It has an enviable reputation as a great place to live, work or come for a party or holiday.

It was also revealed in a poll earlier this year as being the third happiest city in the country.

But according to new figures, it appears residents of Brighton and Hove are actually among the most anxious in the UK.

Only those living in Reading, Slough, Milton Keynes and Merthyr Tydfil were reported to be more tightly wound-up, a report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The report found that on average, just over a quarter of residents said they had high levels of anxiety, |compared to an England average of 20.1%.

No specific reason has been given for the high number, but factors are believed to include fears over job security, money worries and even the stress of the daily commute.

The ONS report says reasons behind the local variations are “complex and not yet fully understood”, but factors most associated with personal wellbeing also include health and relationship status.

‘Stress of the job’ Dawn Snape, head of personal well-being at the ONS, said: “Some of the areas with high levels of anxiety are commuter areas to London so it might be to do with the stress of the job.”

Glenn Everett, director of measuring national well-being at the ONS, said some of the factors affecting people could be because of high-pressure jobs or mortgage problems.

He said: “And it could be they have a stressful commute – it’s a long commute from Brighton to London.”

The data, which was collated by polling 165,000 people, also paints a picture of well-being across the UK.

ONS officials asked people to rate how satisfied they were with their lives, how worthwhile they felt their lives were, how happy they felt and how anxious they felt on a scale of zero to 10 – zero being “not at all” and 10 being “completely”.

Brighton and Hove City Council said there was a lot of work happening in the city that could help people manage their anxiety levels.

This includes encouraging people to be more active as exercise can help boost the mood.

A spokesman said: “Brighton and Hove is regularly ranked as one of the top three cities for happiness because of a range of factors ranging from being one of the south east’s leading beach destinations, close to the beautiful South Downs and our fantastic cultural offering, but anxiety is a national issue that we should all do everything we can to reduce.

“Initiatives here in Brighton and Hove to do this include free swimming schemes, the Takepart festival of sports that has encouraged hundreds to try new sports as well the council-run Healthwalks in its 30th year and has provided more than 6,000 walks to 1,000 people each year helping improve emotional well-being.”