Where in Kent would you live if...

[ExceptonWednesdays]

• You needed 4 double bedrooms
• Wanted a big garden and parking
• Worked in London
• Had primary-aged children and couldn't consider private schooling
• LOVED the sea, particularly with sandy beaches
• Were a serious trail runner (i.e. too much flat open space gave you the heebie-jeebies)
• LOVED Port Lympne (random, I know)
• LOVED a bouji hangout/café/eatery/arty spot
• Had £1.2m to spend.

Or would you look beyond Kent?! I'm a SE girl (not Kent), just always thought it's absolutely lovely whenever we go!

Westgate On Sea
Ds lives there. I love visiting. It has a railway station direct to Victoria. Cinema, Independent greengrocers, florists, butchers. Co op. Two chemist's, charity shops. Excellent doctors, cafes and wine bars. Lovely beach and seafront walking.

Yes TW is completely soulless, with its food and music festivals, 2 theatres, bars and restaurants and new arts centre in town....

Those things don’t give a place soul tbf. I think calling it soulless is a bit harsh. It’s anodyne, conservative & lacks diversity but some people love that.

We're DFLs. In a village outside Folkestone. 10 mins from the sea at Sandgate or Hythe. Folkestone down the old High Street and Harbour Arm is fantastic. Yes the very centre of town is a bit shit but there's nice cafes all the way down from Cheriton to the sea.

I only commute once a week now but ot used to be three times a week. I drive to Ashford and go from there. Door to door is same amount of time it used to take me from zone 3 to the office.

I'd definitely be looking at Folkestone and surrounds OP.

I only commute once a week now but ot used to be three times a week. I drive to Ashford and go from there. Door to door is same amount of time it used to take me from zone 3 to the office.

Really?! what part of London were you in?

@Elderflower14 Doesn't he have weeks of seaweed issues? The people I know who live in next door Birchington have huge issues with stinging eyes and everything silver oxidising which can go on for over a month every summer. They've tried to sell as it's happening more frequently than when they first moved.
https://theisleofthanetnews.com/2023/08/15/trade-falls-for-businesses-as-tonnes-of-stinking-seaweed-continues-to-cover-isle-beaches/

Crystal Palace. Train from Ashford to St Pancras is 39 minutes. From Victoria to CP was scheduled as 28 but never ever took less than 35. Walk from station to house about same then as drive to station is now.

We live JUST in Kent - Bickley.
only just moved there, and absolutely love it.
5 min drive to forests and trails, country pubs etc, 5 min to shops (feels safe for my 12 year old DD to go out by herself), 32 min to Victoria by train.
whitstable is an hour away by train.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/141209675

This is an excellent point @11NigelTufnel . I have no experience of the grammar system and it's not present where I currently live so haven't given it a huge amount of thought but yes you're absolutely right re house prices/selectivism!. (Was really just hoping for a lovely local comp, which, frustratingly we have where we currently live 😂)

Just logged back on after returning from a few days in... Kent! I'm thrilled with all these responses, thanks so much, great insight and food for thought! We've an opportunity to move this year, and need a new start, so these kind of tips are invaluable, and make it all very real and exciting!

Also v interested to read all the (hot?!) takes on Kent schooling. As posted above, the grammar system is very alien to us (I'm a bog-standard state school girl, DH isn't British), so will have to be front and centre of move considerations. One poster mentioned "looking down your nose at people scrimping to put their kids through private education", not sure if this was aimed at me but let me be clear, my educational preferences for my bright and beautiful sprogs are personal, well-informed and open to debate, and do not and never will lend themselves to snobbery, inverted or otherwise.

Now, back to Rightmove, whiffs of sea air, and a much-needed new start. Genuine thanks to all contributors! ❤

I'd go for one of the villages around Staplehurst. From there you've a fairly straightforward commute to London, not too far from the coast, varied countryside (there's always Bedgebury for trails) and aren't too far from Tunbridge Wells or Maidstone.

Another vote for Folkestone! Yes, town centre generally shite, with exception of creative quarter, which is funky & fresh. (Expensive tho!). Harbour arm amazing! The food, views & atmosphere just great! The sea, although mostly pebbly beaches extend for miles and are clean with amazing colour. Quick travel into London if needed. Driving around a dream. The most amazing architecture of buildings, loads of green spaces. Great places to eat out. The only negatives, I think- taxis massively expensive, if you live rurally, internet hit and miss, & limited deliveries from foodie places. Also, public transport & restaurants etc close/stop, relatively early. Not a 24 hr lifestyle. However, opposite of that can be the peace & quiet, & low light pollution. Your price bracket, I would probably look at hythe, cliff road, which has the most incredible views across the bays, or go country to elham/ stelling areas. I currently live in one of the outlying villages, & absolutely love it!

Faversham- 50 mins to Stratford, 60 to st pancreas. Endless country runs that go on through orchards or along the creek out to the sea. Lovely pubs. 15 mins to Whitstable for the seaside, 15 mins to Canterbury for city shopping or Howletts (Port Ltmpes sister!) £1.2 mil will get you a stunning house there

Excellent schools for primary and secondary age and Canterbury has an excellent food scene. Favershams good for pub grub, cosy cafes and a few trendier venues down by the Quay for pizza, wine bar etc

As I posted before - grammars are all around Kent. Be aware though they are very varied and require different pass marks to get into. Canterbury (I think) is one of the lowest, with Sevenoaks/Tunbridge Wells/Tonbridge being far harder to get into but better achieving.

If you go for Canterbury there are 3 private schools, Kent College Canterbury, The Kings Canterbury and St Edmunds. The Kings Canterbury is one of the more elite and oldest schools in the country and has a matching price tag and consistently in the top 100 for GCSEs. St Ed's and KCC are both quite similar in academic attainment (ranking around the 250th in the country) with slightly better results on average than the grammar schools in the area (between 260/320th in the country). Everyone who sees their children as "grammar material" will tutor, some as early as Y2/Y3 of Primary and many will continue to have private tuition alongside the grammar school through all years.

We are within the triangle of Sevenoaks, Tunbridge Wells and Maidstone. Bought two years ago for 1.3 million. Easy commute to London, lovely mix of towns around and little villages. Very happy here. Tho beach about 40 mins away.

Nowhere near the Medway that’s for sure! Tunbridge Wells / surrounding area if you want nice, and 1.2 mil will get you nice

It’s not Kent, but Ive always had a hankering for Rye - close to camber sands, Hastings, and all of the lovely places around it. Rye has a comp that the kids of Paul and Linda McCartney (sp?) went to.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/138702983
we spent loads of lovely summers around Hastings, Bexhill and Rye when dd was small and there’s loads to do there.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144805289

Choose carefully, especially as you say your dh is not British. Kent coast is prime UKIP territory- log on to some of the local groups to get an idea of attitudes. 'Naice' areas are Sevenoaks, Tunbridge Wells. Faversham has Oare Marshes, Canterbury more diverse than some areas due to the student population. We quite like Hythe, Westgate, Broadstairs, Rye for day trips but it's very different to London.

I think East Sussex might be a better bet. Maybe Lewes close to the sea, pretty, quite bohemian - loads of arty groups , fully state schools with a nice family atmosphere. Walk straight up onto the South Downs from town. Or further West to Witterings or Chichester,

Bit bloody cold too!

Yes @Tumerictolly is right, Lewes is an excellent suggestion, nice new art gallery and cafe in centre of town... beautiful surrounding countryside.

THis looks fab

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144170951#/?channel=RES_BUY

Sadly agree with @Turmerictolly. Some of the attitudes I've come across remind me of the 70s, and not in a pleasant way. "Down from London" is wolf-whistle for some relating to the colour of your skin.