THE two most popular baby names in the East of England have been revealed today (Monday). Despite the impact of celebrity baby names like Ruby, Grace and Lily, there has been little change in the past 12 months as Olivia once again became the top girls n

THE two most popular baby names in the East of England have been revealed today (Monday).

Despite the impact of celebrity baby names like Ruby, Grace and Lily, there has been little change in the past 12 months as Olivia once again became the top girls' name for the area - as well as the UK as a whole.

In the boys category the name Oliver took the top spot in the east whereas Jack proved to be the nation's favourite overall.

The top 10 boys names are:

1. Oliver

2. Jack

3. Harry

4. Thomas

5. George

6. William

7. Samuel

8. Charlie

9. Joshua

10. James

The top ten girls names are:

1. Olivia

2. Emily

3. Jessica

4. Ruby

5. Grace

6. Sophie

7. Chloe

8. Lily

9. Charlotte

10. Amelia

The results are according to a 150,000-parent survey carried out by child trust fund provider, The Children's Mutual.

Ava, Freya and Isabelle have entered the girls Top 20 for the first time. However in contrast, there has been a fall for Grace this year. Lucy, Katie and Megan, have also become less popular.

Within the top boys' names there are some signs of influence from celebrity names, with Lewis racing into the Top 20 this year - possibly due to the popularity of Formula One star Lewis Hamilton - and both princes' names, William and Harry, staying in the Top 10.

The Harry Potter Effect

As well as Harry, Daniel is a favourite name, both having moved up the baby names chart, suggesting the popularity of Harry Potter has had an influence, with babies named after both the character and leading actor Daniel Radcliffe.

Marketing director at The Children's Mutual, Tony Anderson, said: "We've had lots of new children on our books in the past 12 months, with almost 150,000 new accounts opened, and it's always interesting to see how the trends in babies' names changes each year.

"We realise that choosing a name can be daunting for parents as they want to give their child the best start in life. Hopefully our research will give them a little more information to use when trying to reach that decision.