Moving to South Yorkshire...recommendations needed!

[DilemmaADay]

Posted on another board but reposting here due to traffic

Due to job circumstances, I will be looking to move to South Yorkshire in the near future but dont know where to start!
I'm from Leicestershire originally which I find not a very friendly place (where I was anyway), and now based near Leeds. I love the North compared to the Midlands but I've lived near very grey cities in build up areas and just want to live somewhere with a more village type lifestyle with little independent shops etc.

My job will be based near Sheffield but I've been looking at Chesterfield, Barnsley, Wakefield and the surrounding areas too. Does anyone have any suggestions from their experience of South Yorkshire of where would be nice?

Anywhere west of Sheffield, don't go East!

Would not do Barnsley personally. Chesterfield and Wakefield, yes. How about Huddersfield or nearby Denny Dale/Holmfirth? Technical W Yorks but not much further from Sheffield than Wakefield.

Holmfirth is nice, Penistone also is lovely also on the Sheffield to Huddersfield train line.

Don't move to Barnsley! The west side of Sheffield is great, you could also look at places like Bakewell or villages in the Hope Valley which are an easy commute to Sheffield.

I'd say don't rule Barnsley out. Strong community spirit there. They are welcoming people. There are "nice" areas too. I'm not from Yorkshire but know it a bit.

West of Sheffield is much more expensive than the east.

I live in Hoyland, so just over the border into Barnsley.

Benefits, very accessible, just 5 mins from M1and very easy countryside access. Get a house in the right place and you have fantastic open views. Much cheaper than Sheffield. My new neighbours have just 'downsized' from the West of Sheffield. The floor space of their new house is almost that of their old one but it is a bungalow so they actually have more usable space now. They profited to the tune of £150,000. They love it. People are very down to earth and friendly.

Disadvantages - lovely little centre but overrun with charity shops and takeaways.

Close to Hoyland is Wentworth which is in Rotherham, an absolutely wonderful villagey type place. Nice pubs but not much in the way of shops without driving. M1 still very accessible.

Other side of Rotherham is Wickersley or Whiston, both very nice areas of Rotherham. Wickersley is better for shops. Whiston has a couple of lovely pubs.

Rotherham and Barnsley are both much cheaper than Sheffield and have a nice climate as they are in the rain shadow. Less rain and less likely to be snowed in too.

If you have kids needing school then Penistone is great. There's a fab school there - but you will get more of a winter as it is into the edge of the Pennines, it's further from the M1 and further too from Sheffield buts it's much cheaper than West Sheffield.

Don't rule Barnsley out. There are some rough areas but there are some in Sheffield too. I know a lot of people that have moved here from Sheffield and wouldn't move back.

If you have your own transport - Elsecar, Wentworth, Scholes between Rotherham/Barnsely. Very close to M1 junctions and picturesque. Some describe as like the Dales... I love both.

Sheffield way - Bradfield as a gateway to the Peaks. Bakewell if you want a commute into Sheffield.

West Sheffield is expensive, but has really good schools. Anywhere like, Fulwood, Lodge Moor, Crosspool, Ranmoor, Hangingwater, Nether Green, Bents Green, Whirlow, Greystones and Banner Cross and Dore.All lovely, some quite rural. Labour constituency.

Meersbrook and Heeley are up and coming. Very lively.

Penistone and those areas of Barnsley are nice.

Hope Balley, also expensive is lovely. In the Peak District. Lots of cute villages

Hope Valley ....

I would say elsecar/penistone/Denby Dale (I lived there love it!)/Clayton west all nice areas! I live in Sheffield now wouldn’t suggest it.

Have you considered Dronfield? Quick commute along the bypass into Sheffield or one stop on the train. Close to Chesterfield for shops. Good pubs and nice leisure facilities at the Civic Centre.

We're up towards Wakefield and it's a lovely village but I wouldn't want to commute with the traffic as it is normally these days. Stay a bit further south if you can.

Spanieleyes wot a cheek. 😂😂 East Sheffield has plenty of hidden gems. And house prices much better. Research high school catchments carefully if that applies to you OP.

Birdwell in Barnsley is nice.
Chapeltown which sits on the Barnsley / Sheffield border is nice.

Try west of Worksop, so Dinnington, Wales, or Renishaw (which is actually classed as Derbyshire). There's rough areas to every town nowadays. Good access to M1 and still with a country pub within walking distance.

Penistone and Oxspring are nice. You can get to Sheffield from both without having to use the M1.

Where will you be working and how do you plan to get from home to work? That's going to make a big difference. You don't want to change trains/drive across Sheffield if you can avoid it. The joy of living in a smaller places is keeping things like that simple!

I came from Leicestershire originally too
I lived in Sheffield for a bit, it’s quite studenty but still a nice area.
Live in Chesterfield now and it’s lovely, quiet local area, very close to the M1 and you get a lot more house for your money. The town centre isn't brilliant but when you’re close to derby, Nottingham and Sheffield it doesn’t matter that much.
The commute to Sheffield is a little annoying but not as bad as the one I used to have to Leicester.

I'm on the Sheffield side of Chesterfield. I like it here, I've been here 20+ years. Dronfield as a pp says is also nice - not a long commute into Sheffield and it's a nice small town and close to countryside.

I've lived in Sheffield too - enjoyed it when I was a student, but I'm not really a city person.

Whereabouts in Sheffield will you be working ?

I’d recommend Penistone/Holmfirth/Denby Dale Area, but then I live there, but not very helpful if you are working on the S side of Sheffield.

I'm from Barnsley. Penistone and little villages like Cawthorne are nice, but a lot of it is, to be quite honest, rough. Ditto Wakefield.

Everyone is friendly though, I had a lovely childhood even if some of my friends neighbours were smack heads (and Darton is much nicer than is used to be, though I wouldn't trust the school with my kids!).

Check out the schools even if it's not relevant, the PP percentage and the inspections and results can tell you quite a lot about the local area.

I'm Barnsley born and bred, and work in Sheffield. As mentioned, we really need to know where in Sheffield you'll be commuting to, as it will make a big difference to where we recommend!

Sheffield fucking rocks. I'm from Chesterfield; it's fine but Sheffield is so much better.

Welcome. You'll love it

Where will your work base be? What's your maximum commute time?
Do you need to consider schools? What kind of house/ price are you looking at?
I'd echo previous posters saying don't discount Barnsley, some good villages with good primary and secondary schools, cheaper council tax, also look over the border into West Yorkshire (Denby Dale, Clayton West) if your based that side of town.
Sheffield, Rotherham Barnsley have lots of villages that are highly sought after look at some of the villages /towns along the Huddersfield - Sheffield train line for nice areas at reasonable house prices. Going the other side of Sheffield could easily triple your house price.
It really depends what you want out of a house /lifestyle.