Milton Keynes tops growth-rate table

The Buckinghamshire town has grown 64% in 20 years

Milton Keynes has been named as the fastest-growing borough in England and Wales.

The 2001 national census showed the Buckinghamshire town had grown 64.4 % over the past 20 years and now has almost 200,000 inhabitants.

And while England and Wales have an ageing population, Milton Keynes is said to have the largest ratio of under-16s of any European town.

Milton Keynes was built in 1967 to help ease pressure on homes in London.

Transport links

Planners at the time created a "masterplan" - predicting the town's population growth and developing services accordingly.

It is likely to continue growing, having been targeted by Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott as one of the main areas for new housing.

Its position mid-way between London and Birmingham, plus its good transport links, attracted firms to set up sites.

Close to London

Nowadays, its biggest employer is Abbey National bank. Other major companies are Volkswagen Audi, Argos, and Rank Xerox.

Paul Griffiths of English Partnerships said: "Many of the people who moved here were originally from London but in the last 10 years we've seen more people coming down from the North.

"The housing prices are a bit more competitive and it's as close to London as they can maybe afford to get."