Is it the quaint streets, the thriving town centre or the wealth of events?

The historic market town of Wymondham has been named one of the best places to live in Britain by the Sunday Times.

Judges said a range of factors were considered, including jobs, schools and broadband speed to culture, community spirit and local shops.

Wymondham mayor Robert Savage said: 'Wymondham, is a very attractive, historic market town with a good choice of quality, high street shops, cafes and pubs and which still hosts traditional, weekly markets.

'The town centre, in particular, contains many well-preserved buildings that are centuries old such as the magnificent abbey, visible on all approach routes into the town.

Eastern Daily Press: Wymondham Abbey on a snowy. sunny afternoon.Wymondham Abbey on a snowy. sunny afternoon. (Image: (c) copyright newzulu.com)

'The town is also forward-looking with many active and well-supported community activities such as the annual music festival. Wymondham can also boast of local schools with excellent reputations and a large, varied local employment base. There are excellent transport links to the South and on to London and the nearby city of Norwich.'

Community PR consultant Tony Vale, who organised a Love Wymondham Day earlier this year, said: 'It's got history, it's got heritage, it's got arts and culture. We've got iconic buildings like the Abbey, the current arts centre, the Market Cross, the Heritage Museum.'

Mr Vale, who moved to the town 21 years ago said it also had good links to Norwich and Cambridge.

The Guardian website had a slightly different take on the town's charms, describing it as 'a higgledy streetscape of monastic fragments and Georgian cottages, spiked with a bohemian, eccentric edge'.

'Even saying the word 'Wymondham' (pronounced 'Windum') is counter intuitive,' it added. 'The half-ruined, two-towered abbey haunts the skyline like something from an MR James story.

'Lecturers from the University of East Anglia lurk in bookshops. Poets and writers escape here – not an obvious retreat, but that's the point. Nobody comes to Wymondham unless they have to or want to.'

Also on the list were Norwich and Bungay. Judges ranked Chelmsford, in Essex, as the best place to live in the east of England.