Moving to Shropshire: advice please!

[Ruraldream]

Hi, dh and I would like to move to Shropshire to experience a different way of life to the city. We would like something like a market town or a busy village. We'd like somewhere with amenities and a community feel. We have primary aged dc so would need a good school too. I would need to find admin/tto type position.

We'd like a four bed detached around £300K budget.

Can anyone please recommend some areas that we can go and visit?

I grew up in Oswestry. Very happy childhood. I don't think Oswestry has a worse drugs problem than anywhere else. Can thoroughly recommend Oswestry.

I now live over the border in Wales.

Whittington, Baschurch, Ellesmere, Oswestry are all nice IMO.

OP I moved to a small market town with an infant. Do look at train/bus services when deciding, or come your DC's teens you will be a taxi service or supplying driving lessons/cars. Or you will be moving again. And check the county plan to see if there are any major expansion plans.

It's lovely, but be warned that public transport is near non-existent outside the towns, and it's not exactly multicultural, or welcoming to foreigners, especially the villages.

My PIL moved into Ludlow from one of the surrounding villages, mostly due to non existent public transport and local services.

Kakfor's guide is 'moving to Birmingham and the surrounds' and is of course just advertising. Hilariously off target.

Shropshire is lovely, however, the smaller towns like Market Drayton, Ludlow and Whitchurch do have issues with drugs and are a bit boring for older kids.

Public transport outside of Telford and Shrewsbury is rubbish and many places are a pain to get to even by car.

Shrewsbury is a great place to live with lots going on for all ages and easy to get to Birmingham and Manchester. It’s not at all multicultural though and some attitudes are very backwards.

Look at some of the villages on the outskirts of town, you can get the country living but close to amenities.

sorry, all I saw was the usual stuff about Birmingham and the surrounding cities. Same as we get on the 'local' TV stations where the world stops at Telford.

Bridgnorth, Newport, Lillishall - all great schools, good transport links and you’d get a decent house for your budget. I am Shropshire born and raised and have 4 kids being educated here

Much Wenlock
Iron bridge
Shrewsbury
Bridgnorth

Update: we've been exploring Shropshire today and were really impressed with Shrewsbury. Can anyone please tell me more about it? Where is good to live? Is the traffic always a nightmare? Will we get primary school places? Etc. Thank you!

Shrewsbury is great. Traffic is worst north of town, Harlescott area, but getting worse everywhere, as with a lot of towns. Maybe the promised north west relief road will help a bit with this. Lots of nice areas to live. Try Radbrook/Copthorne for your budget. It can be tricky finding school places in year. How old are your children? Suggest you ring a few schools in January to ask about current vacancies.

Ooh we’re in Shropshire! Wasn’t aware of any particular drug problems so maybe it’s the places you choose?!
Shrewsbury’s nice but the traffic is always a nightmare especially at school pick ups and rush hour times. Schools are pretty good there though and you do have better transport links than more rurally. The countryside south of Shrewsbury is absolutely stunning especially in the hills so I’d def recommend you going for a drive.
Where you choose will very much depend on how rural you want. Newport’s lovely and we’re hoping to send our DD to school there or Shrewsbury as they’re the best.
We live in Whitchurch currently, it’s a nice small market town and is a pretty easy commute to Shrewsbury, Telford, Chester, Wrexham and Crewe. It has seen a bit of a decline of late though and places like Ellesmere, Oswestry even Market Drayton are more bustling and thriving. Ludlows nice as is Bishops Castle and down that way.
I personally wouldn’t recommend Drayton or Telford, although there are some nice places on the outskirts, houses command a lower price because of where they are.

North Shropshire is very different to South Shropshire. South of Shrewsbury is quite expensive but the "drug problems" that other posters mention are just as prevalent there as in the north; they're just better hidden.
North Shropshire is seeing a lot of house building at the moment and you'll get much more for your £300k if you look above Shrewsbury, whether you want a new build or something more established.
You'll need to get used to being a good drive away from hospitals and associated medical and health services unless you live in Shrewsbury or Telford. Public transport is dire so make sure you have a car.
Having moved here from London 18 years ago (I grew up in a nearby county) I honestly would not move back. Wherever you move to, get involved in a community group to make new friends as people are very friendly.
Shropshire is a great place to live, but do be prepared to shift down a gear. The biggest shock I had was the lack of takeaway deliveries but that's been rectified and my town is now just about in 2001!

Thank you everyone. It's specifically Shrewsbury that we're looking at, although Newport was nice.

What suburbs should we be looking at? Where to avoid?

@MotherOfSoupDragons the dc are years 2 and 3.

I'll PM you.

Thank you!

Wem is nice but a bit off the beaten track.

Wenlock/London/Sutton Road side of Shrewsbury is nice, and you'd be within minutes of Sainsbury's, Lidl and Aldi.
Bayston Hill has some nice areas. It's technically a village, just south of Shrewsbury but to all intents and purposes it's part of the town. Copthorne area is nice. Avoid Harlescott, Ditherington and most of Monkmoor.

Areas that are nice:
Kingsland
Port Hill
Copthorne
London road/Wenlock Road

Areas not so nice:
Harlescott
Sundorne
Gains Park
Castlefields
Ditherington

I live in a ‘not so nice’ area but on a lovely family friendly new build estate. It’s a great area for older kids as there’s so much to do nearby.

I hope I've just sent you a PM. Not done it before! Where are you moving from, btw?