Three towns in Berkshire have cracked The Telegraph's list of the most desirable places to live in Britain – thanks to their 'affluence and economically active residents'.

The newspaper commissioned Savills estate agents to compile a list of the most desirable towns in the country based on recent census data and factors including employment levels, qualifications, health and wellbeing and house prices.

And just one Berkshire spot made the top 20 shortlist – with leafy North Ascot coming in at number 18 after getting brownie points for its reputation as an "affluent area of suburban countryside surrounded by polo clubs".

It didn't hurt that it's also home to Lambrook School, attended by the Prince and Princess of Wales's children and that its proximity to London makes popping up for the odd evening out an easy option.

According to Savills, homes in the area sold for an average of £849,000 in the year up to June 2024, putting it a few leagues behind the reigning 'most desirable town in Britain', Harpenden, which had an average price of £913,000.

A little way behind North Ascot in the rankings was Windsor at number 36, where property prices hover around the £574,100 mark, and Maidenhead at number 41, with an average of £536,300.

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Berkshire was largely edged out by the other home counties in the list, with The Telegraph's top three spots filled by towns in Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Surrey, respectively.

In the paper's last ranking of Britain's most desirable places to live, based on similar metrics, in 2011, North Ascot scored a couple of points higher at number 16, while Windsor maintained its 36 spot and Maidenhead fell back slightly from 40 to 41.

Lucian Cook, head of residential research for Savills, told the publication that the top-scoring locales were "aspirational, affluent places that attract incoming wealth", packed with "economically active residents who are building up their property and personal wealth".