Talk to me about real life outside London

[Herewegoagain84]

We’re considering the big move out. I’ve been a Londoner all my life and always considered I would stay, but I’ve got a third child cooking and I think it’s time. I know it sounds mad but I’d love to hear what your life outside London is like - especially with children at the weekend. We have everything so accessible to us here and always plenty to do. Can you talk me through how we might be spending our time and what activities you do / how weekends are spent? If you lived in London previously was it a good decision to move? Thanks!

I'll go t'foot of our stairs!

@ DomesticatedZombie this made me cry with laughter!!! I haven’t laughed so hard in a LONG time! My 3yo just said “mummy why are you crying so much?”

@BarbaraofSeville

Well according to Google shopping you can get canned haricot beans without sauce, in Morrisons, Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury's, plus Ocado, Biona that you might be able to get in Holland and Barrett etc, plus there's the naice jar versions at eight times the price.

But threads like these always descend into 'London is just better and if you don't agree that's because you don't understand, you unsophisticated peasants'..

I am finding this thread hilarious, and LOVE the bean comments, though can I make it very clear that I did in fact get the beans in the end - from a Sainsbury’s online order. I just thought that it’s weird that I live in Notts and visited 5 shops to make a specific recipe before giving up and going online.

Tell your child you weep not over the haricots, for a brighter day has been promised, when lo, a Waitrose shall gleam on the brow of every hill and the dark satanic mills shall ring out with the cries of expat Londoners forging a new Britain built on the joy of hummus for all.

Just to check?

Are we talking about these haricot beans?

www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/262167712

We have 2 very large Tescos here about 15 minutes apart on a (not too congested) ring road.

I live in Edinburgh so it's much like a miniature London in some ways. Lots of things on your doorstep but it can take an age to get there anyway as traffic is horrendous. Difference is once you are out of the main throng which thankfully is incredibly small you have the countryside/beach/hills right there to enjoy

@BarbaraofSeville

Well according to Google shopping you can get canned haricot beans without sauce, in Morrisons, Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury's, plus Ocado, Biona that you might be able to get in Holland and Barrett etc, plus there's the naice jar versions at eight times the price.

So let’s be clear are you accusing @AllOfMyLove of lying or stupidity?
(And you’re aware items on the website aren’t always available in local stores.)

She’s already been told she moved to the wrong place.

Just move to the outskirts of another city. That way you have all bases covered.

You might like Brighton which is like a mini London in many respects.

Ah, but ye'll have had yer hummus, live.

@DomesticatedZombie

Tell your child you weep not over the haricots, for a brighter day has been promised, when lo, a Waitrose shall gleam on the brow of every hill and the dark satanic mills shall ring out with the cries of expat Londoners forging a new Britain built on the joy of hummus for all.

It’s quite telling of MN that wherever you are in the country you’re expected to be near a Waitrose.

My guess is we have better access to some activities (horse riding, outdoor swimming, beach) but worse access to museums, theatre and live music (although there is some).

There are riding stables in central London, a lido in Hyde park. Granted no beach but definitely opportunities for outdoor swimming:boating etc

There are riding stables in central London, a lido in Hyde park. Granted no beach but definitely opportunities for outdoor swimming:boating et

Remember sailing on Brent Cross reservoir! Not quite the same as the North Sea though

@DomesticatedZombie

Tell your child you weep not over the haricots, for a brighter day has been promised, when lo, a Waitrose shall gleam on the brow of every hill and the dark satanic mills shall ring out with the cries of expat Londoners forging a new Britain built on the joy of hummus for all.

I've just made a human sacrifice to the Gods to bring on that Miraculous Day.

@liveforsummer

My guess is we have better access to some activities (horse riding, outdoor swimming, beach) but worse access to museums, theatre and live music (although there is some).

There are riding stables in central London, a lido in Hyde park. Granted no beach but definitely opportunities for outdoor swimming:boating etc

Sure, I didn't say there was no access to these things in London, but I stand by saying there is better access in the country (certainly in my area - and I've previously lived in London so this isn't an uneducated opinion).

Just like there isn't no access to museums and theatre where I am, but there is doubtless better access in London.

I'm a bit surprised at the idea everything has to be better in London! There are different advantages in different places.

Remember sailing on Brent Cross reservoir! Not quite the same as the North Sea though

warmer though, I'd imagine.

@AreWeThereYetMummy lol. Yes there is a life outside london but at a premium. You are fortunate to be able to afford to move to somewhere with all those things. Quite a few towns are really not as affluent as that. The nicer places tend to be out of a lot of people's budget. Hence the jealousy fell by some towards 'up from Londons' who have made such a killing from property prices and are causing the same thing to happen up here. I hoped to move back to York when the kids move out with a very modest budget, not a cat in hells chance now.

@Jansobieski I find your comment strange. Our house in a village was about the same price as the one we moved from and has one less bedroom. This thread is actually about moving out of London so that was what I answered!

I don't thing we've impacted the house prices to be honest. It also isn't a particularly affluent area but we did do research to make sure there would be various amenities. Those activities are in all different directions/towns from our village, the furthest is 50 mins, the closest from the doorstep and the majority under 25 mins.

The local town does have a Waitrose if that's your measure of 'affluent'

I don't thing we've impacted the house prices to be honest

People moving from London to York have definitely impacted local house prices. Not that they were cheap before but now they are ridiculous. People commuting to London, WFH and hybrid working, on London pay.

But that's a separate thread.

Where are you thinking of moving to? Outer tube? Essex or Wimbledon, Kent or Surrey?
We can be in Waterloo in 40 minutes and visit London museums if we want.

@FizzyBizz

Slightly off the general topic, but on the ‘finding specific products’ issue - you do get very spoilt for choice in London because of the massive mix of cultures. I live in an area with a lot of Greek and Turkish people, and also a big Jewish population, so we have a range of specialist food shops here. There are definitely a lot of products you wouldn’t find many other places in the UK, other than perhaps other big cities.

10 minutes drive away is an area with a big African and Caribbean population, so again, the range of imported fruit & veg, spices and seasonings, even the meat in the butchers, is very different to what you’d get in Tesco.

Online shopping has changed things a lot, I guess. I don’t think the food thing would bother me if I left London.

But for years one of the things that put us off moving out of London was my mixed-race daughter’s horror at living in an area with no black hair shops or hair salons.
These ‘little’ things can make a big difference to how you feel about where you live.

(I’m a born and bred Londoner considering a move out, too, btw).

Non of this is unique to London though ,I live in a large town in the northwest ,I t can order pretty much any type of takeaway my heart desires ,my town is very multicultural we have an excellent out door and indoor market ,that sell all different ,fruit and veg ,meats cheeses etc Also i know that I have walked past salons for black hair , At least 50% of the pupils in my son's high school are not white British, it really does depend on the demographics of any given area .

Our weekends are deathly dull so you don’t want to hear about them. You need to decide what you love to do. How you want to live. Do you want to rely on a car or public transport for example? Is travelling back to London important? What’s your budget? We were house hunting abd I was actually shocked at how expensive everywhere else is now on par with London. I think the big move out has just pushed prices up everywhere. So be prepared to be a little disappointed about what a decent chunk of money gets you now.

So on the way home from brunch (award winning cafe) I stopped of at the tiny Tesco near me. They had tahini and brown rice but no haricot beans. They had butter bean, black eye beans, borlotti, kidney, and cannellini beans but no haricot.

@cakeorwine

I don't thing we've impacted the house prices to be honest

People moving from London to York have definitely impacted local house prices. Not that they were cheap before but now they are ridiculous. People commuting to London, WFH and hybrid working, on London pay.

But that's a separate thread.

But you must be aware that house prices have rising across the whole country for the last 20 years. We’ve technically been in a bubble since 2003.

And that the pandemic has triggered flight from inner city flats to leafier suburbs and towns. Thus people moving to York will come from all over the country - as much from other northern cities as London.

Non of this is unique to London though ,I live in a large town in the northwest

There are plenty areas you won't find it though. I grew up in the Scottish Borders and even in the larger towns you wouldn't have fond and still wouldn't find a black hairdressers and the demographic is mostly white British although that's changed a little slowly over time

People always talk about the ease of getting places in London due to the public transport, and public transport is great in London. But during peak tourist times/rush hour it's bloody awful trying to get anywhere in my experience - I used to live in Zone 2 and it could be a twenty five minute door to door trip to the strand, but if it was busy it would turn into an hour long slog of standing on a crowded platform not being able to get on until the fifth tube, squashed between strangers, and then standing like sardines on the actual tube (or bus). I can't even imagine what it would have been like with a family and all that paraphernalia in tow!

Although I do appreciate that cars are expensive, there can be traffic, and it can be be difficult to get parked, I personally find it much easier to get places outside of London - even if there is traffic at least I have my own space, and there's plenty of room to keep extra coats/prams/etc.