Britain's wealthiest village

Set high on a ridge overlooking the undulating countryside of the Chiltern hills, the village of Penn is the kind of place where helicopters land on manicured lawns. Everyone has money - the only question is how much.

Now, a survey by the Office for National Statistics has declared Penn the wealthiest ward in Britain.

The village, population 300, tops a table of 9,276 wards, with an average household income of £1,660 a week or £86,000 a year. This is seven times higher than in some of the most deprived areas, such as Everton in Liverpool, where it is £220.

More than 30 of the richest wards are in London's commuter belt, mostly in Surrey, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire. The poorest tend to be in towns in Yorkshire, Leicester and Wales.

The survey provides the Government with more localised information about incomes, which had previously been calculated on a regional basis.

Penn is most famous for its namesake, Sir William Penn, whose son founded Pennsylvania, and as the backdrop to Midsomer Murders, with John Nettles as Inspector Barnaby. In real life, behind high walls and electronic gates, its Georgian manor houses and modern family homes are a retreat for City bankers, executives and company directors.

Famous locals include Birds Of A Feather actress Pauline Quirke, and Diane Thompson, chief executive of Camelot. There is no better illustration of Penn's growing affluence than Slade's, a jobbing garage that became a showroom for vintage sports cars.

"There's money out there, all right," said Slade's manager Roger Brewer. "Everyone has got their toys round here and these are expensive toys."

A lot has changed since Sir William's son, also called William, left for the New World in 1682 with fellow Quakers to set up a community based on simplicity, thrift and Christian principles.

Reverend Michael Bisset, the new vicar of 800-year-old Trinity Church, said: "The really rich tend to retire behind closed gates at the end of the day. But the others are normal people, with all the problems everyone has."

Pat Dancer, who lives in a 350-year-old cottage, said: "We have a very strong community. But people who have been here a long time are worried about large new homes being built, or the huge extensions added to old cottages to make mini-manors.

"What's the point of moving out of London to the country only to rob it of what was attractive in the first place?"