Leigh-on-Sea is a civil parish in Essex. It is a district of Southend-on-Sea, with its own town council, and is at present the only civil parish within the district. The town is set on the northern side of the Thames estuary, being only a few miles from the open waters of the North Sea and from the Kent coast. Featuring on the town's coastal area is a nature reserve at Two Tree Island and a centrally situated beach near Bell Wharf. Leigh's foreshore is mainly seen as being an area with significant mud flats and creeks when the water is at low tide. Between the 1870s and the 1920s, Broadway, previously a residential street, was completely transformed into a commercial parade of shopfronts. In the 1930s, London Road and Leigh Road similarly ended up being acknowledged as commercial streets, holding shops, workshops, industrial premises, and entertainment sites. As a result of the supremacy of 24 hour supermarkets and online shopping from the 1990s, most of the town's independent small business underwent redevelopment, with bars, cafés, restaurants, galleries and gift stores substituting most of the traditional shops. Ongoing city regeneration continues to appeal to brand-new locals to the town, as well as wanting to accommodate for the boost in Southend's increased population. With a population of over 20000, Leigh was ranked by Rightmove's 2016 Happy at Home Index as the happiest area to live in Great Britain, with attention being drawn to the strong community spirit, a sense of belonging, and good access to sports and arts ventures. A variety of local activities are well established, such as the Leigh Regatta, taking place over one September weekend, the Leigh Folk Festival and the Leigh Art Trail. For all of your house upgrades, make sure to make use of dependable specialists in Leigh-on-Sea to make certain of quality.