IT'S a tricky predicament working out how people want to live particularly as they get older. According to new research by Audley Villages, which specialises in luxury retirement living, the crucial things in a community, according to a survey of 2,500 folk, reckoned that shops, outdoor space and pubs are top of the ten most desirables with restaurants, cafes, a community centre, swimming pool, cinema, gym and theatre following on.

Features of an ideal community for Yorkshire folk include having close friends nearby, a mixture of friends of different ages and gender, regular activities and Neighbourhood Watch.

Well that's wonderful then it's all sorted, that does all seem like a great recipe for a happy life the tricky part mentioned previously of course is how to achieve it for the vast majority of people.

And there is always the conundrum of whether people use local shops, pubs and swimming pools. Making a list is all well and good and Spectator applauds it, but maybe we need to enquire further and find out exactly what people do with those facilities.

Audley Villages are ready made communities and maybe represent an ideal for many people, but for a lot of others they are out of reach being at the luxury end of the market.

However perhaps the messages from the survey are the crucial part of all of this. Certain facilities are forever desirable whether you live in a luxury village or not, and mostly it's the basic stuff that's important, pubs, community centres places to socialise and perhaps vitally having close friends nearby. With so many basic facilities such as shops and pubs under threat they're probably what should be cherished and preserved.