Best UK areas for retirees
Councils ranked on how much crime is recorded and how clean the air is.
Council ranking
Ranked on safety and air quality
We’re checking our council-level figures before we publish a ranking.
In the meantime, every postcode report has these scores for the exact street. Look one up below.
How this list is made
Each council’s score is the average of its safety and air quality scores. Every score ranks the council against the rest of the country from 10 to 100, so higher is always better. Councils missing any of these scores are left out, which is why Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland appear less often: some of the data covers England only.
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- Safety
- Recorded crime, ranked against other councils. Higher means less crime.
- Air quality
- Modelled background air pollution. Higher means cleaner air.
What to check for yourself
A council-level score is a starting point. Before you decide on a street:
- Check how far the nearest GP surgery and hospital are, and how you’d get there without a car.
- Look for step-free stations and regular bus routes nearby.
- Visit at different times of day, including evenings.
- Check flood risk and ground stability for the exact address.
- Scores vary within a council. Open the report for the exact postcode.
Look up a postcode
See the full report for a street you’re considering. Free, no account needed.