Dorchester Named One of the Happiest Towns in the Country!

Welcome to the ninth happiest place in the whole of England! That was the finding of a recent Right Move study, which surveyed over 25,000 people right across the country and placed Dorchester in the top ten towns and cities in terms of the happiness of its residents.

The people who took part were asked a series of questions on how they felt about their area, the size and condition of their properties, their sense of community, their local amenities and safety levels.

Interestingly, seven of the top ten were in the north of the country, with Carlisle coming out on top overall. Dorchester was the second highest rated town in the South of England, beaten only by Norwich.

So what exactly is it that makes Dorchester residents so fond of where they live?

One part of the study where Dorchester was particularly highly rated was for community – scoring the highest of any town/city for safety, recreation and neighbourliness.  This aspect of Dorchester certainly rings true for us, as we see big events like the Carnival and the Christmas Cracker really bringing the town together each year. There’s a fantastic community spirit here that goes beyond simple neighbourly friendliness, and speaks to a general feeling of pride and privilege in being part of the community in Dorchester.

In terms of amenities, we are also very well served for a town our size, with a great variety of both independent shops and chain stores. Obviously we’ve taken a bit of a hit from the economy, but compared to most other towns we’ve got relatively few empty units, and of course we’ve got a whole host of new arrivals on the way when the next phase of Brewery Square opens in October.

Of course, we locals have always known how lucky we are to live in such a fantastic town, but it’s great to see it get some national recognition too with this survey. Join the discussion with @DorchesterBID on Twitter and let us know your thoughts on why Dorchester is such a happy place to live.

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