Oundle, Northamptonshire

Have a look at Rightmove and decide if Oundle is affordable for you.
Stamford and the villages are usually more expensive, Thrapston as previous poster suggested is likely slightly cheaper, (also Raunds, but possibly not so nice).
It very much depends whether you want to live in a very small market town with some facilities but limited public transport, or if you like a bigger place with a train station, buses etc.
The local state schools in Oundle are on the up at the moment, with lots of people from surrounding areas choosing to go to them, Peterborough and surrounds are cheaper and some areas are fine, some to be avoided. You could have a look at the new build area of Hampton on the edge of Peterborough, which is a 15 minute drive.
Corby is 20 minutes, Kettering 30 minutes.
Plenty of activities in Oundle for kids, if you have kids.

I think it is just rumour about Prince George and the public school…regardless, unless you work at the school I can’t imagine it would affect you in any way.

Stamford for the nearest very nice town if Oundle itself is too small for your needs

avoid Peterborough

Oundle itself is lovely, quite wealthy and upmarket, some good restaurants in the area and old buildings if that's your thing. Surrounding countryside is very pretty and it's close to bigger towns and cities for amenities. Peterborough is not as bad as its reputation leads you to believe, though obviously it's not Cambridge. There are numerous country parks and reservoirs within a 30 min drive (Nene Park/ Ferry Meadows, Hinchingbrooke, Barnwell, Stanwick Lakes, Graffham Water, Rutland) and shopping outlets (Rushden Lakes). Crime rates generally for that part of Northants are low, some pockets of deprivation. Everything you want or need is within easy reach if you have a car. As it's a wealthy area, good schools.

Oundle is lovely, Northampton is miles away from there, there are towns like Thrapston nearby which are much cheaper to buy houses, so you might be better looking at the towns and villages nearby if cost is an issue at all. Peterborough and Corby aren't so nice. Rushden Lakes shops are nice and not too far away but parking is bad there at the weekend

Kettering does have a cute little independent shopping place called The Yards which is good.

I'd be very surprised if Prince George ended up at Oundle (not saying it isn't a great school) so I wouldn't let that colour your decisions!

Corby and Kettering aren't "nice" but they're fine enough and they do have lots of shops and a fast train to London. Kettering also has large hospital and Corby has a minor injuries / urgent care unit. I lived nearby until recently and I would go to Corby and Kettering for weekly shops etc.

Stamford and Oundle are lovely, as are Uppingham and Oakham in Rutland.

There's some nice Country Parks in the area too.
One that has a reservoir that has a sunken village under the water.
I can't remember the Park name though.

Corby isn't pretty but it has a reasonably ok town centre with a few decent shops, an Olympic size swimming pool, cinema, library and theatre all in the same area.
Peterborough has a much bigger shopping centre but I don't know much about the town.
Kettering and Northampton are a bit unloved but Kettering has a place called Wicksteed Park which is one of the oldest "theme parks" in the country and has many events that happen there and it's a nice place to go.
There's good train links from Peterborough, Northampton and Kettering/Corby (different train lines) so you can get to other places fairly easily.

The other places are definitely not nice . Especially Corby . Some areas around Northampton are OK but it's quite a trek.

Oundle is nice. I’m not so sure about the other places.

It is absolutely beautiful there. Very expensive as well. Pretty easy transport . The school is quite separate from the village so security will probably be on the grounds themselves .