To think the north of England offers a worse quality of life than the South or Midlands?

[DDRickyDD]

I was thinking of moving to Lancashire, but having done some research online, it seems a lot of people have negative opinion of it. I'm now set on Warwickshire or Leicestershire. Does the north in general offer a worse quality of life than the Midlands? I know its cheaper up north but is it much worse up there?

I think the story goes that when they were building the m62 he refused to sell up so they just built around the house 🤣

That's right, they built an access tunnel iirc. Eventually I think it was sold and is now a maintenance place I think?

That's actually a myth bloody
There's a geographical fault under the house which would have made it a huge job ....the easiest option was to leave the house where it is and build around it.

everyone always says it cos' they refused to move though! Seeing that house means I'm 10 mins from home!

I think the 'refusal to sell' was actually a myth and if they'd have wanted the occupier at the time out, they would have gone to court to get an order force an eviction and the real reason is that the steep ground in the area meant that they couldn't build the full width of the carriageway side by side.

*geological not geographical!

The house in the middle of the M62 is there cos there’s a geological fault under it that would have cost loads to route the motorway over, so they left the farm alone.
There was a recent article about it in one of the local papers but I can’t find it on a google search b

Thanks to everyone for the M62 farmhouse explanations.

Ah there we go then. A Yorkshire myth solved 🤣

South Lakes voted remain, has 3 Booths, has the Lake District and Simon Rogans 2 restaurants in Cartmel.

Do we win ?

If you would have the same income regardless of where you live your own personal standards of living would be highest wherever your fixed costs e.g. housing were cheapest. You could afford a four bed detached in many parts of the north for the same a a small flat in parts of London. There are "good" and "bad" areas in the North, the Midlands and the South. Personal tastes will dictate whether an area meets your own requirements for a nice quality of life. For some it's art galleries and theatres, for others it's beautiful beaches and glorious countryside. Some want a bustling city others quiet remoteness. But all of those can be found in the north anyway.
My northern relatives have a far better standard of living than my southern relatives with comparable jobs. We have two fairly young nurses in the family one is a married home owner the other is living in rented accommodation and can't afford to get married (she could it only has to cost the registrar's fees - but she is saving for a "proper" but not big ott wedding).

There are obviously beautiful areas in the North and nobody would dispute this, but the sad fact is, this scenery is more often marred due to grey, unpleasant weather than in the South. Take the Lake District which people rave about. It’s a micro-climate there - a micro-climate of rain and fog. I was there last summer for a week, It was 35 in London, yet 19 there and rained about 80% of the time. You wouldn’t believe you were in the same country. Even when it wasn’t raining, the sky was grey. The houses are all in grey stone too and I found it extraordinarily depressing. The worst place for grey is Aberdeen and unfortunately (for me) Scotland because that is the stone they traditionally use. I’m sure the Highlands are breathtaking in a lovely day and I would love to see that, but every time I’ve visited its been mist, rain and fog. I would be profoundly depressed in that environment.

Many people suffer from SAD without even realising it. I think I’m one and I have to be honest, I feel it creeping on if I go North. Sure, some people like changeable conditions - I am not one of them. Once you get to about Staffordshire, the landscape is like a darker, heavier green. It just feels more damp and the buildings look more damp. I do find it quite bleak in general, sorry. The NE Coast is bloody freezing. The NE Coast is probably double / triple the rain of the SE. It is very noticeable to those who don’t live there. Sorry, but it really is.

@falafel at least that's one less person to share our prize winning beaches with

I don’t doubt there are prize-winning beaches, but for me I’d swap beach prizes for a little extra sunshine any day. Plus, there’s beautiful scenery and beaches all across the UK anyway. To be honest, the best beaches and coastlines are in Cornwall, Devon and Wales in my opinion, but again, the problem is the rain in Western regions.

It was 35 in London, yet 19 there

If you want to do hillwalking, 19 is at the upper end of the acceptable temperature range isn't it? 35 in a city sounds like utter hell.

Newcastle (my home town) voted Remain as did I down here in London.
I don't agree about Cornwall etc beaches. Northumberland has the best beaches, not least because there is no one on them! We also have the best night sky in the UK in terms of no light pollution. it is not quite North Korea in terms of darkness at night but is pretty good for star gazing.

However swimming in the North Sea (as indeed is all the sea and lakes all over in the UK) is quite cold. I prefer to swim in much warmer waters abroad, not even just France but much further afield - the Pacific etc.

I don't get the SAD point particularly. NE England on the East coast does not get the rain of Manchester. Bits of Scotland have micro climates like up near Ulla pool - basically most of the UK has pretty awful weather

Sorry I mistyped above - I meant that the NE coast is freezing because of the wind off the North Sea and the North West coast is probably double / triple the rainfall of SE England.

Xenia - yes I agree that most if the UK has dodgy weather, but you can minimise this at least by staying in the SE. That for me, is the most important factor. Miserable weather affects lifestyle and mental health. Summers in London are too hot, if anything. I think it’s rained once here all lockdown which has made the whole thing so much more bearable. Mostly the weather has been beautiful, I have to say. It’s gorgeous today,

Well some of the comments on here are odd to say the least. The question was perfectly rational, the North is far lower down in quality of life index compared the South-East. It has worst weather and more poverty.

Out of the Midlands and the North, which area offers the best quality of life? Obviously the South-East offers the best quality of life in the country but its too expensive for most people.

@xenia Cumbrian and Northumbrian beaches are amazing ! Literally empty, no tacky shops etc .

I think if you can earn southern money whilst living at northern rates, you're onto a winner. The difference is, there are far fewer opportunities to do that.

Eh? Not that I've ever lived Ooop North, I've lived in London and South East all my life, but why should the quality of life be worse? Surely you get your nicer areas and not so nice areas, same as everywhere? There are parts of the Midlands and London /South East that have reputations that are hardly glowing too!

I guess it depends on what you mean by quality of life. To me, it's not having to deal with traffic every time you get in a car, being able to buy a nice home on a decent sized plot of land without being a millionaire, having access to miles of beautiful countryside without having to share it with 1000's of other people. I don't think any of this is possible in SE of England.

he North is far lower down in quality of life index compared the South-East

The North is a big place
As is the South East.

You need to break down and look into each region.

Would you prefer to live in Harrogate or Worthing? Which has a better quality of life?

I mean, all things being equal, the most stunning scenery in Britain would be in Scotland or Wales. The point is, all things are not equal, because of the deteriorating climate and increasing rainfall the further North and West you go. The weather does matter unfortunately and there’s no getting around it

There are some wide and sandy, award winning beaches in Norfolk, but for me, it’s ruined because the sea is so grey and ominous and cold.

I realise the south coast is hardly the tropics, but it’s a far cry from Blackpool, Scarborough or Aberdeen!

Obviously the South-East offers the best quality of life in the country but its too expensive for most people

Can you see any contradiction in that statement?