Now, feel free to correct me if I’m wrong about this, folks. But as far as I’m aware, people don’t tend to move to the capital city in pursuit of peace and quiet. I mean, it’s not particularly often that you hear those two little words chucked around in a conversation about London, right? Hustle and bustle? Absolutely. Pie and mash? It goes without saying. But peace and quiet? It’s just not something we’re wildly familiar with here in the Big Smoke. Or so I thought…
A new study has recently revealed the most peaceful places in England, and (to my complete and utter surprise) a London borough has managed to earn itself a rather comfortable spot on the list. The research in question was conducted by the property-pros over at Sell House Fast, who analysed every local authority in the country to uncover which of them is the most zen-inducing of all.
Based on a variety of rather unpeaceful factors (including noise complaints, light pollution, vacant properties, sewage works, and greenhouse gas emissions); the study was able to give each local authority an overall ‘sensory disturbance score’ to determine which of them offer the most tranquil environment. And coming in as the fifth most peaceful place in England is none other than the London Borough of Bromley.
The most peaceful place in London
London’s greenest borough earnt itself a seat at the table, with a rather impressive sensory disturbance score of 2.73 out of 10. Bromley saw just 4 noise complaints per 1000 people, which was significantly lower than many other London boroughs (for context, Kensington and Chelsea saw a rather outrageous 65.3 complaints per 1000 people). Bromley also came up trumps in the light pollution department, with just 2.7% of its land registered at the brightest level of artificial light at night.
The good news doesn’t even stop there, folks. Bromley had no recorded sewage works taking place in the area, low greenhouse gas emissions, and its number of vacant dwellings wasn’t too high, either. It turns out that the capital city can be peaceful after all. Who’d have thought it?
The most peaceful places in England
- Solihull
- Wiltshire
- Peterborough
- South Gloucestershire
- Bromley
- St Helen’s
- Wokingham
- Shropshire
- Wigan
- Cheshire West and Chester
You can peacefully peruse the full study here.