Takeley/Bishops Stortford - Anyone live/d there?

[lolapoppins]

I posted a while back about wanting to move and hoping to do a part ex. Fingers crossed, we may have found a way to work it on a property on a new build estate in Takeley, Essex.

I know nothing about the area (it is a long way from us), apart from Bishops Stortford a few miles down the road is supposed to be nice.

Anyone around who can tell me anymore about the area please?

[Millarkie]

Don't know Takely but do shop in Stortford occasionally and I can confirm that it is nice And multi-screen cinema and bowling there.

[lolapoppins]

Oh, fantastic. We currently live in the depths of Suffolk and our nearest Cinema is over an hours drive away! I hope it comes off, I want to be near civilisation again!

[walkthedinosaur]

Used to live in Elsenham which is about 2 miles from Takeley, it's a nice area. Takeley is very close to the airport and aeroplanes fly over certain parts of Stortford but it's not a show stopper. Stortford is very nice, whenever I come back to the UK I head for there, and if we moved back to UK permanently it's an area where I would choose to live. All my friends are in that area.

I don't think there's a bad school in the area, they're all very good.

In Takeley you're right next to Hatfield Forest which is just brilliant for dog walking and taking the DC's for a bike ride. I do actually meet my friends there when I come back to the UK just for the chips from the cafe. (Remembering is making me feel a bit homesick)

Also you have Braintree about 20 minutes down the road with the designer outlet at low prices. It's definitely worth considering.

[Lilymaid]

Excellent secondary schools in BS. Is the estate under a Stansted flight path?

[hocuspontas]

I don't want to be a killjoy but have you spent time on the estate? Just thinking of aircraft noise as you are very close to the airport in Takeley.

[lolapoppins]

We visited the estate and were gobsmaked that there was no plane noise. It is not under the flight path, we were very surprised at the lack of noise. Not that it would bother me anyway - I lived in Slough for 15 years and had jumbos flying very low overhead every three mins!

[lolapoppins]

Being near the forest sounds good, I have two massive dogs. Ds is homeschooled, so it is very liberating not having to consider that! But, maybe he will go to secondary school in years to come, so it's good to know about those.

Just a bit wobbly about it as we know nothing of the area, but we need to part ex for a new bulld and it's the only place we have found within an hour of London with the house size we like who would be willing to pt ex with us.

We made such a mistake moving here a few years ago that I don't want to repeat it.

[hocuspontas]

Sounds good then!

If you were thinking of the local primary school for your children it is not a feeder school to the BS secondary schools so something to consider maybe?

But BS is a good place to live - lovely park with its own 'castle', paddling pool and play areas. The Rhodes Centre is where you go for 'art and culture'. Lots of development going on by the riverside so hopefuly improving all the time. At the moment it is all traffic jams and building works! Takeley, obviously has good access to the M11, and Hatfield Forest and Freeport the outlet centre at Braintree as already said.

Hope the move goes well

[hocuspontas]

My post was in response to your previous post - I wasn't ignoring your HE comment!

[lolapoppins]

Don't worry, I had realised that!

I really hope it comes off. We have had the three worst years of our lives living where we do now we need to get out.

Everything hangs on how much Barrat value our house for.

[jenniepanda]

Hi there, I was brought up in Takeley and lived there for 20 years, mum and dad still live there. I'm afraid to say the village is not what it used to be. Since the expansion of the airport there has been soooooo much building and new houses everytime I go back I am shocked at what they have done there. One half of the village has almost been bought up by BAA under the HOSS scheme and so many houses are rented by airport staff, so there is no community spirit. My mum says that there is just no heart to the village anymore. Just bear in mind that you'll have to go to Stortford for everything, swimming, shopping, clubs, secondary school etc. I lost count of the amount of times my parents were up and down the A120 (now a B road!) every day. Also my mum says that they are moving the primary school in the future, so you may still need to bear that in mind even though your DS is home schooled. I'm happy to provide any more info about the area.

We are actually looking to move back to the area as I have been in Lancashire for 15 years, however although we want to be closer to my parents, we would not consider moving back into Takeley.

HTH!

[lolapoppins]

Hi Jenniepanda

Thanks for the info. It's good to hear from someone who has lived there.

I understand how hard it must be for your parents to have lived a village for a long time to suddenly have hundreds of new houses thrust upon them. However, we are in a small village at the moment, and hate it. It is a very close community, and we are desperate to escape back to new build anonimoty.

Takeley seemes a good option to us as its still got a rural feel, but is close to Bishops Stortford and easy to get into London. The airport is also good for us as DH works abroad in the week, so it would be great for him to fly back and not face a three hour drive home!

From the position we are in now in (very) rural Suffolk, driving a few miles to Bishops Stortford for everything would be sheer bliss! I have to drive a 3 hour roundtrip to Norwich and back four times a week at the moment for ds' swimming, kerate and drama lessons and even have to drive 10 miles to the nearest shop, so a few miles to Bishops Stortford would seem nothing to me!

Ds would not be attending school at primary level, however, the school is being moved across the road from the house we are hoping to buy, so it would be very handy if we ever decided to go down the school route!

I am so sorry your parents have lost the feel of a village they loved, don't think I am being blase about it. It just seemed to be the kind of place that would suit us after a few years of living in a tiny, close community which have been horrendous (we are the source of local gossip as apart from daring to buy a house in their village I am, in thier words 'one of them colourds' )

Are there any other reasons you would not move back, apart from the things you put in your post? Any more info would be great, we need to move from here but I don't want to jump out the frying pan into the fire.

[jenniepanda]

lola, I just don't think that Takeley has much to offer to us as a family at the moment, except for my parents being there. I was never really that attached to it, which is why I moves up North with DH. I just didn't want you to think that it is an idillic Essex village! My parents moved in in 1964 and have obviously seen a lot of change. I do think that it is dominated by the airport though and who knows what will happen if they get the go ahead for the second runway. Also the prices are quite high there and we couldn't really afford a comparable house to the one we have at the moment.

Without wanting to cause offence, Takeley has had it's very own African village ever since I can remember called Aklowa. So even the very old villagers are used to seeing and accepting outsiders into the village.

Is it the Priors Green development you are looking at?

Given your current situation I think it could well have everything you require. I might just look into other amenieties such as doctors as there has been such an expanse of building recently I'm not sure if all of the infrastructure has kept up. I think that the new A120 has helped a lot though and there is not so much passing traffic which used to be a real problem.

We're actually looking at Huntingdon to move to as it's close to Takeley and my brother in Arlesey, but still has good links to London and back up north. I have looked at Saffron Walden and Thaxted too and even Elsenham, although the Eco-town situation put us off there.

Let me know if you want any more specific advice and good luck with the move. I'm only jealous that we're not moving yet despite 2.5 years on the market!!

[lolapoppins]

jennie - 2.5 years?! God, it must be awful. That is why we are hoping to part ex, other houses in our village have been up for sale for almost that long -I know ours would be too if we put it on the market.

Yes, it is the Priors green development. And the (not so) idillic country village we currently living in is what we are trying to get away from!!

We are in a good position when it comes to schools/docotrs etc. Ds is homeschooled and none of us are registered with the NHS, we see doctors at a private hospital, so those sorts of things are not of a concern to us.

I just hope we can part ex. Of all the new developments in the country, Takeley was the only one to meet out criteria. I have no idea what we will do if we can't do it, we have no other options and where we are now are live is a living hell, sound dramatic I know, but we can't walk outside the front door without the gossips gawping. I just want to move somewhere where ds can make some friends.

[Sallypuss]

Hi jenniepanda

We're down the road from Takeley and also went to view the estate you're talking about (I think). Takeley sounds ideal given what you've posted - small enough to have a village feel but large enough for everone to know your business.

Agree with another poster about the potential air traffic noise from Stansted if the expansion goes ahead as you may end up under the flight path after this but if it doesn't bother you, no big deal.

Hope all goes well. Let us know how you get on.

[Sallypuss]

sorry my post to lolapoppins not jenniepanda - duh!

[jenniepanda]

lola - then it sounds as thought it has everything you're looking for! Priors Green is quite close to Dunmow, so it you want a more quaint shopping experience then that will be better than Stortford.

Good luck with it all, you'll have to keep us updated!

[walkthedinosaur]

I just don't think people are that gossipy around there, or they certainly weren't when I lived there, they tend to keep to themselves. I was in Elsenham for about 5 years and made a handful of really good friends, everyone else just kept to their own business. I have a friend in Thaxted though and they really are in and out of each other's lives, I couldn't stand living in other people's pockets like that.

I'd heard about the eco town thing in Elsenham, it's going to be built on the fields behind my old house, such a shame I used to be able to walk the dog all the way over to Henham with DS1 in a baby carrier on my back. Happy memories.

Let us know what happens, you sound really unhappy where you are so anywhere else must be a change for the positive.

[fruitshootsandheaves]

I also was born and brought up in Takeley. Lived there for 24 years. My dad still lives there. I go there regularly and Dh works at Stansted. I know Takeley really well and I do agree with what jennie says (do I know you jennnie??) about it not being the same as it was. The bypass made a big difference as the old A120 is now not as busy and there are some nice (if a bit expensive) new homes along there. I couldn't ever hate it as it was and is a big part of my life but it also has some sad memories. Dh's family lived there too and it is where we met.

[jenniepanda]

ooo - fruitshoot, probably! I went to takeley primary school from 1980-87, then went to herts & essex.

[fruitshootsandheaves]

oh you're younger than me . I had left by then! I left in 1979 and went to Maggots Drane Margaret Dane

[cakeforbrains]

Lola - I live in Bishops Stortford and it is a nice place to be. Takeley is very cute, but I'm not sure how much there is to do there.

You said you were looking for a new build - have you considered Stansted Mountfitchet? There is a new housing development being built there at the moment. I wonder if transport links would be better and its only a ten minute drive into Stortford.It is also close to Saffron Walden which is good for shopping, eating out and child friendly activities. Bizarrely, Stansted Mountfitchet doesn't seem to be as troubled by airport noise as somewhere like Takeley.

[arolf]

We recently moved to BS, and I really like it here - not the most exciting town on the planet, but it's got plenty going on, and seems very family friendly.
I'm hoping we don't have to move from here - and after 7 years of living all over, this is the first place I've wanted to stay.
Don't know Takeley though