Worthing/ Shoreham/alternatives to Brighton

[Wondergirl100]

hello - I want to move to the south coast but my partner not keen on Brighton (where I have connections/ friends and am v fond of) - am looking up the coast - we work in creative industries so ideally somewhere might be similar people to connect up with/ work in shared spaces with - somewhere with v friendly community vibe would be good - I don't mind if quiet etc as growing kids and I think as teens they will have more freedom somewhere safer (one reason Im leaving London)

Somewhere where an 11 yr old could happly go to beach/ park with friends would be ideal...

Hastings possible but not good train lines to family in S London so thinking west of Brighton would be better.

What’s your budget?

I live in Worthing and I love it but I'm not sure it would meet your need re creative links.

Shoreham might be better - there has been a reasonable arts scene there but I'm not sure what it is like post lockdown.

Have you considered Hove? It is much more likely to meet your needs and is a great alternative to Brighton - easy access without being right in the thick of it.

Thanks both. I have been to Shoreham and found it felt small/ quiet/ to me - I thought as Worthing is bigger it might have more on offer.

Hove - yes I think I need to go back and look there - the properties that are in the nice areas seemed either v expensive or too small...

budget - cld go up to 700 if 4/ 5 bed house. A major reason my husband isn't keen on Brighton is house prices..thought we might get more for our money further out...but maybe what we need is in Brighton/Hove

@PhoboPhobia - putting aside creative stuff is it friendly/good for older kids etc? I could always travel into Brighton for the creative/ work stuff if the lifestyle was worth it in Worthing (ie. kids on the beach at weekends, feeling safe) I live in a part of London with a lot of crime and people dont tend to give teens much freedom which I want to get away from.

I live in Shoreham! I've been here for just over a year and I love it. It is definitely picking up again post-lockdown... everything has reopened, loads of live music, the Ropetackle Arts Centre has films, comedy, theatre, etc. We're just about to start an arts festival called WordFest and planning is underway for the winter Light Up Shoreham celebration. It is small, but certainly not sleepy! And there's a lovely sense of community.

I grew up in Shoreham in the 70's/80's. I think it has changed quite a bit (but probably not enough for kids used to central London).

Yes as teens we all used to head for the beach/canoe on the river or head up to the Downs in the warmer months. Brighton was an easy bus ride away. Sports and leisure facilities weren't brilliant. There is one secondary school or Brighton/Steyning/Worthing schools are a fairly hefty commute (though possibly not by London standards). I remember it being quite insular (or maybe our parents had far too many friends who would report back the slightest thing).

These days I think it is full of people who can't afford Brighton/want a quieter day to day life.

Different vibe, and further from the coast, have you ruled out Lewes?

@Watercoloursky that is nice to hear ! I am going to Shoreham this weekend so will look around - what's it like for young people growing up there? I want my kids to have freedom/ bit of an outdoor life...

@Madcats I'm thinking there must be a move down from Brighton because of prices - re. Lewes....I want the sea...I do like lewes though....

@Wondergirl100 Southwick beach has beach huts.

My lasting memory of the place was how blooming windy it was. Admittedly it is far more built up, but it wasn't unusual for a 15 minute bike ride to take an extra 10 minutes in the opposite direction.

Hmm, I'm not sure I can give a great view on that as I only have one fairly anti social teenager and an older DD!

I would definietly be careful where you look in Worthing - avoid Durrington like the plague although the High School there is good. We are lucky to have plenty of good Senior School provision generally. One thing to be aware of is that none of the schools have sixth forms. There is a sixth form college and it doesn't have a great reputation. Both of mine have gone/went to Chichester.

There are certainly plenty of good, well established sports clubs - football, martial arts etc. There is also a well equippes leisure centre that does a good membership scheme. There is also a league basketball team that has a junior squad.

On the whole it is neither friendly nor unfriendly. The problem with a big town is that you have to be lucky to find an area that has built its own community.

I seem to be talking you out of it - I can't quite put my finger on why I love it so much !!!

Is Chichester too far? I would definitely be looking at Chichester if I was moving.

The beach is nice and most of the main areas are safe - we sometimes have issues with travellers on the green beach areas (not all - some are great).

Sorry - one more positive - for the outdoors life - there is a good sailing club and lots of kite surfing/paddle boarding and there seems to be quite a community around the sailing club/Goring beach.

Shorehams lovely.

Don't move to Hastings.

ha. yes Im not keen on hastings to live - nice place to visit...

@PhoboPhobia it's good to get all sides! sailing and water stuff v much why I want to move - what is it you really love living there - peace and quiet/ nice feeling of sea / space /blue skies?

You’ve got to really consider schools as well. Some places on the south coast are awful. Have you considered inland a bit… Horsham and so on are all very safe and close to London/Brighton

Ahh. I definitely want the sea..I believe worthing and Shoreham both have good secondaries. The secondary schools in the bit of London where I live are among the bottom ten in the UK! So really it can't be worse than where I am now.

I think it is primarily the sea and the fact that you have the best of everything. It's not far to the countryside, Brighton is great for everything you want from a city and it's easy to get to London.

You don't have to travel far to find something interesting. Healthcare is pretty good and as mentioned, a great choice of schools.

A lot of work has been done to make the place more inviting and there are some great places to eat and drink now with plenty of variety. Now I think about it, there is a sense of local people investing to make the town more up to date. Kenny Tutt for example opened a restaurant after winning master chef and has just opened his second venue. There are great food trucks on the seafront which we've never had before and although the High Street is a bit underwhelming, there are still some good shops and some independents as well. Lots of good charity shops all over the place too!

[quote Wondergirl100]@Watercoloursky that is nice to hear ! I am going to Shoreham this weekend so will look around - what's it like for young people growing up there? I want my kids to have freedom/ bit of an outdoor life...

@Madcats I'm thinking there must be a move down from Brighton because of prices - re. Lewes....I want the sea...I do like lewes though....[/quote]
Hello! I don't have children, so not an expert on kids' activities/schools, but I've definitely seen lots advertised while I'm out and about. The Ropetackle screens childrens' films regularly (The Gruffalo's Child is on this week) and I have seen a good wodge of specifically children's activities listed as part of the arts festival I mentioned.

I've seen sports clubs in Buckingham Park (junior rugby, etc), and an under-18s disco advertised at the Shoreham Centre, and there are cadets and scouts and an outdoor activities-type centre by the river (haven't been there, but I assume young people are welcome!). A couple of weekends ago there was the Adur Family Fun Day in Buckingham Park, which had a funfair and stalls and activities - oh, and the circus comes to Shoreham every summer!

For older children, you have all of Brighton accessible via a very convenient train journey (maybe 17 mins?) or a longer bus trip along the coast.

Above all, though, in Shoreham there's the beach and the river and the Downs, which are great for swimming/SUP/exploring respectively - if your kids are outdoorsy, there's a lot of outdoors on your doorstep :-)

I can comment well having lived all over London and Brighton too. Can confirm Worthing is a great place if you want:
-A lovely quiet beach
-Beautiful countryside and walking nearby
-Friendly safe community, quite diverse and queer friendly
-Very good cafes restaurants pubs and bars (both traditional and also natural wines bars and small plates etc, craft breweries for a bit of pizazz)
-Good schools
-Leafy parks
-Decent town centre with walkable shops
-Three train stations(!) and an easy enough commute straight to Victoria/East Croydon/Clapham, and Brighton of course
-Decent parking (especially compared to Brighton)
-And affordable homes! I bought my three bedroom house in a good area for only 30k more than my one bedroom flat in Brighton-For us it's been a no brainer and we love it, we're in our 30s and lots of our friends are following suit.
-Best areas: Check it out in person. Personally we're near the station on a leafy nice street, Tarring (West) is also desirable. But the best way to ascertain is to go and walk around.