores. Coverage grows as more areas are indexed.
About this ranking
How is the family ranking weighted?
School attainment counts three times its normal share and safety twice, with housing, healthcare and environment raised, and lifestyle reduced. Everything else keeps its standard weight. Right now the highest are Ilkeston (71/100), Maesteg (71/100), Perth (71/100).
Which school measure is used?
Each nation publishes its own and they are not interchangeable: Attainment 8 by local authority in England, average highest SCQF level of school leavers by intermediate zone in Scotland, and the Capped 9 points score by local authority in Wales. Education scores compare within a nation, not across nations.
Does a high family score mean good schools on my street?
Not necessarily. Except in Scotland, attainment is published for a whole council or county, so it describes the authority rather than a catchment. Check individual schools with the relevant inspectorate before deciding.
Every ranking
The same index ordered by a different measurement each time, from the same twelve category scores and rebuilt daily. Each one states on its own page what it measures and what it does not.
What this ranking measures: Overall score reweighted: education x3, safety x2, housing x1.5, healthcare x1.5, lifestyle x0.6. Read the full methodology before quoting a figure.
Primary sources: Office for National Statistics, HM Land Registry, police.uk and Met Office HadUK-Grid 1 km climate data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.