The best place to be a woman in UK revealed - and it's in Scotland

The best place for a woman to live in Great Britain is in Scotland, according to analysis carried out for BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour.

The affluent Glasgow suburb of Bearsden falls within the East Dunbartonshire council area. Picture: M J Richardson/ Creative Commons

East Dunbartonshire and East Renfrewshire came first and second in an analysis of all 380 British local authorities. The London borough of Islington was crowned the worst, followed by the seaside town of Blackpool and Corby in Northamptonshire.

The analysis, conducted by National Centre for Social Research, was used to rank all British local authorities. It focused on eight areas: income, housing affordability, personal well-being, safety, education, life expectancy, environment and culture.

Karen Dalziel, editor of Woman’s Hour, said: “The analysis has given us a powerful tool to understand the factors affecting the quality of a woman’s life. But how important are low house prices, good schools and availability of jobs? Can access to green fields or cinemas compensate for high crime rates? We’ll now investigate to what extent our indicators have shaped women’s choices about where they live.”

The analysis will featured on today’s ‘Woman’s Hour’ on Radio 4.

Top 10 local authorities for women in Great Britain

1. East Dunbartonshire, Scotland

2. East Renfrewshire, Scotland

3. West Oxfordshire, South East

4. West Berkshire, South East

5. South Oxfordshire, South East

6. Winchester, South East

7. Mid Sussex, South East

8. Wycombe, South East

9. Stafford, West Midlands

10. Shropshire, West Midlands