HAPPINESS is the greatest gift you can possess, according to the 1964 Ken Dodd hit at least.

And a series of events in Oxford this week will try to find out just how joyful we are.

Shoppers in the Westgate Centre will be asked on Wednesday what makes them happy and what factors, such as money, crime, social life or education, contribute to their sense of well-being.

And the Town Hall will stage a public debate on Thursday to discuss the concept of well-being.

The work, by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), is part of Prime Minister David Cameron’s drive to track happiness levels, alongside economic growth measures such as gross domestic product (GDP), as a barometer of national progress.

Environmental consultant Craig Simmons, from East Oxford, backed the new approach.

He said: “We need to stop looking simply at growth as the ultimate goal and start to include measures of what makes people happy and content and how sustainable our lifestyles are.”

The former Green Party city and county councillor said national reviews of the quality of life were common in Scandinavian countries.

Mr Simmons, who has written about the link between wealth and happiness, added: “Obviously a degree of economic stability such as secure employment, good supporting public services such as the NHS and free education are needed to provide a base line for a content society.

“But we need to look at lifestyles too.

“The Oxford conference must ask serious questions about our sustainability and our impact on the environment for we already have a body of evidence that a poor environment leads to stress, ill health and discontent.”

Oxford is one of the first cities ONS statisticians will visit on their mission to create a system of monitoring levels of joy. They want to devise measures that cover quality of life, environmental and sustainability issues and create a national “happiness index”.

The Town Hall debate runs from 9.30am to 11.30am – to attend email mfransham@oxford.gov.uk