A town in Cornwall has been named on a prestigious list of the best places to live in the UK.

Each year The Sunday Times releases its Best Places to Live guide, now in its 11th year.

Released online at 6am today (Friday), with a magazine feature in print on Sunday, it features 72 locations across the UK – and a town in Cornwall is one of only eight in the south west to be included.

And while places like Rock and Falmouth are regular contenders on such lists, it is a town that is seeing something of a renaissance that has been named for 2023.

Penzance is the only place in Cornwall to feature this year, and is praised for being “unpretentious” along with its lack of second homes.

The entry reads: “A world away from Cornwall’s depressing second-home holiday hotspots, Penzance is wonderfully unpretentious, quirky and independent.

“It’s at the heart of a cultural and creative renaissance in Cornwall, with Cornish language, food, music, dance, art and film a core part of life here.

“New funding is in the pipeline to rejuvenate the town centre, but it’s the dramatic edge of the world feel that make this an irresistible location for anyone with a taste for the wild side.”

Home of the art deco seawater lido Jubilee Pool, it also boats the famous St Michael's Mount as a neighbour.  

Falmouth Packet: Jubilee Pool in Penzance Jubilee Pool in Penzance (Image: Getty Images)

Last year Penzance and Newlyn secured £21.5 million from the government’s Town Deal funding for seven projects, including buying the historic Market House, which Lloyds Bank is based in part of, to redevelop the rest of the building for the community.

The remaining projects are:

• Enterprise Grants Scheme

• Penzance Harbour

• Market House

• Waterfront

• Newlyn Harbour Marine Skills and Resource Centre

• Gardeners’ House in Morrab Gardens

• Sustainable Travel Network

Other places in the south west to make the list

Cirencester in Gloucestershire is named the best in the south west in the guide, for being a “supremely liveable town” with a “thriving high street and beautiful parks”, and its volunteer-run heated outdoor swimming pool a particular highlight.

Also getting an entry are Bishopsteignton near Dartmoor in Devon, along with “so good that everyone wants to live here” Bristol, Poundbury in Dorset and The Chew Valley in Somerset.

There are two entries for Wiltshire – Broad Chalke and Marlborough, with the latter known for its schools.

Read the full list at https://www.thetimes.co.uk/bestplacestolive 

Overall winner

Wadhurst in East Sussex was named the overall winner of Best Places to Live. It was praised by judges for its “good schools, convenient transport connections, an amazingly well-stocked high street and stunning scenery”. They said that it offers “pretty much everything needed for modern life in miniature”.

Helen Davies, the editor of Best Places to Live 2023, said: “When times are tough, where we live matters more than ever. Attractive surroundings, good neighbours and a comfortable home are the best defences when the stresses of modern life seem overwhelming.

“This guide is a celebration of towns, cities and villages that are each a fantastic place to live in 2023 from Orkney to Felixstowe, the Chew Valley to Manchester city centre. Whether you’re downsizing, trading up or getting onto the property ladder, there will be somewhere to suit you.”