Sunday Times names its best places to live in the Midlands, including Lincolnshire Cliff Villages

The Lincolnshire Cliff Villages have been named among the best places to live by the Sunday Times.

The villages, which include Navenby,Wellingore, Welbourn, Leadenham, Fulbeck and Caythorpe, were among the top seven areas listed in the Midlands by the national newspaper.

The judges said of the Cliff Villages, where the average house price is £354,000: "The Lincoln Cliff may be modest in height, but the view from the summit is a panoramic rebuttal to anyone who claims that Lincolnshire is flat and boring.

"The lovely stone cottages, country pubs and grand old churches in villages such as Wellingore, Welbourn and Coleby offer Cotswold-style living without the price tag or the pretension, while Navenby’s thriving high street is the place to pick up excellent local produce."

Uppingham, Rutland, was named best place to live in the Midlands in the list, which can be found at https://www.thetimes.co.uk/best-places-to-live

The Sunday Times’s expert judges behind the guide assess a wide range of factors, from schools, transport and broadband to culture, green spaces and the health of the high street.

They look to celebrate improving towns, villages or city centres; attractive, well-designed homes and locations bursting with community spirit ­— which the pandemic has shown to be the most vital quality of all.

An average house price for each location has been supplied by Halifax, the sponsor of the guide, and up-to-date information on broadband speeds has been provided by Thinkbroadband.com

Also on the Midlands list were Birmingham ­— especially the Jewellery Quarter and Kings Heath ­— Ellesmere, Shropshire; Hathersage, Derbyshire; Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire; and Shipston-on-Stour, Warwickshire.

Helen Davies, The Times and Sunday Times property editor said: “The Sunday Times Best Places to Live list is necessarily subjective. Leave it just to statistics and you will never capture the spirit of a place. For that, you need to visit to take into account that ‘you have to be here’ feeling. Is the pub dog-friendly, for example? Can you live car-free? What are the schools and houses like? Is it multicultural and multigenerational, and can it offer a good way of life to lots of different sorts of people?

“Ten years ago, when we launched the inaugural list, London’s gravitational pull was strong, the WFH revolution had not yet reached our doorstep and high streets were stacked with chains. How times have changed — and how welcome that change is."

Ilkley in West Yorkshire was named as the overall best place to live in the UK.