Best London neighbourhoods for runners

London is a better city for running than its traffic suggests, because so much of it is threaded with long, continuous green routes. The Thames Path runs for miles on both banks, the Regent's Canal towpath links Little Venice to Limehouse, and the royal parks — Hyde Park, Regent's Park, Richmond Park, Greenwich Park — give loops of several kilometres without a single crossing. Free weekly parkruns take place in dozens of parks across the city.

This ranking leans heavily on green space, then walkability, then gyms and safety, which is why areas beside large parks sit at the top: Holland Park, Kensington and Hampstead are next to some of the best running ground in London, and Blackheath, Richmond and Greenwich follow for the same reason. What the scores cannot capture is terrain. Hampstead, Highgate, Crystal Palace and Forest Hill are hilly enough to change the kind of running you do, which some people seek out and others avoid.

Three things are worth checking before you commit. First, the route from your front door to the green space: a park ten minutes away across two main roads is a different proposition from one at the end of the street. Second, lighting and safety on towpaths and commons in winter, when most weekday runs happen in the dark. Third, whether a club meets nearby, since London's running clubs are one of the fastest ways to meet people in a new area. A lower-ranked area on a canal or river can suit a runner better than a higher-ranked one that is only close to a small park.