Milton Keynes tops list as best place to trick or treat

  • Milton Keynes named best town to go trick-or-treating this Halloween

  • Chesterfield, Middlesbrough and Hull less likely to offer good Halloween haul

  • Zoopla reveals 10 of the streets with spookiest names

Halloween trick-or-treaters are best off knocking on doors in Milton Keynes this year, according to the latest Trick or Treat Index from property website, Zoopla.

The index, which ranks towns and cities across England by a combination of factors key to ensuring a successful Halloween haul – namely, high property prices and household density, safe roads and low local crime rates – has also revealed that places such as Chesterfield, Middlesbrough and Hull could be less favourable locations for trick or treat revellers.

Milton Keynes, where property prices are £266,533, topped the table, boasting the lowest crime rate of all the towns and cities analysed, making the area one of the safest places for trick-or-treaters. Colchester came second with the area’s combination of low crime and relatively high home values making it a safe bet for trick-or-treaters.

Conversely, to those seeking spooky treats around Chesterfield this Halloween, beware; the area’s low population density, below-average house price values and high levels of road traffic accidents have resulted in the town coming bottom of the Trick or Treat Index.

Those scouring for sweets in Hull and Middlesbrough may also not be particularly successful. Middlesbrough has one of the index’s highest crime rates as well as a relatively low number of households (57,200), while Hull has the lowest average house price of all the areas surveyed.

To celebrate the scary season, Zoopla can also reveal 10 of the UK’s spookiest street names. Among those identified are Spook Hill in Dorking where the average property is valued at £651,298, Black Cat Drive in Northampton where the average home is estimated to be worth £192,587, and Goblins Green in Welwyn Garden City where average values are £303,218.

Lawrence Hall of Zoopla commented: “Seasoned trick-or-treaters know what will help them secure a better Halloween haul and stay safe while doing so. For the optimum Halloween experience, our index shows that Milton Keynes is the place to go. Homeowners in the area might want to stock up on goodies, or else be prepared for some tricks coming their way!”

Top 10 places for trick or treating

Rank

Town

Avg Property Value

(Oct 2015)

Number of Households

Incidents of crime per 1,000 residents

Pedestrian RTAs per 1,000 residents

Trick or Treat Index

1

Milton Keynes

£266,533

98,600

5.05

0.30

153

2

Colchester

£276,537

71,600

6.72

0.29

139

3

Stockport

£227,080

122,000

9.29

0.23

138

4

Bristol

£274,479

182,700

8.64

0.45

134

5

Coventry

£175,467

128,600

6.76

0.37

133

6=

Wirral

£216,132

140,600

9.19

0.40

128

6=

Cheltenham

£312,332

50,900

8.06

0.21

128

8

Wigan

£150,260

136,400

8.05

0.23

127

9

Southampton

£259,361

98,300

6.13

0.47

123

10

Warrington

£197,522

85,100

7.30

0.31

122

Source: Zoopla.co.uk, ONS, DfT, Police, Census

Worst places for trick or treating

Rank

Town

Avg Property Value

(Oct. 2015)

Number of Households

Incidents of crime per 1,000 residents

Pedestrian RTAs per 1,000 residents

Trick or Treat Index

1

Chesterfield

£162,251

46,800

7.94

2.43

50

2

Middlesbrough

£141,801

57,200

13.75

0.37

51

3

Hull

£123,904

112,600

11.00

0.52

57

4

Preston

£178,121

57,600

13.90

0.42

60

5

Nottingham

£174,895

126,100

16.51

0.64

61

6

Liverpool

£155,397

206,500

15.36

0.66

64

7

Manchester

£159,153

205,000

15.68

0.56

69

8=

Derby

£184,443

102,300

10.98

0.56

70

8=

Oldham

£134,412

89,700

9.37

0.43

70

10

Huddersfield

£163,204

173,500

11.39

1.04

71

Source: Zoopla.co.uk, ONS, DfT, Police, Census

Spooky UK streets

Spooky Streets

Avg. Property Value

1

Spook Hill, Dorking

£651,298

2

Cackle Street, Rye

£359,264

3

Cauldron Crescent, Swanage

£326,283

4

Bat Alley, Sturminster Newton

£311,979

5

Goblins Green, Welwyn Garden City

£303,218

6

Spells Close, Southminster

£283,059

7

Tricks Terrace, Winkleigh

£273,214

8

Coven Road, Stafford

£262,757

9

Spiders Lane, Exmouth

£257,646

10

Black Cat Drive, Northampton

£192,587

Source: Zoopla.co.uk

- Ends -

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