Isle of Wight.

[Moonflower12]

I know this shouldn't be really in this topic but posting for traffic- I'd posted in Local and only had a reply saying that no-one would reply!

There is a high chance we are moving to the Isle of Wight. We would like recommendations of where is nice to live, primary schools etc. Our daughter will be year 1.

We would like a family orientated area if possible but willing to look anywhere. We plan to rent for 12 months or so to get to know the island before buying but just wondering if there's any parts that are nicer than others.
My DP is on the island today so having a good look round for a couple of days.

Hi Moonflower12!

I am a weekend / holiday person on the IoW. We are in the West Wight (Totland Bay).

Where will you be working? I know that technically you can get pretty much anywhere on the island but I wouldn’t much want to commute to Ryde / Bembridge from where we are.

The east side of the island is more populated (but can get very busy, particularly in the holidays).

Where are you moving from?

I would say that pretty much all the towns / villages on the island are family orientated (provided it’s big enough to have a school).

I’ve PMed you

Newport's the main town, lots of lovely primary schools, cinema & parks. Ryde is nice & right on the beach or you could head into one of the villages in the country. I've lived here for ever & love everything about it. I'm in Newport & it's only a 10 min drive to the nearest beach which is lovely after school when it's warm, there's loads to do for the kids in the summer & the festival on my doorstep is amazing 😂 it's a lovely place to grow up & I feel I had a lot more freedom when I was younger than friends who moved over from the mainland. Teenage years were a bit boring & the boat fare is horrendous but aside from that i think it's great

@CruCru
Thank you for your reply. My DP would be based in Newport. I've yet to find a job.
@Springersrock
I don't know how to find a PM! I'm on the app. Would I need to be on my laptop? If so I'll look this evening.
@suzuki650
Thank you very much. That sounds really good and very much what we hoped to hear.

@Springersrock
I found it! Thank you. We have a springer too.

Hi my mum lives on the isle of Wight she moved there with her husband 8 years.
They both love it.
We have visited a lot and at one point when my dd was 3 we seriously considered moving there. I'm a nurse so wouldn't be a problem getting a job. Dh may struggle and would probably have to look on the mainland and travel and expensises added to that just didn't seem worth it
Another thing we considered after speaking with locals that my mum is friends with is that once kids leave school there is no jobs there. A lot of islanders say their kids have to leave the island
Also rent prices seem quite high and there is high levels of unemployment.
Saying all of this though it is a beautiful place and family orientated. I'm happy with just visiting and glad we did not make the move but my mum has settled there

i have met my kindred spirits !!! i love the isle of wight, dh and me are moving there in 2 years - super excited and can't wait !!! we visit three or four times a year for 5 /6 days and it's such a lovely place, we'd like to live central / west side of the island. i get so 'home sick' when we have to go back home to the main land. .
good luck with your move !

I live in Cowes and we love it. I lived here from13-18 thenleft until I was 28 and have been here ever since. One reason we came back is because of the relative freedom our kids can have here. My partner commutes to Southampton each day and I work in newport. Children all in schools in Cowes and I would happily send them to any of the local schools in this area.
Given his choice, DP would like to live Ventnor/Chale/Niton way but less practical for daily commute when we only have one car and I prefer the schools up this way.
We have friends who live all over the island and everyone is very happy whether they live in one of the towns or one of the villages.
If travelling into Newport for work, traffic gets busy from East Cowes/Ryde way more than the other ways.
Lots to do and nowhere really is very far so you could live anywhere - just depends what you are looking for. Some schools have excellent wraparound care, others not so much in some of the village schools so that may have an impact if you are going to be working too.
Good luck!!

I’d love to live over on the West Wight - Brook/Brighstone way, but with children in secondary school it just wasn’t practical

Definitely agree about jobs for school leavers. DH and I run our own business - one of the reasons we set it up was so that our children could have a job if they needed it.

I love it here - walked doggo on the beach this morning and now sitting in my office watching the sun sparkling on the sea. Bliss!!

Oh we went for the first time ever in July and stopped in Ventnor. Totally loved it. Going next year to stop in Shanklin.

Dh and I seriously thinking of retiring there in a few years.

It’s so gorgeous and friendly

Thank you all for your replies. I'm getting super excited but also worried that it might all fall through and I'm now over- invested in the idea. Agggghh!
My DP has brought back lots of newspapers and local magazines that have made it even more exciting.
I will just have to have faith that it will be all ok.

@Glittered
House prices and rent are loads cheaper than here- the Cotswolds!

Thank you for the heads up about jobs for school leavers. As our daughter is only 5, I'm thinking I'll worry about that nearer the time.

We have a spaniel so it will be lovely to walk her on the beaches and the DD.

Fingers crossed it all comes together!

Thank you again for taking the time to reply.

@paintinmyhairAgain
Let's hope we both make it and have lovely lives in the island.

Without a doubt I would go with Gurnard primary and onto Cowes enterprise now. Cowes is going to be the only academic sixth form on island soon and catchment is likely to close in.
Cowes is the nicest of the island towns by far.

@CherryPavlova
Oooh thank you. I'll wander off for a google now.

moonflower we are already clearing / reducing our stuff / junk on ebay, for the move in 2 yeas ! well see you on the red jet ferry with our removal vans and we'll celebrate with a glass or two on the sun deck [provided the weather's nice - oh don't forget your passport for travelling vaccinations are up to date and remember isle of wight isn't a tax haven - boo!

i say that because my dad is from ryde and he used to tease me as a kid about going 'aboard' to the island i was about 13 before i discovered the truth

*abroad

@paintinmyhairAgain
We will. We are doing the eBay thing too. And a skip!
We will definitely find each other on the island.

I used to work for a conservatory company in the 90s and we genuinely counted the IOW as 'overseas'. I think the transport manager was a bit too literal in his ideas!

I'd say West Wight to live if you can..Totland/ Freshwater.. I love here .. There are school buses aplenty ..

I drive into Newport everyday .. it takes about 25 mins , its so much easier than coming from the east side of the island (Ryde etc) which is much more busy

I used to work in Newport but didn’t want the restrictions of island living so I lived in Southampton and commuted to Newport. Think it was 1 hour 10 each way.
The ferry is expensive for you and for your visitors and is a bit of a pain though. West wight is really really quiet and dare I say in a bit of a time warp. Hard for school leavers to find jobs and I think most move to the mainland (or commute).
Much cheaper than the Cotswolds though!

I live and work in Cowes and wouldn't change it for the world, lovely beaches, 25 minutes from Southampton if I want if, lots of baby groups for ds1, I pay £700 rent for 3 bed with garden and parking in town.

Time warp .. cant say I have noticed that myself.. (winds up broadband thingy with bit of old bone.. )...

What's education like in general now on the island? I live just across the water, and I have memories of South Today regularly talking about poor schools. Have things improved? Are you still a 3 tier system?