East Dunbartonshire voted best place to be a woman in the UK
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East Dunbartonshire is the best place to live in the UK if you are a woman, according to research for BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour.
The Scottish local authority, which borders Glasgow, came out top when a number of factors, include some gender-specific measures, were analysed.
Islington, in north London, was rated the worst place for women to live.
The National Centre for Social Research analysis factored in issues such as the gender pay gap and education.
It used data from a number of sources, including the Office for National Statistics’ 2016 Annual Population Survey and the 2011 Census.
Of all 380 local authorities in the UK, East Dunbartonshire came out top for women, rating highly on a number of factors, from happiness to access to green spaces - and top-scoring on general living and wellbeing.
The average full-time salary for women there was £15.07 per hour, 46th in the UK. It also ranked highly for education, quality of the local environment and life satisfaction.
The area, which contains many of Glasgow’s suburbs and commuter towns, ranked 192nd for housing affordability with an average property costing 7.5 times the area’s average salary.
It’s not the first time East Dunbartonshire’s desirability has been recognised.
In 2007, a Reader’s Digest poll saw it voted the best place in the UK to raise a family, citing “safe streets, strong schools and thriving towns”, backed by a strong community.
Ellie, 17, goes to Bishopbriggs Academy in East Dunbartonshire and says she feels supported by both the school and the community it is part of.
“I’ve not met one person in Bishopbriggs who said that you can’t do something, or you cannot achieve what you want to achieve. I think we all know that we do live in a really nice place and it is a great place to live.”
Classmate Stephanie, 16, said: “I’d like to live here and hopefully have a family here and just be a good role model to all the younger citizens of Bishopbriggs.”
But Nieve, 16, said it was unlikely she’d live in Bishopbriggs forever, adding: “I feel like when you’re here you are quite tied down. I don’t want to be stuck here.”
Scotland, south-east England and the West Midlands dominate the top 10 list for best overall place for women to live.
West Oxfordshire and West Berkshire both rank highly in the South East, and Stafford and Shropshire are also placed in the top 10.
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