Coming in as the 5th best place to live in the UK, up a massive 55 places since the study was last performed in 2013, South Lanarkshire appears to have a lot going for it in terms of quality of life, and is an area that is definitely on the up.
We used a wide range of factors to determine the quality of life in the 138 areas we analysed, including things like rent and house prices, household income, life expectancy, and even things related to the everyday convenience of living in a region, like the average broadband internet speed and level of mobile phone network coverage.
Here are some of the statistics that show why South Lanarkshire is a good place to move to in the UK:
Employment
The employment situation in South Lanarkshire is extremely good compared with national averages, with 73% of people in employment.
48% of the residents of South Lanarkshire work normal full time hours of between 35 and 45 hours per week, with only a very low 22% working more hours than is considered good for a healthy work-life balance.
Income
Gross weekly income in South Lanarkshire is good, at £531.90 – above 2nd place Solihull and 4th place Northumberland. Disposable income for the average household is a very respectable £16,183 per year.
House Prices
House prices are very low on average in South Lanarkshire, at just £107k. This is by far the lowest in the top five best places to live in the UK according to our study. .
Rent prices are also extremely low, at £57.19 per week on average.
Life Expectancy
Life expectancy in South Lanarkshire is on the low end of our top 10 places to live at 77 for men and 81 for women, however there isn't as much of a variance in the life expectancies around the UK as there is in other factors included in our study – possibly because healthcare is available nationwide.
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 weekly household food bill in South Lanarkshire is on average £54.80 – the same as it is in Edinburgh, our number one place to live in the UK in 2015.
Home insurance and car insurance are also the same as in Edinburgh at £239.20 and £343.20 respectively – below the UK average. Fuel costs are around £1209.26 – also equivalent to our number one city.
If you want to check you’re on the cheapest energy deal head over to our energy comparison page.
Other Important Factors
South Lanarkshire is a good place to live if you place modern services as an important factor – the people here enjoy 93% mobile phone coverage, and a decent average broadband speed on 24.4Mbps.
Use our broadband postcode checker to see which deals and what speeds are on offer in your area.
With both North and South Lanarkshire in the top 10, it is clear that this is an area of the UK with a lot to offer!
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 .