Overview
- The latest Halifax children's quality of life survey ranks Orkney first, Shetland second and the Western Isles third, with Hambleton in North Yorkshire in fourth.
- The top ten continues with South Oxfordshire, Ribble Valley, West Somerset, Mole Valley, the Chilterns and West Oxfordshire.
- Halifax bases its assessment on indicators including employment, house size, broadband, traffic levels and adult-reported wellbeing, plus education measures such as class sizes and per-pupil spending.
- Hambleton's fourth-place finish marks a sharp rise from 28th in 2017, reflecting improvements highlighted in the survey reporting.
- Coverage of the findings notes Shetland's employment rate as the highest in Great Britain and cites a previous survey that recorded the Western Isles with the highest personal wellbeing.