Moving from suburb to village with teens: will they feel isolated?

Watch "This Country" (comedy). You may re-think 😂
Tbh, some years ago, we (ex, me and our kids) didn't make this move, precisely because of the 'taxi driver' situation, isolation from friends, etc.

Wait a few years.

Move rurally when they're able to drive.

Them having the independence of going off to school, see friends and so on where you are is great for them.

I think my kids missed out socially because of us living in a small village. I think moving into that environment at the teen stage where friends and independence are becoming more and more important to them is a bit misguided.

I did it. Moved back a year later (expensive decision). Don’t do it.

Sounds awful. How will they socialise, get part time jobs?

Goes without saying that you shouldn't even consider it unless you are happy to give lifts at any time without complaint. You'll also want to have the money for driving lessons and to buy and insure them to drive their own car as soon as they are old enough.

We live in a rural village with teens. It's manageable, but on balance it isn't a choice I would make again. One factor to consider is their friends situations. Where we live all the young people are pretty much in the same position, so they don't really know any different. If 95% of their friends live in the town then personally I would not isolate them by moving to a village.

Unless you want to turn into a more or less full time Mum and Dad Taxi Service, I honestly wouldn’t do it.

I used to dream of living in the country, but once ours were teens I was so glad we’d stayed put, with excellent public transport, inc. night buses, very close by.
Dds had friends living further away, and the parents would spend much of every weekend, and many evenings, too, ferrying them around in the car.

Money may not be an issue, but learning to drive and actually passing the test can take a long time, and the cost of insurance for new drivers is pretty eye-watering now.

It, like everything, has pros and cons- my kids don’t hang around town, they don’t storm off into town BUT they are isolated, we do have to drive them everywhere and pretty much when they feel like it because they don’t ask for much and it wasn’t their choice. There’s no paths around here to walk or run and cycling is an absolute no no (horrendous windy country road where not racers speed). They’ve also been told never to get into cars with lads from school as there’s been a lot of accidents in our locality, again that means we drop everything. Now my son is working nights it makes things difficult and I do wish we were near town sometimes.

Not without a regular bus service and at least a shop to walk to. It’s really not fair. We are in a large village with a couple of cafes, a recreation ground with a gym and buses into the local city. We still do a huge amount of ferrying, and have spent a fortune on cars and intense driving lessons for the older two. Our teens are great at knowing the bus times and planning their own way into town and can make their own ways to school but they’d have hated us if we’d been any more isolated than that and it would have hugely curbed their independence (and provably led to them taking risks with their safety.)

It's how I grew up and I refuse to do it for my own children. I live in a town now.

Lovely lifestyle, id probably do it as opportunity might not happen again, but expect to be a taxi, and dont complain when they ask!

Really curbs their options for part time jobs, activities, social life.

How old are they?

Yes, the villagers are a nightmare, unbelievably clicky. We have a different set up that it’s cycling to school, no bus which is worse in bad weather. I’m always giving lifts.

however I couldn’t live in town and I have chickens and the wildlife. I love it !

I am rural, it is fine providing you are willing to be the chauffeur.

But don't underestimate how much time and money goes into driving them around.

Don't do it until they're independent. You'll spend your life driving back into the town.