Northwich is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies in the heart of the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane. The town is about 18 miles (29 km) east of Chester, 15 miles (24 km) south of Warrington, 19 miles (31 km) south of Manchester and 12 miles (19 km) south of Manchester Airport. The population of the civil parish was 19,924 in 2011 and the wider built-up area was 47,421. Northwich was named as one of the best places to live in the United Kingdom by The Sunday Times in 2014.