To move away from london but where to?

[Hotmad]

I've got a little baby girl now and I don't want to bring her up in london, I love london but I feel she would have a better childhood out of london.... Do you think this is fair to say?
Where In UK is nice to live for young family life that doesn't get affected by flooding or near an airport.
Is it reasonable to think I could find somewhere affordable with the requirements above?

The town where I live NEVER gets flooded (the last time was at the end of the 1800's because we havent built on the flood plains), is cheap especially by London standards and 5 minutes in the car you are in the countryside and the village I am in is literally round the corner to fields, horses and farms. Its brilliant!

I am in the Midlands, East/West border.

Oh and we have all the big shops plus a 24 hour Tesco!

I live in bristol and I love it. I think it is a great place for kids, it's a busy and thriving city with plenty going on but much calmer than london. I came here from London and the cost of housing is much cheaper here though compared to a lot of the country it is still expensive.

Whats your budget?

Well Id like to be near a town centre but also somewhere close to countryside or coast, somewhere not prone to flooding, I know i shouldn't worry too much but somewhere with a bit of diversity. Budget for a house is around 100,000 to 150,000

Well come and live in Cardiff! Fabulous city centre countryside no further than 15 mins wherever you live. Barry island of gavin and stacey fame only 25 mins (traffic depending) cardiff bay itself has white water rafting etc. Beautiful beaches on the heritage coast only 40 mins away. We have an airport but its not in Cardiff just outside and not great so no noise pollution. Oh and brecon beacons 45 mins away
Millennium centre in the bay has all the best shows. Its a wonderful place to live!

We don't flood either.

Second Cardiff, I'm just outside the city, less than 10 mins to city and bay, but feels like the country. Great schools, great quality of life, much cheaper housing.

I am in Mid-Suffolk in a lovely village with two pubs a 6-10 shop, two churches, a hardware shop, a primary school, a pre-school, a museum and lots of lovely walks. Not near an airport and no flooding!!

Come to Durham!

I live in Surrey & love it! Beautiful round here but close enough to London to take advantage of everything it offers

We moved from London to West Kent - which could be tricky on your budget - but we have London an hour away, the sea 45 mins away, and beautiful rural countryside on our doorstep. I can walk into town easily and the bus routes near us mean as the children get older they can get to the cinema/town/shopping/friends really easily. We have four children so once we decided private schooling was out we moved somewhere that has fantastic schools on the doorstep and gives us the best of all worlds really! As a child I was at a rural boarding school and lived in the middle of nowhere so in the holidays my parents spent the whole time driving us around to places. Whilst my heart yearns to be back in the middle of a West Country rural idyll, my head tells me it would be bonkers!

I live in Cornwall.

If I had to live anywhere other than here it would be Cardiff or Bristol.

I have lived in lots of place, Yorkshire, East Mids, West Mids, Gloucestershire and loved everywhere. For me home is where the heart it but what one person loves someone else might help.

Why not do some research on places you may want to live and then take some day trips or weekends visiting so you can get a feel of an area.

Gloucestershire/Monmouthshire is great for many reasons. M4/M40 connections, house prices are a fraction of the price of the home counties where I am from originally. And beautiful scenery and quality of life, great schools (I live opposite an Outstanding primary school and the local comp secondary school has just been awarded £5m for complete rebuild). Plus you get the choice of either England or Wales NHS facilities.

We are just doing the same thing & moving out of London to raise our family. I would suggest either Buckinghamshire - fantastic grammar school system & easily commutable into London - or Oxfordshire.

Teenagers don't usually want to be stuck out in the sticks. Raising children in the middle of nowhere is much more of an adult fantasy than a child one.

Why do Londoners appear to think that you would only ever move away from London to live in the middle of the countryside?

There are lots of other towns and cities in the UK that are absolutely lovely to live in, as is demonstrated by this thread

Surrey or Kent. London 30/40 minutes away and lovely countryside. Best of both.

Where in kent? Can anyone suggest? I've heard some places are not so nice... I don't know it too well though. I love the sound of Cardiff!!!

Can you afford Kent with that budget? Head north!

I echo those advising you to think about it carefully. I grew up in a village in Berkshire - not totally the sticks, but certainly a discrete village, surrounded with farmland, on a rail spur, with one bus every two hours but not on Sundays, etc. Damn place was flooded again when I visited my parents recently.

I enjoyed it (lots of walks across fields and woods, had a pony and a dog, on the river a lot) until the age of about 13. Thereafter, I was on the train, travelling 100 minutes into London or Reading whenever I could (i.e. every Saturday and Sunday). GOD, my village was dull! London was a LOT better - and so was even Reading! Realistically, teenagers love London, and yours are likely to curse you for moving away, unless you end up near to a vibrant big city like Manchester instead. or don't tell them you ever lived there

I also hated having to travel for 30 minutes by car to get to my secondary school. I'd have liked it to be walkable or on a bus route.

Agree that London is a fabulous place for kids, but the housing situation there is ridiculous. The OP is a nurse - she's not going to be able to buy anywhere in London. And in a country where tenants are treated like shit, that matters. Go North, OP, and seek your fortune. We have cities up here as well!

No gang culture in Cardiff for your innocent teen to fall foul of on the 57 bus one day. MUCH cheaper Uni fees, no prescription charges, nice schools, possible to buy a house on a nurses salary, some very good schools inc one that offers the IB, superb shopping without West end crowds. £5 coach fare and a £20 per night travel lodge takes care of the occasional need to feed your "London Fix".

Windsor, Guildford, sunninghill etc, near London but cheaper

I hate to think I am biased. . Growing up in Cardiff was horrible. It probably had many of the same attractions as in beaches etc but I didn't drive then. . I am 41 now and every time I head to the centre I am amazed at the diversity. Today we headed down the bay/barrage and I found nirvana. . In the shape of a cafe and bar overlooking the bay. I didn't know it existed@ It was bliss. Except I was driving so sadly could not partake in the wine!