Sunday Times best places to live: Tisbury among South West

Tisbury, around 13 miles from Salisbury, took a place in the list, which consists of numerous beauty spots in Cornwall and Dorset.

Described as "Well-heeled and well connected, Tisbury and its neighbouring villages offer country living at its most aspirational.

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"A station and upmarket high street cover the practicalities and there are festivals, a choice of great places to eat and world-class exhibitions at the lovely Messums West arts centre"

Tisbury has been named among the Sunday Times best places to live (Image: Spencer Mulholland)

First place was handed to Sherborne, in Dorset.

The Sunday Times judges said: “A busy high street and high-class education helped to make this community-centred, cultured town our best address in the southwest.

"Sherborne is handsome and historic, but it’s the friendly, energetic population that really makes it stand out. There are more than 200 community groups covering every conceivable interest, while the opening of Sherborne House as a high-end arts and community centre later this spring will add extra cachet to a town that already has a perceptible spring in its step."

The full list of South West locations featured in the comprehensive guide, which other than Sherborne, is not ranked but in alphabetical order, reads:

• Sherborne, Dorset 
• Cirencester, Gloucestershire 
• Clevedon, Somerset 
• Dartmouth, Devon 
• Exmouth, Devon 
• Falmouth, Cornwall 
• Isle of Purbeck, Dorset 
• Tisbury, Wiltshire 

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For the first time in the guide’s 12-year history, there is no place for Bristol. The 2017 winner misses out this time because of its "ruthless property market and gruelling public transport system."

Published by The Sunday Times, the guide includes 72 locations across the UK and is released on Friday, March 15. An abridged version will be published as a magazine supplement on Sunday.

Helen Davies, editorial projects director and best places to live editor, said: "This guide is a celebration of towns, cities and villages that are each a fantastic place to live in 2024, from Dunkeld to Knutsford, Falmouth to Leeds. Wherever you are on the property ladder, there will be somewhere to suit you.

"These are all places where you can feel grounded as well as upwardly mobile: they have a mature sense of community, lively, supportive high streets and an eye to the future, whether that is eco-friendly measures, transport and regeneration, or imaginative inclusion of new housing."

The Sunday Times’s expert judges have visited all the locations and assessed factors from schools to transport, broadband speeds to culture, as well as access to green spaces and the health of the high street.

Helen added: "What makes our guide unique is that we actually visit all the places we choose and talk to locals to find out what life is really like there.

"That means we can see what people really love about the places they live. That might be fast commutes and high-achieving schools but also clean water to swim in, lively town centres with useful shops, the possibility of earning a living and being part of a friendly community.

"We do consider affordability, though high house prices are no barrier to inclusion- as long as they provide value for money. Different people may be looking for different things, but what all our best places have in common is that people love living in them and are proud to call them home."