Which is more important: University or city?

I've been accepted to great unis that are in cities I dislike: Nottingham and Leeds. I absolutely love Kent and actually Birmingham (Aston) as well, but they're lower league-table wise (not part of the Russel-Group unis) and not really respected. I want to work for the Civil Service and despite them promoting diversity ALL examples of current officers (I've read cases of at least 30) come from top 20 unis. OK, so not all necessarily Eton/Oxbridge, but not Kent/Aston.

My dilemma is (and I guess I'm throwing it out there in case anyone has dealt with something similar), do I spend 4 years in a city I'm not crazy about to better my future?

Or would I be better in a uni where I think I'll be happier and ensure that I get a few leadership/extra-curricular activities in?

I'm from Chester and I like going out to bigger cities Liverpool/Manchester for nights out once every couple of months, but Leeds and Nottingham are a lot rougher than these from what I've heard and would not enjoy that constantly. I'm not a massive drinker/clubber.

I've only heard about these unis that they're party unis - but they both require very high entrance grades for my course so they have to require some focus/commitment.

Another concern of mine is that it may be tougher to acquire leadership positions at these larger institutions - has that been an issue for anyone?