To be sick of people looking down on the town I live in?

It’s weird isn’t it. My daughter lives in a fantastic large detached house with nearly an acre of well kept gardens just a mile or two out of city centre. On a mature tree-lined Edwardian estate. She has renovated it back to its original Arts and Crafts beginnings… yet because there were riots nearby 40 years ago the area still has stigma!
She sold her Victorian terrace in the more upmarket neighboring suburb cashing in to buy this mansion.
Most people are like sheep. They don’t like to go against the grain and use their common sense because they are not confident enough in themselves. You are wise OP.

I live in a little Forces town surrounded by 'better' Cotswold villages and nearby market town. A large percentage of people here are ex forces families, some going back generations. It is sneered at a lot. It's not pretty like the villages (with their million pound+ houses) but it has decent facilities, a couple of decent supermarkets that I can easily walk to, a lovely country park, sports facilities, and crucially my adult autistic son can be independent here, which he couldn't be if we could afford to live further out. Drive for 5 mins and there are SO many beautiful dog walks and places to visit on the doorstep. It suits us!

On the flip side there are a of jokes about inbreeding in the villages...

Presumably the limiting quality of the town will be that unlike houses in towns/villages where property goes up quickly, maybe your house won’t? Will this eventually be a barrier to paying for expensive universities/flat deposits for your kids in the future? If so that would bother me more than what others thought. A park is a park, they are everywhere (usually you find nicer ones in posher areas), so I would not let a child liking a park stop me from considering the future and its financial implications.

I live in a town with a reputation of being a " good " place to live. The people who live here have a tendency to be really smug about it being better than all the places round about.
But every day I come across entitled, rude unpleasant behaviour because this being better than other people seeps into their attitude in daily life.
Whereas when I visit the neighbouring nearby town which has a poor reputation and is quite economically deprived I've encountered overwhelmingly polite and pleasant behaviour from the residents.

I grew up in what is widely known as the worst town in the UK. Unfortunately, throughout my life I’ve faced similar negative reactions from people when I tell them and interestingly, often those people have never even visited the town, except to use the airport!
Now that I’m older and have my own family, I believe that people like to look down on others because it makes them feel better about their own situation. Sort of like, “oh, where we live isn’t great, but at least it’s not there!”
It’s snobbery really, sometimes mixed with classism and racism. Pay no attention. It did me a lot of good to mix with people from lots of different backgrounds when I was at school and I am still friends with lots of those people today, despite no longer living in the same town.

OP,

Except that I'm not in the UK I could have written your post. I grew up in the wealthiest area of the country. Nobody expects me to live there but somewhere adjacent. Instead I live in one of the cheapest parts of the city. It appears in the media a bit as it's got a diverse population so the racists have a field day. People often query if we will be moving or assume we are financially struggling.

In fact, like you, I love that the mortgage doesn't cause us stress and when we bought it was all we could afford but we knew things would change the following year.

What we discovered about living here: stunning beach, castles and scenery in geneal, a few nice cafes, lots of facilities, supermarkets, local farm shops, easily accessible by motorway to the rest of the country, amazing school for our DC, an absolutely gorgeous lifestyle with our neighbours on the green facing our house, loads of fitness groups locally. There is no way I'm risking all that for somewhere possibly a bit better.

Our house is worth about 380k now. I don't know anywhere that has all we have to offer unless we go to the very posh areas and pricetags starting at 2 million.

It's really strange. It's such an ugly looking place.to visit if you find yourself on the main street but to live in it's absolutely amazing. The only issue I have is I'm not keen on the nightlife. There are two restaurants I love for a family dinner out where the food is great and the staff always make a fuss of us. These are walkable. But if we want a glitzy night out we go on the train.

Anyway I'm just saying I get exactly what you mean. Surface level not attractive but scratch the surface and an absolute gem.

I also worry about my dc however when she realises that her area is deemed 'a bit rough'. I am going to focus on building resilience and self belief in her instead of moving to a shit house in a nicer postcode with crap living standards.

Why that sort of attitude? No matter what a town is like here will be a variety of people living there.

You really cannot surmise that the nicer the town the more wankers live there

Why are people so snobby about where other people live?

I just don't get it.

My nearest large town is Barnsley. The town centre has had a lot of investment and is a pleasant place to visit. Also, 80% of Barnsley MBC is rural and covers part of the Peak District and the Pennines. It isn't at all rows of back to back terrace houses and slag heaps.

Couldn’t possibly have an opinion unless OP says where it is 🙂

Thank you

I hate to join in on the guessing but…

Totton?

It’s pronounced Sippenham. My sister lived there, and I have lived in Slough and Langley. Apart from having one car stolen and another broken into I liked living there. Close to Windsor and Eton and London for socialising. Happy days.

Actually I have two friends there and they have often said how much they like living there. My daughter has a friend who is buying a flat there with her partner. It’s just so tedious to keep hearing places being dismissed like this. Have you even read this thread?

I grew up in Cippenham

How is Cippenham pronounced, @Ilovegerardway ? Every time I go through Slough (which isn't very often, ti be fair,) I wonder if it's a hard or soft C, when i see it on signs, as I've never actually heard anyone say it out loud.

How to tell the world that you have never been to the Midlands without stating it explicitly. Examples in the East Midlands that immediately spring to mind are the Peak District and all the lovely villages and towns in the area, Stamford, Melton Mowbray, Oakham, some lovely parts of Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire. In the West Midlands, the Malverns, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwick Castle, Cannock Chase, Lichfield much of Shropshire are lovely places. There are many more interesting places l haven't mentioned. There is good and bad everywhere. My home city (not where I live now) is Norwich and it is rightly considered one of the most beautiful cities in the country. However, even Norwich has its less salubrious areas.

I can confirm that our London crack den neighbours were considerably less trouble than the yacht-owning surgeons we live next to now. Genuinely.

The thing is, OP, the thread could go on for 20 pages, but all anyone really wants to know is that the town is. Usually the OP relents around 5 posts and gives the pertinent info. Sad to see you haven’t yet.
Could you not just have name changed and then name the town?

But I digress.
Don’t stress about what anyone thinks. If you have a nice house with nice neighbours, good schools and generally feel safe and happy , why would you even contemplate moving.

Ha ha, yes, the French definitely do!

Bognor or LA?

Well I know that but the nicknames abound anyway.

Scumdee
Dungdee
Dumpdee

etc.

Central belt snobbery, if you ask me 😜

I would tell your so called friends, they couldn't possibly move into your area, as they would definitely lower the tone. As you mentioned, you are in a happy relationship, doing well financially, my guess is none of these wannabes are not doing aswell as you, so the only way they can spill their jealousy is to be nasty to you...Fur coat and no knickers brigade comes to mind. Tell them you no longer want to be associated with them, or to shorten it, tell them to f--k off....

There are far worse places in Scotland!

I think you like what you like and that’s how it should be, but on a post about being open minded about where people choose to live and not judging you joined in saying you wouldn’t want to live there either. Personally I would have just read it, thought that someone really likes living in the NE and think good for them in finding their happy place and move on. Not join in with the NE bashing, it just reiterates the OP’s post

Try being from Dundee…

(I wouldn’t change it 😎)

Who made it mandatory to list reasons and justify why you wouldn't want to live somewhere?!

YOU have interpreted me saying I wouldn't want to live in the NE as meaning I think 'the whole thing is a total shit hole'. I haven't said or implied any such thing, you seem to have a massive chip about it though tbh.

London would be my last choice to live, it’s not for me but I haven’t wrote off living in the whole of the southern half of England
Good for you. I have though. I wouldn't want to live in London or the 'Southern half' of England any more than i'd want to live in the NE of England so i'm totally happy to write off any thought of me ever living there!