Finding the best places to live in somewhere as diverse as the United Kingdom can be a challenge, but to help you, we have created uSwitch's Best Places to Live in The UK Quality of Life Index.
This is a study that has analysed a wide range of official statistics relating to quality of life to create a table listing the UK's 138 statistical regions from best to worst.
As well as using this 2015 table to see where the best places for quality of life are based on recent data, it is also possible to compare the table to our study from 2013, and identify up and coming areas that have crept up the table, and places that can be shown to have been in decline for quality of life over the past two years.
The South Ayrshire statistical region is one that has improved slightly on our index since 2013, going up from 107th out of 138 to 81st – though this movement of 26 places was not enough to bring it out of the bottom half of the table of the best and worst places to live in the UK.
Here are some of South Ayrshire's statistics:
Employment
South Ayrshire has fairly average employment rates, with 72% of its inhabitants in work at the time of the uSwitch study. It also appears that people here have a good work life balance, with only 22% of people needing to work over 45 hours a week on a regular basis.
Income
Incomes in South Ayrshire are on the high side for the UK overall, with the gross weekly income of South Ayrshire individuals at £534.60 in 2015. Disposable income, however, is only average, with the average South Ayrshire household having about £17,569 to spend.
House Prices
House prices are low, though not among the very lowest in the UK. The average house in the South Ayrshire statistical region in 2015 sold for £125,000. Rental prices are fairly low for the UK, at £63 per week per person on average.
Life Expectancy
Life expectancy is fairly low here, as has been shown to be the trend in Scotland, with men expected to live to 78 and women to 81.
Life expectancy is an influential factor that insurance companies use to determine life insurance premiums. You can check our advice guide on how to get a cheaper life insurance policy.
Living Costs
The cost of a weekly food shop is average in South Ayrshire, at £55 per week for the average household in 2015. Petrol prices are average as well, at 117p, however car insurance is fairly cheap compared to other places in the UK at £343.20 – this seems to be a trend in Scotland.
Other Important Factors
South Ayrshire is not the ideal place for people who value communication technology as a major part of their quality of life, with only 82% mobile phone signal availability and slow broadband speeds of, on average, 12.9Mbps.
Use our broadband postcode checker to see which deals and what speeds are on offer in your area.
With so much diversity in the UK even the places in the bottom half of our table have some positives, like South Ayrshire's low house prices and good incomes.
More to life than rankings
At uSwitch, we know that there is more to life than rankings, stats and figures, and our Qualify of Life Index merely highlights the vast differences in the experiences of people across the UK.
Whether you're living in the best city or the worst, millions of households in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland face financial struggles including rising energy bills and credit card debt. That's why it's more important than ever for households to assess their budgets, and uSwitch.com offers a great way to start.
Below you can find ways to save on everything from car insurance to mobile bills.
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Place to Live 2015 — Where did your region rank?
About the research
The uSwitch.com study assessed 138 local areas (NUTS3 regions) for 26 factors such as salaries, disposable household income, and the cost of essential goods including food bills, fuel costs and energy bills. The study also factored in lifestyle issues like hours of sunshine, working hours and life expectancy to ensure a full picture of the quality of life in each NUTS3 region.
For more about the study's methodology, read the full press release .