GALWAY HAS been named as one of the best European cities to raise children in, according to new research.
The vibrant coastal city was ranked sixth in the top ten list of best cities to raise a family in Europe, alongside thriving cities such as Trieste in Italy and Helsinki in Finland.
The research by Preply, an online language tutor resource, measured each of the 131 cities in terms of access to and quality of education, health and safety, and leisure and lifestyle categories.
Galway ranked 18th for education, 23rd for health and safety, and twelfth for lifestyle and leisure, placing it at sixth overall.
Ranking top is Funchal, found on the Portuguese island of Madeira. Scoring well across all three categories, the city offers the continent’s second best health and safety prospects, third for education and seventh for leisure and lifestyle. Funchal’s ‘chart-topping’ performance is particularly owed to it having the lowest crime rate of all, low air pollution levels and a cheaper cost of living. Portugal’s student to teacher ratio also falls just shy of the top ten in Europe, ranking 11th.
Following Funchal, ranking as Europe’s second best location to raise a child, is the northern Italian city of Trieste. The port city may be small in size but its abundance of educational attractions, recreational spaces, and free healthcare make it a mighty contender in the run for a child’s education and wellbeing.
Lisbon is the third best city for raising children in Europe. Aside from the country’s great teaching staff offer, Lisbon also scores well for boasting one of the top five best air quality levels, a wealth of educational attractions and one of Europe’s top ten highest percentages of those in post-compulsory education.
Placing fourth is Iceland’s Reykjavik, possessing the continent’s best teacher to student ratio. The city also secures itself the second ‘best choice of sports and leisure facilities’ title, while the country’s 280 days of paid maternity leave is beaten only by three others in Europe. Prague in the Czech Republic follows suit in fifth, largely owed to it being home to the second-highest number of museums, with a whopping 373 on offer!
Cork ranks in 25th position overall, while Limerick comes in at 29th.
In the UK, Edinburgh comes in ninth, Aberdeen in 14th and Newcastle in 20th.
