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Original poster

Is Ramsgate really so terrible?

97 replies

Relocatesss · 02/09/2020 13:57

Hi,

We are thinking of relocating from south London to the coast. I've been doing lots of online research and have shortlisted Folkestone and Ramsgate.

I've read lot of positive things about Folkestone and it seems like a lovely place to live but our budget wouldn't stretch very far there. Ramsgate on the other hand would allow us to have a beautiful, big period home with lots of space. However, I keep reading lots of negative things about Ramsgate and was wondering if any one has moved there recently and loves it? Is it really as depressing as some people make out?

We are in the early stages of this move and I'm aware we need to spend quite a bit of time visiting both places and getting a feel for them but it would be great to hear from anyone that actually lives in Ramsgate.

Thanks so much in advance.

OP posts:
katscamel · 02/09/2020 14:22

Ramsgate has a lovely beach, very large Weatherspoons and a good Turkish restaurant but unfortunately not much else. In the past it was a lovely seaside resort but like many places on the coast its has been left and as of yet hadn't had any of the regeneration funds Folkestone has.
Neither are particularly good for shopping with possibly only a few High Street shops remaining.
I don't live in either but about a 30 minute drive away so sometimes pop down.

Original poster
Relocatesss · 02/09/2020 15:22

Thanks @katscamel. Do you know anything about the schools?

OP posts:
LeilaDarling · 03/09/2020 13:17

Hi, my Mum moved to Ramsgate in 2016 from London and she has bought a massive period home which has a primary school behind her. Lovely school, she is so happy there and would never consider coming back. Ramsgate, in her opinion, is very up and coming, some of her neighbours commute to London for work still. Lots of improvements being made all around her.

mrsm43s · 03/09/2020 13:23

I don't think Folkestone is much of an improvement over Ramsgate tbh.

If you're looking in that neck of the woods, I'd probably look at Broadstairs, Birchington, MInster, Sandwich, Hythe, even Deal possibly.. I'd be avoiding most of the bigger towns such as Margate, Ramsgate, Dover, Folkestone etc.

LittleGwyneth · 03/09/2020 13:24

Have you looked at Margate? Property still v reasonable there, but way more going on thanks to the hipster influx.

perfumeistooexpensive · 03/09/2020 13:34

Ramsgate is a lot nicer than Folkestone which I wouldn't consider at all. I have family and friends in Ramsgate and they love it. It's getting popular with celebrities and is really up and coming. If I didn't live in a nearby town, I'd happily live there. I also love Deal, but a stony beach. Deal has a lot of character. Avoid Margate, especially Cliftonville.

StarShapedWindow · 03/09/2020 13:42

Ramsgate has improved loads in the last five years. My parents moved there about seven years ago and love it. It’s got brilliant vintage shops in the Addington Street area and along the bottom of the marina lots of trendy cafes, gallery’s and a fantastic vintage shop have opened up. The high street is awful but that’s because everyone uses Westwood which is a five/ten minute drive from Ramsgate and has loads of shops including a massive Next, Topshop, M&S and various restaurants, a cinema etc. Ramsgate has more than one nice restaurant - there’s a lovely one on the end of the pier, a good Italian and Turkish restaurant. My parents live on a square in the most gorgeous period property - you can buy beautiful regency/Victorian houses there for good prices. The schools are generally good and excellent - have a look at the ofsted reports.

Thebreadsouth · 03/09/2020 13:45

Wasn't Ramsgate the seaside town they went to in Top Boy? If the depiction was even slightly accurate I would avoid!

katie43210 · 03/09/2020 13:49

@katscamel your comment reminded me of the time Peter kay described my town as only having 2 roundabouts and a netto. Made me laugh.

TheRosariojewels · 03/09/2020 14:28

I'm surprised you can't afford Folkestone, but can Ramsgate. I think they are comparable, if not slightly more expensive in Ramsgate. If you've seen some cheap period houses they are probably
not in a nice part of Ramsgate. West Ramsgate is much nicer. Chilton is a good school.

honeylulu · 03/09/2020 14:31

It's not the nicest place. I'm from Margate (Westbrook which is the "posh" bit) and went to the girls grammar school in Ramsgate. It's so far from anywhere else it feels really cut off if you see what I mean. Lots of people live there their whole lives and don't manage to leave. The job market/opportunities are awful and there is a huge retired community so less lively than many towns. It used to be known as the Costa del dole.

Having said that I last lived there over 25 years ago though my parents and some friends are still there. (The friends that stayed all became teachers - not much opportunity for a wide range of careers).

Talking of schools, Kent still has the 11+/ grammar school system and the grammar schools are really good if you can get in. The non selective schools are more of a range. St George's (Broadstairs) very good. Others not so much. I can't really comment on primary schools as I went to private which is quite common if parents can possibly afford it - increases chance of getting into grammar.

There are quite a few nice wine bar/ restaurant/ vintage places now so they're had been some gentrification by cool London hipsters. But this does seem to have caused some bad feeling with the locals (mainly reserved for the Londoners with a second weekend home by the coast).

Oldbutkicking · 03/09/2020 14:46

@honeylulu There’s a high speed rail link to London so hardly cut off! Ramsgate is very different from when you knew it.

Northernlass99 · 03/09/2020 14:57

I kept hearing about Ramsgate being gentrified so I went there last week. And I can tell you it is not!! And this is from someone who lived in a dodgy part of South London!

We were worried about where we parked the car, and there was a drunk guy wandering up and down shouting and throwing things. The high street is so dirty and run down with utterly rubbish shops. The seafront is littered with fish and chip papers and loads of tourists wandering around aimlessly because there is nothing to do. It does just feel cut off and far from anywhere.

I sound like a right snob, but just saying this to say there is no sign of gentrification! I didn't see any vintage shops. The main beach is nice and there is an absolutely gigantic new hotel/apartment complex being built there. I have heard of some nice bars but I didn't see them. Margate at least has a small section of trendy shops and coffee shops, even if most of it is still pretty run down.

If property is cheap there is always a reason. If you don't mind then go for it, there are some great period properties. You will just have to go and have a look for yourself I think.

Elderflower14 · 03/09/2020 14:59

Westgate is far far nicer than Ramsgate!

Original poster
Relocatesss · 03/09/2020 19:57

Thank you all so much for the info.

A lot of differing opinions, this is why I've struggled with researching stuff online but I guess it would be the same with anywhere. I need to really go and spend a good amount of time there, exploring the streets and getting a feel for the place.

@perfumeistooexpensive oh really, why wouldn't you consider Folkestone at all? On the whole I've read and heard from people that live there really good things so interested to hear the negatives :) and which celebrities out of interest? Grin

@TheRosariojewels that's interesting, thank you for the info. I will be more specific with my property searches, are there any particular streets that I should definitely avoid?

@honeylulu yeah, I've definitely got the vibe from what I've read that the locals don't want 'DFL's there, it's hard to know if that is the general feeling or just a few loud people on the internet. I really want to go somewhere and become part of the community, not somewhere with an 'us and them' mentality.

OP posts:
DappledThings · 03/09/2020 20:06

oh really, why wouldn't you consider Folkestone at all? On the whole I've read and heard from people that live there really good things so interested to hear the negatives smile and which celebrities out of interest? grin
We moved from SE London to a village just outside Folkestone 2 years ago and love it. The main high street is admittedly dire but the Old High Street and Creative Quarter are lovely. The Coastal Park is beautiful and there's a load of new building going on right on the front which will today up that strip. Harbour Arm is a fantastic place to be in the summer. And all of this is really quick to London on HS1.

Rhoobarbandraspberries · 03/09/2020 20:50

A DFL here who moved to Folkestone and loves it. We did look (briefly) at Ramsgate, but I felt it still had that odd feeling of despair you sometimes get in seaside towns (In fact we went there one day and didn’t even get out of the car as we felt so uneasy). Folkestone, by contrast seemed to still have dodgy parts, but you could clearly see evidence of investment and regeneration. If you can’t afford Folkestone as prices rising rapidly here, maybe Hawkinge which is a bit cheaper but close enough that you can still be in town in about five minutes by car.

Rhoobarbandraspberries · 03/09/2020 20:55

...although unfortunately there are few period properties in Hawkinge as most of it was fields 30 years ago.

Greensidepark · 03/09/2020 21:31

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-78822272.html

I would give anything to live in this Ramsgate house. Checked houses in Ramsgate based on this thread.

liveitwell · 03/09/2020 21:34

Ramsgate, Margate... Very rough and lots of crime. There's a reason why you get so much house for your money.

I would definitely choose a smaller house in Folkestone.

Laiste · 03/09/2020 22:02

The last time i went to Folkestone it was shite! Sorry to everyone/anyone who loves it.

I was aware it was certainly no quaint fishing village or anything but bloody hell it was basically [Insert Name of Ugly Depressing Town of Your Choice] -On-Sea.

sixnearlyseven · 03/09/2020 22:44

I live in Ramsgate, it's got a lot more to offer than the (really nice) beachfront Wetherspoons and the Turkish resturaunt. The beaches are amazing, it's right next to Broadstairs which is really beautiful , and I guess a bit posher. My kids have been happy here, we live close to westcliff beach. There are loads of people who have moved from London, a couple who have lovely houses on South Eastern road.Yes there's crime but no worse than anywhere else. It's close to Canterbury too, don't know loads about Folkstone

sixnearlyseven · 03/09/2020 22:45

As for schools, it has the grammar system but they are a bit less oversubscribed than ones closer to London

Burnthurst187 · 03/09/2020 22:47

@Thebreadsouth

Wasn't Ramsgate the seaside town they went to in Top Boy? If the depiction was even slightly accurate I would avoid!
Yes fam
perfumeistooexpensive · 04/09/2020 09:44

I just find Folkestone dull whereas Ramsgate has character.