To move to Norfolk although I’ve never been

[mioz]

Been thinking about moving for ages and ages, was made redundant last year so deciding to just go for it. I’m gravitating towards Norfolk but need some help narrowing down potential areas. Needs to be suitable for a young family (2 boys under 3), with parks/cafes/shops and maybe a high st within walking distance. Good travel links also if possible. Anyone have good knowledge of Norfolk and can help me?

@InPraiseOfBacchus

Lived in Norwich and Ely.

Ely is grim, IMO. Apologies to Ely fans. Horrible town centre, no transport links, dowdy residents.

I escaped Norwich to live in London and never looked back, but I still love to visit and have a lot of places I still like to go. It's got its downsides but it's a lovely place. Recommend living either near the centre of the city, OR in one of the nicer surrounding towns and villages with decent train links. The bit in between those two is sadly choked up with miles of ugly estates.

Google Norwich's "Golden Triangle", considered (cheekily) to be "the Notting Hill of Norwich".

Whatever you think about Ely you can't say it has no transport links.

Direct trains to London in just over an hour, direct to Birmingham and other major cities plus York and Edinburgh via Peterborough all very easy and quick.

Nip down the A10 to the M11 and A14 by car.

I'm glad people are saying the Fens are ugly- I like it peaceful, quiet, beautiful and empty!

Ely secondary is on the up, actually, and has excellent gcse options. There is opportunity to attend college in Peterborough, King's Lynn, Cambridge, Milton or any other sixth form.

There is a new decent leisure centre in Ely, a cinema, a retail park. My kids like the two climbing wall options in nearby villages. There is a lot of outdoor actvity- both mine shoot, fish, paddleboard and cycle. Ely has changed a lot recently.

And I never, ever sit in traffic on my commute. I regularly see owls, hares and marsh harriers though.

The one things the Fens hates is people who move here and moan about tractors. That really pisses us off.

Moving from Ashford, Kent you will be amazed at how much less traffic there is in Norfolk.

I have to disagree with this. Norfolk USED to be a very sleepy place, but the traffic is awful a lot of the time now, particularly in around Norwich and North Norfolk. The school holidays are crazy from Easter to October (particularly at the moment with so many people holidaying in the UK), with cars, caravans and camper vans and once they've gone it's the sugarbeet harvest, which creates a lot of very dirty traffic.

OP FGS don't commit to moving somewhere you've never been! Go and visit in all seasons and then make a decision, but if you want 'good transport links', I suggest you move to Norwich, as it's the only place with a decent bus and train service.

@Blabla81

I'm not far away from you then !

Lots of people relocating here - equally quite a few going more in town after a year or so having endured the wind from Iceland all winter 😳

Go and visit. And visit in autumn/ winter. Not just when the sun is shining! Many places look far more appealing in sunshine!

@Blabla81

What a shame that some are describing the fens as ugly. I think the opposite - it’s beautiful in my opinion.

I know ! But beauty is in the eye of the beholder I suppose

I do always find the Fens to have a strange vibe tbf. But not an ugly one as such. I think it’s just the flatness.

For example this picture always gives me weird vibes

britishheritage.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/TheFensEnglandBelowSeaLevel_Feature.jpg

Poor transport is what makes Norfolk so lovely (less people)

There's good and bad schools as there is everywhere, along with grotty areas. If you're looking to move somewhere you really need to visit every season.

Sheringham for example looks lovely mid August full of holiday makers and sunshine - mid January it's awful!

Crikey, you're just down the road from us @Blabla81 - had no idea there were so many MNers out this way!

I think it’s so interesting how people love and hate different areas so much. We visited Cromer on holiday last year and absolutely hated it! Beach was too pebbly, we didn’t find any shops we wanted to browse round, all of the cafes we found were small and pokey. But - other people absolutely love Cromer and get super excited about it We much prefer Southwold and even Caister. (Although Southwold is Suffolk)! It definitely shows you need to go and have a look for yourself before you commit to moving anywhere.

@ExchangedCat

Crikey, you're just down the road from us *@Blabla81* - had no idea there were so many MNers out this way!

I always wonder how many people I might know in real life in MN 😂. Clearly plenty of us Fen folk hiding on here 😂

@Bagelsandbrie

I think it’s so interesting how people love and hate different areas so much. We visited Cromer on holiday last year and absolutely hated it! Beach was too pebbly, we didn’t find any shops we wanted to browse round, all of the cafes we found were small and pokey. But - other people absolutely love Cromer and get super excited about it We much prefer Southwold and even Caister. (Although Southwold is Suffolk)! It definitely shows you need to go and have a look for yourself before you commit to moving anywhere.

Oh no you don’t go Cromer beach on holiday first mistake. You go there to get to Morrison’s and Lidl’s and Halfords and Argos. Although the butchers is pretty good too.

You go further around where the sands nice and the sea is clear.

My back garden fen in Winter and Spring. You can spot my kids fishing. I appreciate it's not for everyone but I love the space and the nature. If I don't have big skies now I feel a bit panicky.

I moved from Norfolk/Suffolk border a few years ago, to the north east. I moved into a house I had seen once in a place Id never seen. I haven’t regretted it once. I frequently get asked if Id move back and the answyis not a chance!

See @Partypoooooper I think it's the other way round - I avoid the North Norfolk coast during the busy tourist season when it's overrun with day trippers and second home owners. Love it in winter when we have it to ourselves

Norfolk is very large with god awful road links, what's your budget and requirements? The coast is lovely in the north but the east is run down and has the usual dilapidated seaside town feels. There isn't much industry so well paid jobs or even changing jobs is challenging. Try and get near a station on the main London line. Towns like Diss have a direct line, takes 1h 30 to get to Liverpool street and the villages outside of diss are very pretty.
The worst thing is the accent. I live here, have one and hate it.

I hate the way everything has become about links to cities. Thankfully some businesses in Norfolk and the fens are expanding locally and using locally. There's a lot of ecology, science and agro work not just in fields but seed and ecologically friendly farming. My local farms rent space to SME and they are thriving.

And what is wrong with regional accents and all the history they embody? It's very very narrowminded to regard a regional accent as lesser somehow. Why shouldn't regions sound different? The Australian accent is historically Fenland derived. Accents and colloquial words are nothing to be ashamed of. It should treasured. God forbid we all sound Insta Estuary.

@chocolateorangeinhaler

Norfolk is very large with god awful road links, what's your budget and requirements? The coast is lovely in the north but the east is run down and has the usual dilapidated seaside town feels. There isn't much industry so well paid jobs or even changing jobs is challenging. Try and get near a station on the main London line. Towns like Diss have a direct line, takes 1h 30 to get to Liverpool street and the villages outside of diss are very pretty. The worst thing is the accent. I live here, have one and hate it.

I love the accent! I was born in London and lived there until I moved to South Norfolk in 2007 and I think the Norfolk accent is brilliant!

@phlebasconsidered

My back garden fen in Winter and Spring. You can spot my kids fishing. I appreciate it's not for everyone but I love the space and the nature. If I don't have big skies now I feel a bit panicky.

It really is so beautiful out here! Although I do stress to colleagues (we moved away from where I work and I began WFH pre-pandemic) that it's the working countryside, rather than the sort that sits there looking pretty but not doing much. From the photos I don't think you're too far from us, either!

I hate the way everything has become about links to cities

OP asked about road links hence the focus in replies.

@MegBusset

See *@Partypoooooper* I think it's the other way round - I avoid the North Norfolk coast during the busy tourist season when it's overrun with day trippers and second home owners. Love it in winter when we have it to ourselves

I grew up on the Suffolk coast and most beaches/seaside towns are better when the tourists go home and you have space to enjoy them again!

@GrapesAreMyJam

I grew up near Norwich and miss it. I now live in Cambridgeshire (Fenland area) and it's bloody rough compared to Norfolk

You’re not in Wisbech by any chance are you? 😅

This was my back garden fen until 5 years ago

@Bagelsandbrie but you don't have the accent, have never been mocked by it, been used as a backdrop for a comedy character and have all and sundry who are not from Norfolk/Suffolk trying to do the accent to be funny and coming out with a Cornish accent.

People with a Norfolk accent have traditionally been looked down on as a bit thick too.

Sorry, I hate having it. When I was a kid I recoded myself singing something as all kids do. When I played it back I nearly cried. The Norfolk twang was so strong.

I'd swap it for a southern Irish accent any day. Everyone loves the Irish.