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Locals have hit out after the upmarket seaside town they call home was named the third worst place to live in Britain in a new study.
Residents expressed their shock while talking to Express.co.uk after Hove in East Sussex, known for its swathes of pebble beach and a broad promenade lined with colourful beach huts, was named the third worst place to live in the UK.
The research, conducted by house buying experts housebuyers4u, created five categories based on data from the Home Office and Tripadvisor.
These include a culture score (based on shopping, nightlife, and more), a green score (based on the count and rating of nature and parks), a housing score (based on housing affordability), a utility score (based on energy and gas), and a violent crime score (based on the annual increase or decrease of reported incidents).
But locals couldn’t believe it and argued this was absolutely not the case.
Oliver Hutton, 64, told Express.co.uk: “I’ve lived in Hove for nearly nine years now. You can be what you want here. No one’s going to hassle you for it.
“Before I moved here, I lived in St Leonard’s, Bristol, London, Oxford, I briefly lived in York and I’ve also lived in Cambridge. Now, those are pretty nice places to live but Hove, however, is way better than any of those places.
“It’s the most friendly place I’ve ever lived. It is also the most accepting place I’ve lived in terms of age or your gender orientation.
“Everyone can wear what they want. It’s got the best restaurants out of any city that I’ve lived in. It’s got some nice culture, it’s got wide streets and trees. Everything is within reach.”
Other residents largely agreed with Oliver and were shocked to find that Hove had been listed as the third worst place to live.
He continued: “It’s linked with Brighton, obviously, but it’s not part of Brighton. It feels like its own thing. Nevertheless, it’s seamless when you go through to Brighton.
“You can walk everywhere from here and the sense of community is good between residents. It’s close to the sea – very close to the sea and it’s also close to the downs.
“Access east and west is all very good. It’s not traffic laden, even in rush hour, it’s quite light. The main road never gets full of traffic, which is great.”
Another resident, Julia Putnina, 37, has also lived in many different parts of the UK, she has now been living in Hove for five years.
She said: “I definitely disagree with it being the third. There’s a good community in Hove – you get to recognise people, there are people who go to the beach or swimming, there’s a lot of sea swimming groups and everyone is very friendly. Neighbours usually are good as well.
“I’d say it’s my favourite place to live, out of everywhere I’ve lived. The issue that’s missing a little bit for me, which for example they did have in Manchester, is a bit more nightlife – sometimes I do want to go to a nightclub or something.
“It’s calmer in Hove than Brighton. I guess there’s also quite a lot of families here, so that’s quite nice. For example, I do have a bar outside of my living area, and they’re really respectful with people who live around them.
“Another good thing is the safety here, I’ve never had to look around when I walk in the evenings or nights or I feel safe.”
The research concluded that Britain’s most desirable place to live is York, followed by Nottingham, Blackpool, Edinburgh and Newcastle upon Tyne.
It said the least desirable place to live is Slough, followed by Luton, Hove, Basildon and Gillingham.
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