A controversial new 2022 ranking of the top 50 worst places to live in England is pretty grim reading for three Greater Manchester towns.
It’s not exactly a title to flaunt with pride, but after a record-breaking 110,172 residents voted for their own towns and communities in the 2022 survey by online platform iLiveHere UK – which is conducted annually, with insights offered on what it’s like to live there – Bolton, Rochdale, and Oldham have all earned themselves places in the top 20 list.
Rochdale takes the number 16 spot on the list, and is rather unfortunately summed up by residents as “a complete abomination occupying the map of greater Manchester”, while “drugs, grooming and early death” is apparently what you can expect if you live in Oldham, according to its residents, as the town comes in at number 13th on the list.
Bolton claims the highest spot in the annual rankings, climbing 22 places to number 6.
The town is summarised by iLiveHere UK on the 2022 round-up as “the Mancunian dingleberry known as Bolton”, and was apparently described by one of the poll’s contributors this year as “the worst possible assault on the eye and mind possible in Britain”.
ADVERTISEMENT
Another contributor wrote: “Yes there are much worse places in Britain… but the seemingly endless rain exacerbates greatly the feeling of sadness, generalised grubbiness and pointlessness of this place.”
We told you it was grim reading.
ADVERTISEMENT
Bolton is the highest-ranking Greater Manchester place on the 2022 rankings / Credit: Geograph (Bob Embleton)
The top 50 list is unfortunately filled with what seems like all things Northern, with other North West towns and cities claiming places in the rankings including Liverpool, Blackpool, Blackburn, Burnley, and Accrington.
On a lighter note though, a town that has previously enjoyed “three glorious years of taking the crown” has been knocked off the top spot, with Peterborough being knocked down to 5th on the list and being replaced by the Buckinghamshire town of Aylesbury at number 1.
Aylesbury scored an impressive 25% more votes than its nearest competitor, Huddersfield, with locals saying the town’s traffic jams were part of the “magnificent beauty” of the area, and “all part of the tour.”
They said: “As you enter into Aylesbury, you find yourself in a traffic jam.
“Don’t worry, it’s all part of the tour. Being stuck in the traffic allows you to observe the magnificent beauty of all the ‘trashy citizens’ that live there.”
Top 10 Worst Places to Live in England 2022
Aylesbury
Huddersfield
Luton
Liverpool
Peterborough
Bolton
Corby
Jaywick
Slough
Bradford
You can read the 2022 list of Top 50 Worst Places to Live in England 2022here.
Featured Image – Geograph (John S Turner)
Trending
The Boots recycling scheme where you can get £5 off every shop
Thomas Melia
UK high street retailer and healthcare shop Boots has launched an innovative recycling scheme that entitles customers to £5 off their future shopping trips.
If you’re still struggling to come up with a New Year’s resolution, why not try a spot of recycling and earn some money off your next cosmetics shop while you’re at it?
Started in 2020, the Boots Recycling Scheme allows Advantage Card holders the opportunity to get money while also being more conscious about how we recycle our used health and beauty products.
Their third-party app, Recycle at Boots, uses a ‘Scan2Recycle‘ system where users can upload items from various beauty brands by taking a picture of the empty packaging before identifying its form.
This scheme takes items that can’t usually be recycled at home, such as lotion pumps, toothpaste tubes, lipstick, mascaras, travel minis, make-up palettes and more.
Once you have five items approved, head over to your nearest participating Boots store, drop off your empties and scan the QR code on the deposit box.
After you’ve followed all these steps, a voucher will appear entitling you to 500 Advantage Points when you spend £10 in-store at your nearest location, and not only do you have £5 worth of points with your name on it, you’re also an eco-warrior.
There’s even a dedicated section of the app to recycling empty medicine and vitamin blister packs, which gives customers 100 Advantage Points when they spend £5 in-store.
Brilliant.
Credit: Publicity pictures (supplied)
Items dropped into these deposit boxes are taken to MyGroup, a recycling and waste management service which works around the clock to help divert waste from landfill.
These empties will be washed and traditionally recycled into a material called MyBoard, a construction board material most similar to plywood, with lots of different uses.
Nearest Boots locations in Manchester running the Recycle at Boots scheme:
Manchester Market Street – 32 Market Street, M1 1PL
Salford Regent Park – Regents Park, M5 3TP
Manchester Didsbury – 736-740 Wilmslow Road, M20 2DW
The Trafford Centre – 10 Peel Avenue, M17 8BD
Trafford Retail Park – Neary Way, M41 7FN
If you’re up for getting money off your next Boots splurge while also helping recycle cosmetics containers and more, you can download the Recycle at Boots app and find your nearest HERE.
Tesco reveals what the UK’s most popular meal deal was in 2025
Emily Sergeant
Tesco has revealed what the UK’s most popular meal deal combination was in 2025, and some newbies have taken the top spots.
We all know meal deals are a classic lunch option for hungry office workers and for those looking for something quick to grab on the go, and it’s fair to say Tesco’s is one of the most popular on the market – but which combination was the most popular over the past 12 months? Which meal deal was the most commonly-picked from supermarket shelves in 2025?
Well, after last year saw a change in both the main and snack categories, this time around they have stayed the same and it’s actually the drink option where we see a change.
For the second year running, the Tesco Chicken Club Sandwich was the most popular choice of main, while the Tesco Egg Protein Pot took the top snack title.
Tesco has revealed what the UK’s most popular meal deal was in 2025 / Credit: The Manc Group
It’s time, however, to wave goodbye to the Coca-Cola (500ml) bottle, which has taken the title of the nation’s favourite meal deal drink for the past three years now, and say hello to the nation’s new favourite drink… a can of Red Bull.
When it comes to the North West’s favourite combo, the snack and drink choices remain the same to the rest of the UK’s, but the main is slightly different, as we favour a Tesco Just Ham Sandwich instead.
As always, the meal deal statistics for 2025 were revealed as part of Tesco’s annual ‘Clubcard Unpacked’ series, which is basically like ‘Spotify Wrapped’ but for Clubcard customers, giving loyalty card members a unique insight into what they shopped for and how much they saved over the last year.
The series also gives Clubcard holders the chance to find out what their personal favourite meal deal combination was in 2025, and see how that compares to the rest of the nation.
You’ll just need to open your Tesco Clubcard app on your mobile to find out, or you can head to the Tesco website here and login to your account.
Results are available now for a limited time only.
As well as getting to find out their own most-bought meal deal items, this year’s video also shows Clubcard members further insights into how they shopped at Tesco last year – from their most frequently-purchased products, to how many points they saved and spent.
Emily Sergeant -
4th January 2022 
