Happiest and least happy parts of the UK revealed by new official stats

The most and least happy spots in the UK have been revealed, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

People across the UK were asked ‘how did you feel yesterday’ and told to give their answer on a scale of one to ten, and the average from area to area was then calculated.

The results of the survey found that the Ribble Valley in Lancashire is the happiest place in the UK.

The rural area known for its outstanding beauty gained itself the highest happiness average level with 8.30.

Meanwhile, The Orkney Islands off the coast of Scotland and the cathedral city of Chichester in West Sussex followed close behind, both with an average happiness level of 8.29.

Also claiming a place in the top five happiest UK areas were Hambleton, Rutland with a rating of 8.19 and Fylde, Lancashire with 8.18.

It seems that we are getting happier, though. The average happiness level across the UK came in at 7.56, which is a slightly higher rating than last year’s 7.52.

The most miserable place to be was calculated to be Surrey Heath in Surrey. The South East English town scored 6.71.

Strangely, the Ribble Valley’s bordering town South Ribble is actually the second unhappiest location, with a score of 7.02.

Also making the top five is Lincoln, Lincolnshire with 7.09, Worcester, Worcestershire with 7.14 and Norwich, Norfolk with 7.15.

As well as being named the least happy place in the UK, Surrey Heath was found to be the most anxious according to The ONS's ‘Personal well-being in the UK’ report. People who lived there registered an average anxiety score of 3.92 out of ten.

Other areas in the top five for anxiety included Melton in Leicester which scored 3.79, Epsom and Ewell in Surrey which scored 3.69, and the London boroughs of Lambeth and Kensington and Chelsea which scored 3.67 and 3.63 respectively.