York has been named as the greenest city in the UK

The Yorkshire city was closely followed by Cardiff and Oxford.

According to the study, York has the joint-highest number of people who shop in zero-plastic supermarkets, with 31 per cent, alongside Birmingham. It wasn't good news for the two other Yorkshire cities involved in the study - Sheffield and Leeds - which placed 19th and 22nd respectively.

Researchers looked at the nation’s eco-friendly habits - including a host of factors such as tendency to buy refurbished items, recycling rates, methods of travel - and even time in the shower.

Based on the responses of 2,286 adults on different aspects of sustainability, 27 cities were awarded points which were then tallied up - and the walled city achieved the highest overall score.

The study, by musicMagpie, found York scored highest for the proportion of those who grow fruit and vegetables at home (72 per cent).

Second place belonged to Cardiff, which scored consistently high throughout - including proportion of those who buy or use refurbished technology (72 per cent).

Close behind was Oxford, which came third, followed by Plymouth in fourth, and Brighton and Newcastle in joint fifth.

However, out of all 27 cities polled, Wolverhampton scored lowest behind Birmingham and Norwich.

Liam Howley, chief marketing officer at musicMagpie, said: “We all want to do our bit to help the environment, but some things are easier than others. It’s interesting to see certain cities are definitely doing more than others, but at the same time nobody truly reigns supreme.

“There is so much we can each take responsibility for to become more sustainable, and a lot of it is easier than you think.”

CITIES RANKED BY SUSTAINABILITY

1. York – 270 points

2. Cardiff – 264 points

3. Oxford – 240.5 points

4. Plymouth – 232.5 points

5. Brighton – 222 points

= Newcastle – 222 points

6. Leicester – 217 points

7. Southampton – 215 points

8. Aberdeen – 209.5 points

9. Portsmouth – 207.5 points

10. Coventry – 206.5 points

11. London – 204 points

12. Edinburgh – 200 points

13. Manchester – 197 points

14. Bristol - 196.5 points

15. Liverpool – 196 points

16. Swansea – 195.5 points

17. Gloucester – 191.5 points

18. Wrexham –191 points

19. Sheffield – 181 points

20. Cambridge – 173.5 points

21. Belfast – 170 points

22. Leeds – 167.5 points

23. Glasgow – 148 points

24. Norwich – 130.5 points

25. Birmingham – 127.5 points

26. Wolverhampton – 116 points