England City Happiness Index
Ranking England's cities by the volume and positivity of their good news
Top 3 Happiest Cities
Full Rankings
| Rank | City | Score | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | London | 58 | ↓ Falling |
| 2 | Birmingham | 54 | ↓ Falling |
| 3 | Manchester | 54 | ↓ Falling |
| 4 | Newcastle | 54 | ↓ Falling |
| 5 | Southampton | 54 | ↓ Falling |
| 6 | Brighton | 54 | ↓ Falling |
| 7 | Portsmouth | 54 | ↓ Falling |
| 8 | Oxford | 54 | ↓ Falling |
| 9 | Cambridge | 54 | ↓ Falling |
| 10 | Nottingham | 53 | ↓ Falling |
| 11 | Leicester | 53 | ↓ Falling |
| 12 | Sheffield | 52 | ↓ Falling |
| 13 | Bradford | 51 | ↓ Falling |
| 14 | Bristol | 50 | ↓ Falling |
| 15 | Liverpool | 48 | ↓ Falling |
| 16 | Leeds | 47 | ↓ Falling |
| 17 | Carlisle | 15 | → Stable |
| 18 | Blackpool | 15 | → Stable |
| 19 | Darlington | 15 | → Stable |
| 20 | Gateshead | 15 | → Stable |
| 21 | Hartlepool | 15 | → Stable |
| 22 | Stockton-on-Tees | 15 | → Stable |
| 23 | Whitley Bay | 15 | → Stable |
| 24 | Birkenhead | 15 | → Stable |
| 25 | Blackburn | 15 | → Stable |
| 26 | Bolton | 15 | → Stable |
| 27 | Burnley | 15 | → Stable |
| 28 | Crewe | 15 | → Stable |
| 29 | Ellesmere Port | 15 | → Stable |
| 30 | Macclesfield | 15 | → Stable |
| 31 | Oldham | 15 | → Stable |
| 32 | Preston | 15 | → Stable |
| 33 | Rochdale | 15 | → Stable |
| 34 | Salford | 15 | → Stable |
| 35 | St Helens | 15 | → Stable |
| 36 | Stockport | 15 | → Stable |
| 37 | Warrington | 15 | → Stable |
| 38 | Wigan | 15 | → Stable |
| 39 | Barnsley | 15 | → Stable |
| 40 | Cleethorpes | 15 | → Stable |
| 41 | Dewsbury | 15 | → Stable |
| 42 | Doncaster | 15 | → Stable |
| 43 | Halifax | 15 | → Stable |
| 44 | Harrogate | 15 | → Stable |
| 45 | Huddersfield | 15 | → Stable |
| 46 | Hull | 15 | → Stable |
| 47 | Middlesbrough | 15 | → Stable |
| 48 | Rotherham | 15 | → Stable |
| 49 | Scarborough | 15 | → Stable |
| 50 | Chesterfield | 15 | → Stable |
| 51 | Grimsby | 15 | → Stable |
| 52 | Kettering | 15 | → Stable |
| 53 | Loughborough | 15 | → Stable |
| 54 | Mansfield | 15 | → Stable |
| 55 | Newark-on-Trent | 15 | → Stable |
| 56 | Skegness | 15 | → Stable |
| 57 | Wellingborough | 15 | → Stable |
| 58 | Worksop | 15 | → Stable |
| 59 | Burton-on-Trent | 15 | → Stable |
| 60 | Cannock | 15 | → Stable |
| 61 | Dudley | 15 | → Stable |
| 62 | Lichfield | 15 | → Stable |
| 63 | Nuneaton | 15 | → Stable |
| 64 | Redditch | 15 | → Stable |
| 65 | Rugby | 15 | → Stable |
| 66 | Shrewsbury | 15 | → Stable |
| 67 | Solihull | 15 | → Stable |
| 68 | Stourbridge | 15 | → Stable |
| 69 | Stratford-upon-Avon | 15 | → Stable |
| 70 | Sutton Coldfield | 15 | → Stable |
| 71 | Tamworth | 15 | → Stable |
| 72 | Telford | 15 | → Stable |
| 73 | Walsall | 15 | → Stable |
| 74 | Warwick | 15 | → Stable |
| 75 | West Bromwich | 15 | → Stable |
| 76 | Basildon | 15 | → Stable |
| 77 | Bedford | 15 | → Stable |
| 78 | Bishop's Stortford | 15 | → Stable |
| 79 | Bury St Edmunds | 15 | → Stable |
| 80 | Felixstowe | 15 | → Stable |
| 81 | Great Yarmouth | 15 | → Stable |
| 82 | Harlow | 15 | → Stable |
| 83 | Hemel Hempstead | 15 | → Stable |
| 84 | King's Lynn | 15 | → Stable |
| 85 | Lowestoft | 15 | → Stable |
| 86 | Luton | 15 | → Stable |
| 87 | Southend-on-Sea | 15 | → Stable |
| 88 | St Albans | 15 | → Stable |
| 89 | Stevenage | 15 | → Stable |
| 90 | Watford | 15 | → Stable |
| 91 | Welwyn Garden City | 15 | → Stable |
| 92 | Aldershot | 15 | → Stable |
| 93 | Andover | 15 | → Stable |
| 94 | Ashford | 15 | → Stable |
| 95 | Aylesbury | 15 | → Stable |
| 96 | Banbury | 15 | → Stable |
| 97 | Basingstoke | 15 | → Stable |
| 98 | Bognor Regis | 15 | → Stable |
| 99 | Bracknell | 15 | → Stable |
| 100 | Chichester | 15 | → Stable |
| 101 | Crawley | 15 | → Stable |
| 102 | Dartford | 15 | → Stable |
| 103 | Dover | 15 | → Stable |
| 104 | Eastleigh | 15 | → Stable |
| 105 | Folkestone | 15 | → Stable |
| 106 | Gravesend | 15 | → Stable |
| 107 | Hastings | 15 | → Stable |
| 108 | Hove | 15 | → Stable |
| 109 | Maidenhead | 15 | → Stable |
| 110 | Maidstone | 15 | → Stable |
| 111 | Margate | 15 | → Stable |
| 112 | Ramsgate | 15 | → Stable |
| 113 | Sevenoaks | 15 | → Stable |
| 114 | Sittingbourne | 15 | → Stable |
| 115 | Slough | 15 | → Stable |
| 116 | Tonbridge | 15 | → Stable |
| 117 | Tunbridge Wells | 15 | → Stable |
| 118 | Worthing | 15 | → Stable |
| 119 | Barnstaple | 15 | → Stable |
| 120 | Bridgwater | 15 | → Stable |
| 121 | Falmouth | 15 | → Stable |
| 122 | Frome | 15 | → Stable |
| 123 | Newquay | 15 | → Stable |
| 124 | Penzance | 15 | → Stable |
| 125 | Poole | 15 | → Stable |
| 126 | Stroud | 15 | → Stable |
| 127 | Swindon | 15 | → Stable |
| 128 | Taunton | 15 | → Stable |
| 129 | Tewkesbury | 15 | → Stable |
| 130 | Torquay | 15 | → Stable |
| 131 | Trowbridge | 15 | → Stable |
| 132 | Weston-super-Mare | 15 | → Stable |
| 133 | Weymouth | 15 | → Stable |
| 134 | Yeovil | 15 | → Stable |
| 135 | Barrow-in-Furness | 15 | → Stable |
| 136 | Whitehaven | 15 | → Stable |
| 137 | Workington | 15 | → Stable |
| 138 | Winchester | 10 | ↑ Rising |
| 139 | Penkridge | 7 | ↑ Rising |
| 140 | Stafford | 7 | ↑ Rising |
| 141 | Chester | 6 | ↓ Falling |
| 142 | Coventry | 6 | ↓ Falling |
| 143 | Worcester | 6 | ↓ Falling |
| 144 | Ipswich | 6 | ↓ Falling |
| 145 | Bournemouth | 6 | ↓ Falling |
| 146 | Colchester | 6 | ↓ Falling |
| 147 | York | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 148 | Bath | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 149 | Canterbury | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 150 | Exeter | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 151 | Norwich | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 152 | Plymouth | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 153 | Sunderland | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 154 | Derby | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 155 | Wolverhampton | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 156 | Stoke-on-Trent | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 157 | Reading | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 158 | Milton Keynes | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 159 | Northampton | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 160 | Peterborough | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 161 | Gloucester | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 162 | Salisbury | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 163 | Durham | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 164 | Lincoln | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 165 | Hereford | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 166 | Truro | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 167 | Lancaster | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 168 | Wakefield | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 169 | Chelmsford | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 170 | Cheltenham | 5 | ↓ Falling |
| 171 | Eastbourne | 5 | ↓ Falling |
Methodology
The England City Happiness Index is a composite score (0-100) that measures the volume and quality of positive news from each city. Higher scores indicate more good news activity.
Story Volume (30%)
The total number of positive stories published from each city. More stories = higher score.
Positivity Rating (30%)
The average positivity score across all stories from the city. Based on keyword analysis and sentiment scoring.
Category Diversity (20%)
How many different news categories (community, sports, health, etc.) the city has stories in. Broader = better.
Recent Activity (20%)
How many stories have been published in the last 30 days. Rewards cities with consistently active positive news.
Data Access
The full dataset is available via our public API for journalists, researchers, and data enthusiasts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the England City Happiness Index?
The England City Happiness Index ranks 50 English cities based on positive news coverage volume, average positivity scores, category diversity, and recent publishing activity. It is updated monthly by Good News England.
How is the happiness score calculated?
Each city receives a composite score (0-100) based on four factors: story volume (30%), average positivity rating (30%), category diversity (20%), and recent activity (20%). The score reflects how much positive news is generated by and about each city.
Can I use this data for my research or publication?
Yes! The data is available under a Creative Commons licence via our public API. Please credit Good News England and link back to this page when using our data. For press enquiries, email press@goodnewsengland.co.uk.
How often is the index updated?
The index recalculates automatically based on our published content. The data refreshes hourly, with scores reflecting the latest stories and trends.
Covering this story?
We provide press-ready data, quotes, and city-specific analysis for journalists and media outlets.