If you commute to London, where do you live?

[MonstranceClock]

There’s a course I want to do in London when I I finish my degree, but I don’t think I will be affording to live there. If you live in a cheaper are outside of London, where is it and what is your commute like?
The other option is to move to the north of England where they also run the course, but I really can’t hear the accent (i’m Not English native and my brain just can’t process the accent! I feel this may be too much of a challenge.)
Aibu to consider commuting to London from an hour or so away or to try and basically (what feel like) learn a new language!

Live in Bedford, work in London but also have just finished part time course in Cambridge. Cambridge and London are commutable from Bedford. (Cambridge - I did park and ride / stage coach)

Buckinghamshire for me and it's 53 minutes into central London but it costs me £28 a day

Is driving a no no in London?

South coast, takes an hour into London. Depends on where in London you need to be - I have no onward journey from the London terminals but you could need to get on the tube (my worst commuting nightmare!!).

Factor in the cost of commuting - my season ticket is the best part of £5k. Also it's v v expensive to live in my town. Not necessarily a saving all in all.

There are cheaper areas to live nearish to Cambridge - you would need to check out the transport though.
The "north" has a lot of different accents - and you can adapt when you are immersed in it (Academic faculty are unlikely to have strong accents). I adapted very quickly to the Aberdonian accent which is one of the hardest in the UK (and after a year away could still get a joke that depended on the accent to be funny).

I honestly wouldn't let the accent put you off. I'm not from the UK and studied 'up North' in an area with a strong accent and got used to it quite quickly. Also, the people on the course and those teaching it will most likely not have quite as strong an accent as the locals.

Russell square suits anywhere going into St Pancras, Euston or Kings Cross. Thameslink goes through St Pancras and runs through some cheaper areas of south east london/north kent. Not sure about areas to the North but there must be some not too far out that are cheaper.

Driving is pretty much a no no in central London. It's expensive and unless you get an allocated parking space parking will be really expensive.

Ok the other places are Preston, lancashire and Edinburgh. I definitely can’t do Scotland. I will consider it certainly but I’m worried about feeling too alien.

I went to uni at Russell Square and commuted from High Wycombe. Cheaper rent but the train is about £400-500 a month with a railcard. Honestly I think you’d be better off in a London house share and commuting by bike/bus/tube.

(Sorry when I said expensive I meant the congestion charge.)

Have you considered renting a room in a shared house from spareroom?

You might have northern lecturers in London, and London lecturers in Lancashire. Or lecturers from elsewhere in the world! I would just go to the cheaper area if the course is the same.

Cambridge is almost as expensive as London. I know someone who commutes to London from Grantham, it takes 65 minutes to get to Kings Cross and you can walk to Russell Square from there.

Don't forget that once you get to London you still have to get from the station to your course, and the reverse at the end of the day, which can double the duration and cost of your commute, and reduce any savings from living elsewhere.

A long journey twice a day sucks up all your free time too, so you end up just sleeping at home during the week and needing the whole weekend to catch up on errands you haven't had time for because of the commute. It puts a lot of pressure on social life, exercise time, hobbies etc because your margin for sponteneity is smaller, plus you might well be tired, especially if you're dealing with traffic hell at rush hour; for me the stress of travelling is as big a drawback as the time it talkes. You can end up missing out on the advantages of being in London because you have to catch your train, and not really having a life at home because you get home late.

If the 'language barrier' is really your main worry about moving I'd urge you not to let that sway your hand, because your ear will tune in pretty fast, and of course faster the more you interact. Quality of life issues like travel and finances will have a much bigger impact. If you love London the commute might not matter, but if not I would definitely think twice. Maybe the course providers could put you in touch with some current students in each location so you can find out the realities of both before you decide.

Preston would be a lot cheaper. You could try paying a local person to give you "english conversation", say 1hr a week, until you got used to the accent.

Edinburgh is a lovely city, but expensive.

Ok Cambridge is miles out of London and v expensive.

The accents thing is a non problem. I'd go north if I were you. Go a few weeks early if you can, go out and about, talk to people! You'll get used to it v quick. Or just do you tube or telly. Which northern cities? Loads of tv you can watch based in north of England. Why is Scotland out? Which areas? Again, accents vary massively.

Which country are you from, if that's not too intrusive.

I say all this as someone Londony.

Edinburgh is v pricey.

Don't know Preston.

Where in lancs?

Is the Cambridge location the one you consider northern England? It isn’t?

I now drive into Bloomsbury twice a week (due to a bad back). It can be done, but it’s an unusual choice.

What kind of course is it? Full time? Part time? Day? Evening? How long?

I assume she meant Preston, Lancs - ie Preston is in Lancs.

Boarder of Kent/ London - look for a flat share, c£700 a month- travel zone 4-1 £194 a month!

Oh okay, so Cambridge, Bloomsbury, Lancashire or Scotland? That’s the choice?

Where are you living now?

Hertfordshire for London and Cambridge is convenient.

I'd second Purley. It's in London so cheaper commute but also rent not too bad. You could also try Sutton, Bromley or Orpington.

All these are in London with lots of amenities. For travel, you can get a travelcard or just tap your debit card in and out of the stations.

Driving into central London is impossible. Takes forever + you need to pay congestion charge (£11.50 a day) + £20+ for parking.

I live in Zone 4 (Kent/SE London depending who you ask lol) and work in W1 - it's pretty much an hour door to door. It's not worth moving further out because it would take £20 a month off rent but add more than that on the cost of commuting and the time taken. It's a balancing act OP and it might be better to consider a uni outside London.