Leamington Spa is a charming little town in the Midlands and its architecture and greenery are highly appreciated by residents it’s no surprise people are so happy to live there.

Locals have branded it a ‘mini London’ and point to the exciting community feel the town has. And even though it’s reasonably small, there is a buzz about Leamington which is certainly felt while visiting the area.

The beautiful town is known for its pretty architecture and whitewashed buildings – it also has a large park making it popular for its green spaces. It has been named one of the best places to live by The Times and one of the happiest places to live by Rightmove.

Local resident Inemo Ugwa moved to Leamington Spa for a job after moving from Bradford.

She told Express.co.uk: “What I like about Leamington is that it’s peaceful. It’s a small town, but at first you don’t feel that it’s a small town.

“For me, when I first got here, it just reminded me of some parts of London I had been to. There’s a very big difference between here and Bradford for me – I really like it here and that’s why we stayed.”

Inemo made the move during the pandemic and has now been living in the area since summer 2022.

She added: “I didn’t know this was one of the best places to live in the Midlands, I’d heard of it and thought it sounded like a nice area but I didn’t know too much about it until I moved. At first, I actually didn’t want to move here because I didn’t know enough about it, but once we’d had a look around we thought it would make a nice place to live.

Leamington Spa is home to an exciting array of independent shops with a thriving selection of boutiques. Some of the best include Berylune, which sells homeware, stationary, jewellery and children’s toys. Another is Lilac Rose which sells handpicked affordable fashion items such as clothing and accessories.

Not only does the royal town have an impressive selection of unique shops but its restaurants are equally exciting. One great restaurant is Lacoppola – this Italian can’t be missed as you walk by, its decor is eye-catching with plants hung from the ceiling throughout. 

According to Rightmove, the average house price in the area is £395,487 – properties in the area are quite sought after and usually don’t take long to sell. This is unsurprising as the town has all the benefits of being a pretty place to live and has great connections to both larger cities and the countryside.

Emily Davies, owner of the independent lifestyle shop Berylune, has grown up in the area and decided to stay. She said: “A lot of people that aren’t from around here do come to live here, which means you get a young, vibrant community of people who aren’t local, so they get to know each other, and you make friends easier. We have Jaguar Land Rover and Warwick University nearby which bring in a lot of people and it just creates a nice community –  it just works well.

“I don’t know why Leamington has always done so well with independent shops, but it has. We’ve always had good independent shops here. I’m from the area, and when I was a teenager, it was definitely where I shopped.

“Nobody can quite answer the question of why so many people come here, but people do. I think partly the architecture is really nice, and that helps.

“We aren’t just a normal market town, because it is a lot prettier with all of our nice bars, shops and restaurants. But then it’s also not as posh as people think it is. It’s quite a normal town at the same time.”

Emily recognises the town’s good transport links as one reason the town is so popular. Leamington Spa can be easily reached from London and Birmingham, England’s two biggest cities.

She added: “I have friends that haven’t lived here their whole lives and that’s nice – the community is very important here.”