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The Top 10 Best Countries In The World To Raise A Family

Nicola Elliott|
family cuddle on sofa scaled

The UK has fallen behind its European neighbours after failing to make the top 25 in a list of the ‘Best Countries in the World to Raise a Family’.

The new study from EnjoyTravel shows the UK lagging well behind – in 26th place – with European countries such as Denmark, Finland, Poland, Iceland, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Germany taking seven of the top 10 spots and Norway leading the world ranking. 

The study from travel specialists EnjoyTravel takes into account key factors such as healthcare, safety, salaries and rent. 

Whilst the UK ranked well for education, it dropped several places due to safety, salaries and rent, as well as maternity and paternity leave.

Compared to an average across Europe of 14 weeks maternity leave, the UK stands at 11.6 weeks (full pay) and an average of 2 weeks for paternity, compared to 26 weeks in Sweden or 20.8 weeks in Norway. 

Despite the UK offering universal healthcare, major issues such as the number of staff off sick, early retirement and high vacancy rates were taken into account. 

Martin Mansell, chief executive at EnjoyTravel, said: “It’s no secret that the UK is going through a tough time at the moment, but we are surprised to see the UK ranked so poorly.

Healthcare, safety, salaries and rent are all key components when it comes to raising a family, so for the UK to score so low on these points is particularly concerning. 

It’s important to highlight that a lot of countries, including the USA, fell further down the list due to a lack of paid maternity and paternity leave – an issue that will affect millions of people. 

Norway tops the list when it comes to raising a family, with safety, education and healthcare all scoring highly. But it’s Norway’s maternity and paternity offering that stands head and shoulders above the rest.”

The Top 10 Best Countries in the World to Raise a Family 

  1. Norway 
  2. Singapore 
  3. Denmark 
  4. Iceland 
  5. Finland 
  6. Poland 
  7. Germany 
  8. New Zealand 
  9. Netherlands 
  10. Czech Republic 

Source: www.enjoytravel.com with research conducted by global travel site Big 7 Travel. The complete top 25 ranking, including data sources and points system is here. 

Countries across the world were ranked according to their Global Safety Index, healthcare, OECD Median Salary, Rent Index, and United Nations Education Index. 

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About the Author: Nicola Elliott

Nicola has been a therapist for over 18 years and has always had a keen interest in health and fitness, she has worked in many different areas of health over the years which led her into Nutrition and Colon Hydrotherapy. It became apparent very early on that Nutrition was one of the main areas which most people needed guidance with in order to reach their health goals and Nicola found that advanced nutrition knowledge was essential in helping others reach their goals successfully. Nicola then went on to study further and complete Bsc (hons) Human Nutrition.

Nicola found that her main interests were in Metabolism, Disease and prevention. The main area of interest was the digestive system and large colon in relation to Nutrition and lifestyle factors which can help to prevent disease and therapeutically help those with health related problems.

View all posts by Nicola Elliott