The parts of the South West named among best places to live in the UK by the Sunday Times

A hot air balloon drifts through Somerset countryside Credit: PA

A part of Wiltshire has been named the best place in the South West to live by the Sunday Times.

The Chalke Valley - which is made up of a series of villages - claimed the top spot. It was judged on a wide range of factors including schools, culture, transport and broadband.

Other places in the West Country to make the list included – Bridport and Sherborne in Dorset, Bristol, Budleigh Salterton in Devon, Charlton Kings and Stroud in Gloucestershire, Ashburton in Dartmoor and Wellow in Somerset.

Green spaces and the health of the high street and shops were also considered by the Sunday Times’s expert judges.

The comprehensive guide was released online on Friday and an edited version will be available in the paper on Sunday.

Helen Davies, the Times and Sunday Times property editor, said: “The Sunday Times Best Places to Live list is necessarily subjective.

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“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?”

She added: “We hope there is something to suit everyone.”

Chalke Valley is well known for the Chalke Valley History Festival, which will return in June Credit: PA

The Sunday Times Best Places to Live 2022 regional winners are:

  • East of England, Norwich, Norfolk

  • London, Crystal Palace

  • Midlands, Uppingham, Rutland

  • Northern Ireland, Ballycastle, County Antrim

  • North and North East, Slaithwaite, West Yorkshire

  • North West, Trawden, Lancashire

  • Scotland, Isle of Bute, Argyll

  • South East, Sevenoaks, Kent

  • South West, The Chalke Valley, Wiltshire

  • Wales, Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire