Prøve GULL - Gratis

'Knockout' Saffron Walden named best place to live

The Independent

|

March 22, 2025

The Essex market town of Saffron Walden has been named as the best place to live in the UK in The Sunday Times’ annual Best Places to Live guide.

- VICKY SHAW

'Knockout' Saffron Walden named best place to live

Judges praised the town's knockout" good looks and compared its market to those found in the south of France.

The guide, which will be published on Sunday, assessed 72 locations across the UK, considering factors ranging from schools and transport to broadband speeds, culture, green spaces, and the health of the high street.

Saffron Walden's appeal, according to the judges, lies in its blend of convenient commuter access to both London and Cambridge, high-performing state schools, and a thriving cultural scene.

The town also boasts a burgeoning "foodie scene" and a revitalised high street, successfully combining chain stores with independent businesses.

The guide notes that locals compare Saffron Walden's Saturday market to those found in the south of France.

imageHelen Davies, editor of

FLERE HISTORIER FRA The Independent

The Independent

The Independent

Social media is too dark to put in the hands of children

I was raised by the internet.

time to read

3 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Pelicot: Everyone needs to see the faces of the rapists

Gisèle Pelicot waived her anonymity to shame her offenders in France's most shocking mass rape case and describes her ordeal in her memoir 'A Hymn to Life', reports Tara Cobham

time to read

5 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Somerset needs migrants, insists Danish politician

The UK should make places like Somerset take their fair share of migrants, a Danish minister who oversaw radical immigration reforms has suggested.

time to read

2 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

UK foreign aid cuts will be deeper than those of Trump

Britain is on course to slash its overseas aid budget further and faster than the Trump administration in the US, according to new analysis.

time to read

2 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

First court appearance for Bondi Beach attack suspect

A man accused of carrying out Australia's deadliest mass shooting in three decades at Bondi Beach last year has appeared in court for the first time.

time to read

2 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

'Grating' cabinet secretary frontrunner backed by PM

Sir Keir Starmer has defended Dame Antonia Romeo as an “outstanding leader” amid growing expectations she will be picked to succeed Sir Chris Wormald as cabinet secretary.

time to read

2 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Duvall's machismo held hidden depths of talent

The actor was a master at portraying men whose authority masked layers of doubt and vulnerability.

time to read

4 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Wash your hair at lunar new year? Are you mad, woman?

While embracing her inner Chinese auntie like never before, Karen Gray marks our card on the dos and don'ts to ensure good fortune as the Year of the Fire Horse thunders in today

time to read

6 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Van driver left with sinking feeling after satnav mix-up

A delivery van got trapped on Essex mudflats at an area locals refer to as the “deadliest footpath in Britain”.

time to read

2 mins

February 17, 2026

The Independent

Local elections U-turn will not undo another own goal

A good day for democracy, then. The government's decision to go ahead after all with elections in some 30 local authorities is the right one, even if it does seem motivated by an imminent ruling that their previous postponement was actually illegal.

time to read

3 mins

February 17, 2026

Listen

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size