Tuesday 24 March 2015 5:54 am

Northern towns lead list of the UK’s most desirable postcodes

Amid overcrowded tubes, ridiculous rents as well as overpriced bars and restaurants it's hardly surprising London doesn't feature on this list of the UK's most desirable postcodes. But it's actually a lot nicer up North.

A better work-life balance propelled locations in the North of England to the top of the list, with the Bebington, Wirral postcode district of CH63 taking first place.

Here residents are able to live closer to their workplace, surrounded by good schools as well as high employment. The average asking price for a detached house is £344.996 according to data from online property portal Zoopla, well below that of a typical flat in the capital which tends to be around £480,390.

And the highest southern postcode district to make it into the top ten was the old town of Kesgrave in Ipswich, where properties tend to fetch around £249,047.

The study, commissioned by Royal Mail, looked into the most desirable places to live and work across the UK. The Centre for Economic and Business Research (Cebr) weighed factors such as good schools, access to green spaces, good employment prospects, affordable housing and average commuting times.