Haverhill, Suffolk

[WhimsyWoo]

AIBU to think it just isn't the place for raising a mixed family?

Have you thought about Ely? Good connections in to London - just over an hour to Kings Cross.

As previously mentioned areas around Mildenhall and Lakenheath tend to be more diverse due to the US Air Bases and American families choosing to live in the community rather than on base.

Cambridge is very expensive.

A good and longstanding friend from University is of south Asian origin lives in a diverse fairly upscale area of London. She doesn't often leave London except for international conferences (well, when those happened in the days before corona-zoomification) and lives a very cosmopolitan, multi-ethnic life.

We've been discussing ethnicity and mixed backgrounds for a decade now. She has difficulty getting her head around how White so much of more rural Britain is.

Once she was messaging me when I was in Bury St Edmunds. During that visit to the central area I saw one non-White face (a SE Asian woman).

So much to think about! Thank you.

Does anyone know what Braintree is like, since it's been mentioned?

I live in Brighton. It doesn’t get much more multi cultural. I love it.

Another friend lived in Braintree for 5 years and thinks it’s a dive. My mum once went to the Toby carvery there and said it was the weirdest vibe she ever got in a town, everyone was staring at each other angrily. Friend moved out to an estate in Notley and preferred it. Witham, Broomfield, Little Waltham, Springfield, are all far far better than Braintree.

Sorry I’ve never understood where they found the guests for Jeremy Kyle until I went to Haverhill. Matt Hancock should get some investment into the place.

@Goslowlysideways

His guests were 90% from Manchester

Suffolk is not the place to bring up a mixed race family If you want to experience diversity. Others would disagree with me but racism is highly problematic here and is discussed openly on community forums without come back.

You may get away with Ipswich as there is a very small amount of diversity but on the whole we are white, rural conservatives who prefer their own. I’ve white, have been here for 15 years and am still very much an outsider.

As for Haverhill, it sits on the edge of the county and has become a bit of a dumping ground for everything the rest of Suffolk doesn’t want.

Yes it’s very beautiful here but the train links are shit, getting out of the county to go anywhere other than Norfolk and Essex takes so bloody long and entertainment and facilities will be a huge culture shock (I speak from experience)

You may get away with Ipswich as there is a very small amount of diversity but on the whole they are white, rural conservatives who prefer their own. I’m white, have been here for 15 years and am still very much an outsider.

I’ve corrected a very blatant typo in my post above. I’ve reported my own post for sounding like a racist twat.

For those saying
Its rough, its a hell hole etc....

Town looks pretty pleasant right now.

2 young girls sitting in the square eating lunch.

An older lady pushing a shopping trolley

Mothers with children doing various things

A child riding a bike

A orderly Q outside the post office as well as the bank

A older man walking his little dog.

A man being helped off his electric scooter

Very normal stuff .....

Not Mayfair Darling, But by far, alot better than alot of other area

@HaverhillSuffolk You talk a lot of sense. Really a lot!
But are there any mixed race people there? When you look at the view? Is it somewhere which could do with A LOT of investment? Would you say the people are well off?
My experience is it’s very white and looks poor. There is nothing wrong with poor but a lot of the time when areas are predominately white it can be uncomfortable if you are mixed race.
Genuinely I’m sorry if I was rude about a place you love. Sorry.