Three areas in Greater Manchester have been listed as some of the best places to live in the UK by The Sunday Times.
The publication’s prestigious Best Places to Live assesses a number of factors, from schools to culture to green space to the health of the local high street.
Now in its 11th year, the list has once again championed several towns and neighbourhoods around Greater Manchester.
But in 2023, it’s Ancoats, Sale, and Stockport that have shone.
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The Times wrote: “Much has already been written about Ancoats, but its historic mills, warehouses and new-build blocks set the benchmark for hip urban living.”
Stockport. Credit: Stockport Market Hall
Of Sale, it said: “A welcoming and well-connected Greater Manchester location Sale is emerging from the shadow of Altrincham thanks to its excellent reputation for state schools, Metrolink tram connections, and the creation of a new town-centre hub in Stanley Square with cafes, restaurants and independent shops.”
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And The Times wrote that Stockport had turned from a ‘bog-standard former mill town’ into a ‘funky, family-friendly alternative to Manchester’s Northern Quarter’.
The list said: “As well as brilliant independent shops, cafes and bars, it has good parks, decent schools, fast train links to Manchester and suburbs with a house for every style and budget.”
Elsewhere in the north west, areas like Penrith in Cumbria, Rawtenstall in Lancashire, and Tarporley in Cheshire made it onto the list.
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The regional winner crown went to Waterloo and Toxteth in Liverpool, picking out the two suburbs for their independent shops, community vibes, and cultural scenes.
Greater Manchester public urged to help get people ‘off the streets and on their feet’ before Christmas
Emily Sergeant
Locals are being urged to help get hundreds of people “off the streets and back on their feet” this festive season.
As the temperatures told colder by the day, and Christmas creeps closer and closer, Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity is bringing back ‘1000 Beds for Christmas’, and the massively-important initiative is aiming to provide 1,000 nights of accommodation to people at risk of homelessness before the big day arrives.
Forming part of the ongoing ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme, this festive fundraising mission is designed to provide food, shelter, warmth, and dedicated vital wrap-around support for those who need it most.
The charity says it wants to build on the “incredible success of 2023”, which raised more than £55,000 and provided 1,800 nights of accommodation.
Stockport-based property finance specialists, Together – which has supported the campaign for the last two years – has, once again, generously pledged to match every public donation for the first £20,000 raised.
Unfamiliar with the ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme? Since 2017, when rough sleeping peaked, the initiative has helped ensure a significantly-higher rate of reduction in the numbers of people facing a night on streets in Greater Manchester than seen nationally.
The landmark scheme has given people the chance to rebuild their lives, while also giving them access to key services and opportunities that allows them to stay off the streets for good.
Despite the scheme’s recent success, organisations across Greater Manchester are under “a huge amount of pressure” to meet the demand for their services this winter, and given the current economic outlook, household budgets will continue to be squeezed – leaving people on the sharp end of inequality and poverty.
Daisy Jackson -
24th March 2023 
