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When meeting up take sensible precautions. Meet in a public place and let others know where you are going.

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thinking of moving to FELIXSTOWE

35 replies

elclose · 20/02/2007 10:57

does anyone live there and if so what do you think?

OP posts:

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JARM · 20/02/2007 11:00

WHY?????

its a dive lol

ok if you want walks on the prom, and a busy port with loads of lorries, and the usual pile ups on the roads when the port closes for bad weather!

If it were me, I would look at the surrounding villages, Trimley/Kirton etc, and even maybe out as far as Kesgrave/Martlesham in Ipswich.

elclose · 20/02/2007 11:44

cheers for your reply,
so whats wrong with it ?
sister in law and inlaws live there and whenever we visit i really like it, i like the sea and the town center but is it just because we only go there occasionally?
We want to live somewhere similar with a village feel but maybe not all the lorries!!
jarm you live in ipswich dont you or is it colchester? whats the genral area like?

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elclose · 20/02/2007 14:12

bumping to see if anyone else has any opinions

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JARM · 20/02/2007 14:18

i live in colchester, but am an ipswich girl, lived their all my life til i got married 3 yrs ago.

I just find Felixstowe very run down, i dont know what age your kids are, but the high school isnt a good one! (dad used to work there in behaviour support and it was a nightmare)

The villages are really nice though, Ipswich is great for shopping - way better than Colchester and Felixstowe, and a lot more for the little ones.

The one thing I do like about felixstowe is the leisure centre!

Not really sure what else you want to know!

elclose · 20/02/2007 15:02

so whichj villages would you recommend?
what about ipswich itself, my kids are 4and a half and 16months want somewhere that has a town kinda like felixstowe and i suppose some good schools for the future, live in london at the moment so used to traffic, noise, pollution and genral madness so anywhere seems better!!

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gingermonkey · 20/02/2007 20:07

I grew up in Ipswich (but now live oop north!). My friends and family still live there tho. Ipswich is coming on leaps and bounds, the amount of regeneration they are doing is fab, it needed it but it's great that there are so many new houses being built and so much being done to the marina area and stuff. I never thought I'd miss it but when I go back I really do!!! Christchurch park is the best park I think I have ever been in, it's always so clean and the play area is fab. My DD loves it there and begs to go every time we go back to see my parents.
I'm with Jarm, Felixstowe is a bit crap and is getting more and more run down each time I go back. If you want seaside you should head for Southwold or (my fave) Walberswick - that's only if you have London money though to spend on a house!!!! .
What about somewhere closer to the estuary? My mind has gone blank now so I can't think of any names of places - help someone!!!
ps, Me and DH stayed at the Salthouse Hotel in Ipswich at the weekend overlooking the marina, it was lovely. I used to hang out down there at the Malt Kiln (now the Vodka Bar) in my youth and it's gone really posh now! Made me all nostalgic and felt a bit old!

elclose · 20/02/2007 21:25

gingermonkey i am from upnorth!!
i live in london now, ipswich is also one of our possible places to move to, did not know it had a marina, thanks for advice xx

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cece · 20/02/2007 21:35

Around Christchruch park is nice in Ipswich.

I think Woodbridge is niver though - would like to live there... but can be expensive

gingermonkey · 21/02/2007 09:37

Cece, I agree about around the park - Westerfield Road and places like that. There are some lovely houses, some very big ones too. And it's right by the park which is a real bonus for the kiddies.
Whereabouts up here are you from elclose? I'm in Wakefield, West Yorks. I moved to a town that was just like Ipswich was 15 years ago. It's a dump and I hate it! I went to London yesterday to take DD to British Museum and when I got off the train I just got wound up by the state of the town centre! I love it up here, but I miss the flat countryside of East Anglia and the laid back nature of it. It's probably friendlier up here though. Another thing Ipswich has which is a bonus are lots of very good restaurants and quite a few nice bars (with more springing up all the time). Where I am now there are none! (But Leeds is great and just down the road and Manchester not exactly far away so I shouldn't moan!!!)

snorkle · 21/02/2007 10:10

Message withdrawn

elclose · 21/02/2007 19:55

gingermonkey i am from a little village called Royston only 4 miles from wakey so i know it well!! all my folks still live around there i feel like i am entering another world when i go home!

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gingermonkey · 21/02/2007 21:39

Bloody hell,no wonder you left Roysten for the bright lights of London! It's a small world, isn't it?! It is another world up here. DH is born and bred here but he hates it too! We moan about it all the time. Every shop in the Ridings Shopping Centre is either closing down, already closed or a mobile phone shop! I go to Leeds for everything except the supermarket. We keep saying we'll move one of these days but DH's business is here and DD goes to a good school. I want to move to Manchester or out of the country altogether but unless the Euro Millions come our way we'll have to wait a few years! Where we are is nice, it's near the sculpture park so that's a bonus! Do you get back up North very often?

elclose · 21/02/2007 23:13

as little as possible!!! i cant take too many bad hair cuts and shell suits more than once a year. Bretton hall is quite nice, my uncle lives in Hall green and ive got a few cousins in Notton.
The ridings used to be ok i was manager of Bay trading for a couple of years! I would never come back, well not Royston anyway!!

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snorkle · 21/02/2007 23:36

Message withdrawn

elclose · 22/02/2007 08:29

thanks snorkle, so great if you are under 8 or over 80!!
Have been having a look at Ipswich too which seems a little more promising, i guess its the scools we need to think of, for the future as dd only 4 and ds only 16 months plus only thinking of moving in about a year

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JARM · 22/02/2007 08:43

If thinking of Ipswich, and interested in primary schools, i can help!

Best primary schools in my opinion are :

Clifford Road Primary (my old school)
Rosehill Primary
St Pancras Primary (although is catholic)

Best High Schools :

Copleston High
Northgate High
St Albans (catholic again)

I love Ipswich, and once DH leaves the army, we are going to move back.

I agree with whoever said about Woodbridge, is lovely, and its where I got married - so much nicer that Ipswich Registry Office LOL

I strongly reccomend Kirton or Trimley St Mary as 2 villages surrounding Felixstowe if you still want to be close to the sea.

Walberswick and Southwold are indeed gorgeous but prices are scary, Southwold has the best fish and chip shop EVER!

gingermonkey · 22/02/2007 09:47

Elclose. LOL at bad haircuts and shell suits!!! You would get plenty of them in Felixstowe actually! The whole of East Anglia is still very old fashioned, which is appealing I think! It's just over an hour on the train to London but people don't go very often, everywhere is sooo far away! Even Colchester is a bit of an effort and it's 20 mins from Ipswich! I agree with the schools. I went to Castle Hill Primary and Westbourne High and would definately not recommend either! Northgate used to be the Grammar school so it's traditionally the best but I think Copleston has a lot to offer (but obviously that's a long way off for your 2!) St Matthews primary is supposed to be alright too, I think. Although if you were thinking of private there are a lot of very good schools for both boys and girls, they don't necessarily rank that high nationally on the league tables (not that it makes much difference IMO) but you get a good education for your £2000 a term!

Go on, move back up north - you know you want to!!!!!!!!

gingermonkey · 22/02/2007 09:52

oooh, Bay Trading. They have one of those in Ipswich too, in Tower Ramparts Shopping Centre.(Or they did last time I looked) I used to go and buy horrible cheap lycra clothes back in my youth...those were the days!

snorkle · 22/02/2007 10:43

Message withdrawn

JARM · 22/02/2007 10:45

gingermonkey - bay is still there! Next to Top Shop! lol

Forgot about St Matthews.

My dad works at Westbourne as Behaviour Support and some of the stories scare the hell out of me, my dad has said there is no way on this planet my girls are to go to that school.

Gingermonkey - how old are you? im interested to see if i would "know" you lol

elclose · 22/02/2007 10:59

Gingermonkey - still got half my skimpy lycra numbers lurking at the back of my cupboard!!
Was looking at houses lastnight and most said catchment area for Copleston High and
Northgate High so that is good,
This has really helped, thanks everyone.
Think we are swaying towards ipswich now, also other downside to felixstowe is in-laws!!!

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JARM · 22/02/2007 11:01

primary schools in copleston and northgate catchment are off the top of my head....

Sidegate Lane Primary
Britannia Road Primary
Broke Hall Primary
CLifford Road PRimary
Rosehill PRimary
St Johns Primary (church school)

thats all i can think of for now!

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elclose · 22/02/2007 11:02

Jarm is it usual to have behaviour support at schools!! scary
The market in felixstowe on a sunday is indeed full of cappa tracksuit wearing bad haircut slightly overweight people!! So gingermonkey you are correct you cant escape it whereever you go!!

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elclose · 22/02/2007 11:05

jarm just to let you know when you were in labour with your second daughter i kept up to date with your posts at one point your dad was on here posting it was quite funny!!
i was over due or due at the time so was really nice reading someone elses story and scary as was bringing back bad memories!!

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AllieBongo · 22/02/2007 11:07

i live in newmarket, about 40 mins from "the stowe" must admit, a day there is enough for me Woodbridge is nice, and if you're not bothered about being by the sea, bury st edmunds is lovely

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