Chelmsford has been ranked as the happiest place to live in Essex, according to new figures.

Data from the Office for National Statistics shows that the city's residents are the happiest in the county.

The results found that Chelmsford grabbed the top spot for happiest places to live in Essex, as well as being the 28th happiest place to live in the country.

Running a close second was Maldon, which was ranked as the 32nd happiest place to live in the country.

However, the results are not as good for Brentwood, which is the least happiest place in Essex - and also the second saddest in the UK.

Castle Point is next at 80th and Colchester ranked at 85th nationally.

Further down the rankings, Basildon came 196th, Braintree at 222nd and Southendcame in at 238th.

Tendring, Rochford and Brentwood are the three saddest places in Essex, coming 297th, 332nd and 335th respectively nationally.

The figures also looked at other information including life satisfaction, how anxious people are and how worthwhile they feel between April 2016 to March 2017.

They show there is a continuation of small year-on-year improvements in average life satisfaction ratings.

There has been a slight increase in average happiness ratings over this period.

This comes after ratings leveled off between the years ending March 2015 and 2016. Earlier years saw regular increases.

For both anxiety and feelings that the things we do in life are worthwhile, ratings continue to remain level. These measures last saw small improvements between the years ending March 2014 and 2015.

Matthew Steel, from the Office for National Statistics, said: "Today’s figures may surprise some, showing a small increase in both reported happiness and life satisfaction during a period that has seen political change and uncertainty.

"It's worth noting that employment rates rose during the period covered by this report, and other ONS analysis showed people perceiving an improvement in their own financial situations and in the overall economy.

"These are factors we believe may account for some people's increased sense of personal well-being."