SOUTH Lakeland has been named as one of the best places in Britain to raise a family.

According to a survey by Halifax, it was ranked as one of the top 15 local authority areas in a ‘Children’s Quality of Life’ report.

The district came in at number 14, just ahead of 15th placed Harrogate.

The top accolade went to the Orkney Islands in Scotland with Shetland and the Western Isles making up the top three.

South Lakeland’s strong showing corresponds with the District Council’s own quality of life survey results, which revealed that 89 per cent of people were satisfied with their local area as a place to live.

South Lakeland Council leader, Councillor Giles Archibald, said: “This shows what those of us who live here already know, that South Lakeland is a great place to live and a fantastic place to raise a family.

“Our Council Plan priorities on enabling 1,000 new affordable homes for rent and 1,000 new higher paid jobs are very much in line with creating the conditions for a happy family life and we know from our own surveys that these priorities are in line with what our residents want.

“We will continue to work very hard to ensure that South Lakeland remains the best place to live, work and explore.’’

The survey, which examined 377 districts nationwide, takes in factors such as levels of employment, volumes of traffic and population densities.