Black Country neighbourhood named among best places to retire in England, according to The Times
Forget dreams of retiring by the seaside - new research suggests older people may thrive best in well-connected towns and cities, including two right here in the West Midlands.
Research for The Sunday Times suggests that well-connected towns and cities are delivering the best physical and mental health outcomes for older people.
The study, carried out by Health Connect Global, underpins The Sunday Times’ new Growing Old Index, which ranks the healthiest and happiest places to retire in England.
The index assesses six factors: average life expectancy, GP provision, A&E waiting times, referral times for trauma and orthopaedic services, the number of care home beds, and each area’s score in the ONS happiness index.
Although you might expect rural idylls and coastal towns to dominate, the findings show that urban areas often perform better for older residents — including two here in the West Midlands.
Windsor and Maidenhead tops the national list, boosted by the fastest trauma and orthopaedic referral times. Hartlepool follows in second place thanks to its leading A&E performance.
Solihull ranks third, supported by a strong happiness score and longer-than-average life expectancy.
Wolverhampton takes fourth place, driven by shorter A&E waits and a higher-than-average number of GP surgeries per 100,000 people. Residents there also reported higher happiness levels than those in York, Sheffield, Reading and Wokingham.
Walsall doesn’t make the top ten overall, but it receives a special mention for having the highest number of GP surgeries per 100,000 people in England.
The Sunday Times' full Growing Old Index is available to view online.
