Do you prefer Birmingham or Manchester

Manchester. But how does your voting work?

I think the thing you are forgetting is that London has a 50 mile radius around it with no culture. The other big cities aren't like that. If you are in Manchester you're within daytrip distance to Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield, North Wales, the Lake District, Peak District, and loads of stately homes. Same with Birmingham. So you don't want to go into the city centre every weekend, because there are more options than that. I live a 30 minute train journey from Newcastle, we only go in a few times a year, when our kids were little we'd be out every weekend but we'd not just do museums and cafes we'd visit ancient monuments, stately homes with beautiful grounds, industrial heritage sites, forests, beaches, National Parks, etc etc. So don't try and replicate the 'live in London in a tiny flat' lifestyle that involves going to the centre for museums, embrace the options where you move to that aren't available in London.

I live just north of Birmingham,I would choose it over Manchester,my daughter lived in Manchester,I disliked it intensely.Made me homesick for Birmingham.I especially love the area around Symphony Hall and Gas Street basin.

Manchester seems to be spread out with no proper centre.

You can get a direct train from Warwick to Moor street. Takes half hour direct. Not exactly difficult.

It is compared to how it used to be.

I'd even go as far to say it's absolute shithole.

All the decent architecture was ripped down and replaced with generic buildings that will soon date. Central library already looks dated. Around the Burlington hotel Absolutely stinks of piss and the hotel is rammed full of unprocessed immigrants.

Pigeon park used to be a lovely place to read or eat your lunch and now it's got drunks and druggies all over it. My sister went through it two weeks ago and a man was on the grass in the middle of the afternoon having a wank!

The bullring looks dated and doesn't have any outstanding shops. The area around millennium point is run down, tired, full of high rise student flats and the eyesore that will be HS2.

The general shops are Poundland, chain coffee shops and crappy clothes ships. Grand Central is ok I suppose.

Brindley Place is nice.

The city centre isn't anything special. The museums rarely change and BMAG has been closed longer than it should have been

And the Council is bankrupt.

Agreed! Top city.

I do like Manchester though, and don’t find it particularly dull/grey. Never been to Birmingham so can’t comment on that.

I would echo a previous poster about Birmingham: always see fights between gangs of lads in the city centre. Although to be fair, I haven't been there for a long, long time. But that used to be the case.

Most of the places you've mentioned near Manchester are actually cheshire. I'd avoid Alderly Edge, it's full of blingy footballer wives types. Personally I find it tacky but people like it. Depends on you. Altrincham is really nice and is greater Manchester rather than Cheshire. I'd go there if I had the choice out of those places.

Leamington, Stratford , Warwick are nice places to live, as are Kenilworth, Knowle and Dorridge and all in commuting distance from Birmingham. There are some nice villages in Warwickshire too. Solihull town centre is becoming very run down.

I am originally from near Birmingham and went to the city last week - first time since Covid. I was shocked. The city centre was like an apocalypse due to all the demolition for HS2. Huge piles of rubble and graffiti everywhere. It felt like a dying city and some areas felt very sinister and intimidating. The city council are bankrupt and the city was dirty and unkempt.
i don’t think I’d want to spend a day there.

It's not quite that easy to get into Bham city centre from Warwickshire - I think you may need to do some more research 🙈

what’s difficult about going to leamington station? I know some trains are 40/45 minutes and the fast train is 30, which is longer than the tram from Altringham to MCC but it’s not difficult?

startford also has a direct train as does Warwick or Warwick park way

Birmingham is 25 miles from Leamington Spa, as is Warwick - Stratford is a tad closer.

it’d be like living in Reading and say you lived in London
its a decent area, but not Birmingham

£900 would get you a nice house in either of the provincial towns

i I know the area and am familiar with Altringhsm, Hale & Sale

you'd be better connected in Altringham to the city centre than if you lived in Leamington, to B/ham

but to my mind there is more to do in Leamington as a whole, with B/ham by train, London is only 1.20 hours by train

If you're moving to Stratford or Altrincham you're neither moving to Birmingham or Manchester 😂😂

Altrincham is in Greater Manchester

Manchester! With good access to all of the northern cities, the Peak District, the lakes, north wales, and also Birmingham and London. Oh and Leeds.

I mean I'd choose smart parts of Liverpool or Sheffield myself but you will never tire of the north.

I much prefer Birmingham

I haven’t seen that? Seems a fairly even split to me?

Knutsford is so lovely. Go there.

Birmingham is not tired and run down at all.

Brummie here 🙋🏽‍♀️

I love my hometown. I also love Manchester.

People in both cities are super friendly and down to earth.

Both places have their good and bad spots.

Birmingham has had a whole heap of investment put into it over the years.

Entertainment wise both have a lot to offer.

Although I’d say Manchester is more bars and clubs, whereas Birmingham/West Mids has a lot more in terms of museums, cultural stuff etc

One key thing the West Midlands has going for it, is that it’s central. You’re pretty much 2 hours from a majority of places. So easy to get back to London if you need to see family/friends. But also a straight car journey up the M6 to Manchester or straightforward journey on the train.

So, (and this may sound biased) I’d go for Birmingham. Because the transport links are better.

Those area aren’t in south Manchester. Have you heard of a county called Cheshire?

This is utter rubbish.

Birmingham has a brilliant 'foodie' community and quite a few theatre/comedy options. It is super convenient to travel there from the towns you mention by train. If DS is into theatre, obviously the RSC in Stratford offer loads of events/cheap tickets for youngsters.
Travel back to London will be easier than from Manchester which may become important as your DS gets older.

£900k just outside Warwick. In Alderley Edge that will get you a flat.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/148702058#/map?channel=RES_BUY

I don't much like either- ( I appreciate others love them) and the nice bits of both to live in including the commuter areas are suprisingly pricey- at that level which you will know as are looking at the pricey areas- and with your budget you may as well live in Guildford or Brighton or Winchester kind of pricey , with easy access to London - any reason why you are looking elsewhere ? Is it work or just fancy a change?

In all honesty I preferred Liverpool and the Wirral or posh bits of Leeds to both of them- is there a reason for Birmingham/ Manchester??

I would pick Leeds and Liverpool over Manchester any day of the week. Birmingham is quite nice too.

Is does sound like the best option given your family's wants/priorities and budget is to just stay in London OP.

Unless the reason you're thinking of moving out is that you and/or your DH aren't originally from London and want to move nearer family?

My friend moved here from London (we live in the SE) but she wasn't really into the "London lifestyle". She didn't tend to go to central London except for work and now tends to only go to London to visit her parents.

Going by your posts I think you might have different wants to my friend and you might miss London a lot more than she does.