Is Ramsgate really so terrible?

[Relocatesss]

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.

The anti immigrant sentiment isn't just out and out racism Thanet and Kent have suffered decades of poverty, unemployment and their towns have been utterly swamped since before 2000 with immigrant populations that brought a huge criminal element on top of their already quite deep deprivation issues.There is a history there that needs acknowledging and not just blanket judgement of them all being racists.

It's a shite hole, sorry. As is Margate.

Margate has been 'up and coming' for years. It really isn't.

There's a reason the houses are cheap.

Immigrants did not cause racism in Thanet and are not the cause of all the crime at all. Don’t blame the victims. It was already there well before the mass migration of the 2000s. I’m in my 40s so was around before the Blair years and those areas were already tired and had become dumping grounds for homeless men, ex offenders and alcoholics.

OP, the kind of attitude expressed by Bearnecessity is what you may potentially be dealing with. People who’ve had a hard time and possibly grew up in an area of low educational aspiration, they are struggling, bitter, looking for easy answers punching down and voting for things which will make things worse for themselves egged on by snake oil salesmen like Farage who encourage them to look downwards instead of question why their schools are allowed to deteriorate, why only 40% of the kids are achieving national average scores, why there’s poor local infrastructure, lack of jobs and the High Street is full of charity shops, pound shops, off licenses and bookies. It’s much easier to say it’s all the fault of immigrants who ‘swamped’ their town.

I went to Knightsbridge not too long ago and it was full of 1st or 2nd gen immigrants but I didn’t see any middle aged guys full of tattoos drunk and swearing outside Spoons at lunchtime. Is it because immigrants aren’t the issue in Thanet?

I've visited Thanet many times as my parents retired there from London. When I move out eventually, it won't be my area of choice. Margate is quite depressing. There's too much deprivation and a tiny disconnected hipster enclave doesn't make up for the fact that it (and Thanet in general) feels like a cultural desert. I wouldn't mind so much if it had beautiful scenery for walking, but that's a bit meh too. Ramsgate is better than Margate, Broadstairs better than Ramsgate. I still wouldn't move there, though.

Well said @Tellmetruth4

The anti immigrant sentiment isn't just out and out racism Thanet and Kent have suffered decades of poverty, unemployment and their towns have been utterly swamped since before 2000 with immigrant populations that brought a huge criminal element on top of their already quite deep deprivation issues.There is a history there that needs acknowledging and not just blanket judgement of them all being racists

Immigrants didn’t make the area poorer.

It was all about the choices made by central government to cut much needed services including to local authorities. Central government have responsibility for the structures in place which mean that those who are poorer are lumped together. That makes things worse.

If central government improved the funding of all services, if they stopped most money being sucked up by the Uber rich then there would be more for all of us.

Have you seen that cartoon with Rupert murdoch hogging a massive plate of cookies? Then he tells the man with one cookie that the person with no cookie is trying to steal his one? That’s what’s the problem here.

There isn’t an infinite supply of money in the world. Unfortunately most of it has been sucked up by the very rich leaving little for the rest of us. And we spend time arguing about the scraps, blaming immigrants when they’re not the ones who put us in this mess.

Interesting thread

why there’s poor local infrastructure, lack of jobs and the High Street is full of charity shops, pound shops, off licenses and bookies.

Isn't this true for many areas of the country & many London high streets look similar?

We know there is real deprivation out there & people separated by a few different roads can live completely different lives. Is the aim to live in a nice area where "we" don't see the deprivation? I'm not judging by the way. We are looking to move & Im acutely aware I very much live in a bubble.

I did not say immigrants caused all the racism nor did I say they caused all the crime or made the area poorer you really do read what you want, wade in and jump on anything that pushes back against the notion that all people in Thanet are racist.

I live in Ramsgate and now my DC has left school I'm moving away. Yay!
Yes there is a lovely beach but the deprivation of the area is horrendous.
The town centre is a no go zone after 6pm when the drinks and druggies openly rule.
Policing is lip service and minimal.
I have lived in Thanet for 7years, specifically Ramsgate for 2.
Incidentally I had 2 bikes stolen , my car broken into and was burgled when living in Broadstairs in a naice area!
Avoid Thanet altogether- it's not worth the grief!

Hello!
I moved to Ramsgate in 2020 with my two children, both aged under 10. We relocated from London/ Surrey. I moved here with every intention of settling down here, but are now looking to leave!!!

Thanet is one of the poorest areas of the UK, and Ramsgate certainly has its share of deprivation, there is little employment and the local politics is laughable. The people are very friendly and welcoming... But almost a year in and I'm still sticking out and often asked if I'm from around here! Property is cheaper here, but for a reason. I do miss more affluent areas, things to do and being within good travelling distance to other places; both for employment and places to visit. Ramsgate has gorgeous architecture and a great beach (Ramsgate and Broadstairs are gorgeous). But the social economics of the area and for my career background are hard. As others have said really sadly there appears to be an ingrained lack of aspirations and educational achievement across the County. Those that do well mostly move far away for University and careers. The commute to London isn't bad 75 minutes so it is an option to work and commute, which definitely is a draw! In recent months the antisocial behaviour, drug issue and crime has rocketed. To the point that I do not feel safe. Yes, with covid and impact it has effected everywhere.... But please be open minded, take on board the honest opinions on this forum and also look across West Sussex. Good beaches, schools, commute and more affluent.

Threads like this always make me laugh because I've loved all over Thanet and my experience always seems to different to anyone else's!

Ramsgate is alright but quite rough in parts. I lived in Broadstairs for nearly 10 years and for somewhere that is looking increasingly rundown it's still incredibly snobby! I worked in a couple of the pubs and honestly that was an experience 😂 I currently live in Margate (towards Westbrook but still Margate and absolutely love it!). I wouldn't touch Cliftonville if you paid me.

I just think everywhere has good and bad areas!

I'm Scottish OP, and don't know the place at all But if there's one thing I've learnt from living all over, it's that location wins every time. No point having an amazing house in a shit neck of the woods ...

Personally, I probably wouldn't want to move to Ramsgate but, as a previous poster said, it probably depends on what part of Ramsgate you are moving to. My mum lives in New Romney which is quite nice and very close to Hythe which is lovely.

Have only visited - stayed in lovely hotel, ate a great Italian restaurant (basic but good) and walked out towards sandwich. Astonished by beautiful centre properties. Looked on the edge a bit. Run down but also some interesting stuff going on. Was unlike anywhere I’ve been. Wonder if it is similar to Hastings- often similar feedback from those living there.
Good luck op.

I have lived in Hastings Old Town and would consider moving back, so I don't find the two areas completely comparable.

Good to know mrs b - don’t know either well at all - I will De-couple them a bit (totally?) in my mind.

Interested to find this thread. We have just moved to Ramsgate from south London, and absolutely love it. Undoubtedly there are problems here, but nothing that I've not seen before in the supposedly 'cool' parts of s. London that I've lived in most of my life. The town centre itself could do with some life injecting back into it, but the signs are there - some nice little independent shops and cafes (including a gorgeous yoga studio / cafe smack bang in the middle of town), a great bakery, some good restaurants, galleries, a Waitrose, some great pubs. The harbour is just lovely, the beaches are fab, there are some genuinely stunning houses, characterful little squares and roads etc.

I think you have to take the rough with the smooth. It would be naive to suggest that there are no problems here - there is poverty, drugs, unemployment - and if I was at a different time of life or had small children it might not be my first choice. But I love it, I appreciate the community spirit and the efforts from both locals and 'incomers' to make it a better place, and I intend to live the rest of my life here!

@Thebreadsouth

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

hi

i read your post about ramsgate

do you know anything about the area near hereson road

im meant to be viewing a house near there and just kkeep hearing mixed review on the ramsgate some good some not so.

would appreciate an honest view as for us this is a relocation from london.

kindest regards chris

I grew up in Thanet and went to the all girls school in Ramsgate, but moved away. My parents still live around there so we visit regularly.

I would not choose to move back. Broadstairs is quite nice, and going to the beach is nice in the summer. But for me it is still too 'planet Thanet', like a small town mentality and people just seem to get stuck there. There's really not much in the way of employment opportunities etc. Everywhere has its rough areas of course but the high streets in Ramsgate / Margate are just so depressing and they remain quite deprived in places.

Can't add much to the Folkestone/Ramsgate dilemma, but must add that Herne Bay is an abject shithole. Wouldn't live there for all the tea in China. Has pretensions, but fosters a particularly nasty strain of anti social behaviour. Hate it.

Ramsgate & Folkestone have significant youth crime, ASBO related problems currently. I work in child protection & both areas are huge concerns.