Londoners moving out to towns - AIBU

[Disgruntledtownie]

I have lived in the same town all my life - great community feel, independent shops etc.

During COVID, we had an absolute influx of people moving out from London which massively drove up prices so locals have had to move away and it’s really changed the whole town.

A lot of the Londoners were campaigning about getting a Pure Gym in the town - one opened, and now our local leisure centre has had to go into liquidation. This is where all the school kids learn to swim, all the teens hang out after school etc and it’s just gone.

An independent family owned shop that has been in our town for over 130 years has had to close as business has dropped.

In the last two years, Gails and a Joe & Juice have opened right next to independent coffee shops - there’s been massive queues outside Gail’s and everyone saying how good it is they can still get their Gail’s fix out of London. But it’s meant the independents have struggled and a few have had to shut.

I totally appreciate that times are tough and spiralling costs and overheads will have impacted these businesses but AIBU to think if you move out of London, you embrace the local shops etc and don’t just change the town into a mini London ??!! It’s just such a shame to see our local community disintegrating around us.

It's not the fault of Londoners that the local shop is struggling, and not all new people in your town are from London.

It's a shame the local shops have closed but this is happening up and down the country.

And people are doing exactly what they are told to do when moving from an area they have been priced out of to a cheaper area.

Sevenoaks?

I have long wondered if there should be some form of housing market for local people and key workers as they have in Guernsey. Their scheme effectively reserves what would be council tax A to C.

Especially in places such as in Cornwall, Devon and North Wales.

Any instance of people moving in large numbers to a new area will lead to a wish to bring some traditions and shops etc. Just think of parts of coastal Spain when large numbers of people from the Uk moved there.

If there had been a prompt reaction to Covid in March 2020, the period of restrictions would have been shorter, and perhaps some people would not have considered moving.

I will never understand how a Gail's can put any cafe out of business. Coffee is bitter and everything else is overrated and overpriced.

As Puregym is just a gym, can't see how they put the leisure centre out of business TBH, maybe people weren't using the pool as much as you think they were.

the locals could just refuse to sell their houses to Londoners 🤷‍♀️. Problem solved.

I doubt any of the things you’ve mentioned are a consequence of Londoners moving into your town. If anything the Londoners are bringing money in. You should be grateful. The high street is being decimated up and down the country and leisure centres have been extremely badly effected by the rise in energy costs. (And I’m not a Londoner, so no skin in the game)

we had an absolute influx of people moving out from London which massively drove up prices so locals have had to move away and it’s really changed the whole town.

People from London moved in because local people sold them their houses at inflated prices.

Precisely

Damn those local owners, selling their properties for a hugely inflated prices to these pesky Londoners

Eh?

How could people moving from London cause local businesses to close? Even if the Londoners have decided they’re boycotting local businesses (which is a ridiculous accusation) they aren’t preventing “locals” from going there, are they? If locals were using those businesses then they wouldn’t have shut - Londoners being nearby but not using the business is no different from Londoners being in London and not using the business.

Youre also missing that most of the “Londoners” who move out to commuter locations were originally not from London. Someone born in Harpenden, goes to uni in Bristol, gets a job in London and rents in Farringdon and then buys a place in Bentley. Conversely, someone originally from Bentley, goes to uni in Manchester, gets a job in London and rents in Canary Wharf before buying a place in Harpenden. Harpenden and Bentley “locals” kick off about “Londoners” moving in - it’s ridiculous. If no one ever moved out of your town then there would be no houses for “Londoners” to buy - where are your locals moving to? Do you think they should be banned from going there?

You’re trying to label them as Londoners when they probably are and scapegoat them for things that they haven’t got any responsibility over.

I was priced out of the South East and now live in the North. It's really just the way things are, you pay more for the better job prospects that being close to London provides. Where I live it's quite rare to meet someone who hasn't lived here all thier life, but still some small businesses do well and others close. People don't owe businesses thier custom if it doesn't suit thier needs. Some small business owners can be openly hostile to 'outsiders', not saying that's the case with your local shop but it doe happen, there are a couple of places I don't bother with for this reason.

We had loads of Londoners move here during covid. It was so fun and towns / city were beginning to look more diverse. Interesting smaller businesses opened and the High Street looked quite nice.

Then, the Londoners realised Cornwall is actually very poor and a little boring. They moved away and it has been noticeable on my local high street.

For a brief moment, Cornwall looked like it was moving forwards with money and diversity. Then all of a sudden its gone back 10 years as they all went and moved to Bristol.

YABU OP. Change is good x

I'd LOVE to move to London or Bristol but we can't afford to :(

Leisure centres are struggling everywhere. Many have closed or will soon be closed, particularly because of the cost of maintaining and heating pools. Why would a Pure Gym, which doesn't offer a pool, be largely responsible for that?

I live in a small town in Kent, and the old 'Londoners moving in' is often short-hand for basic racism.

Of course, I'm not suggesting OP is guilty of this, but others are.

An independent family owned shop that has been in our town for over 130 years has had to close as business has dropped.

Against unfortunately that's happening everywhere but that I suspect has more to do with the impact of Covid and Covid restrictions and the cost of living than an influx of Londoners.

I see it's 'Let's all shit on Londoners' day on Mumsnet again

Exactly this. Are the locals willing to sell their houses to other locals for less money? It seems not.

Sounds like where my parents live. The independent coffee shop owners can’t be arsed to open on a Sunday or before 9am but then complain everyone goes to Gails, don’t know what they’re expecting really. The council leisure centre could have closed because the pool needed a massive upgrade or something, pure gym is literally just a gym, not sure it’s a rival any more than a soft play might be or any of the other things you get in a leisure centre and also elsewhere. And define Londoner, many of the people moving out of London will not have been born there, probably just lived there for a few years post uni.

I’ve just moved back to the U.K. from overseas and went into a Gail’s in Guildford in the week - hadn’t heard of it before. I can’t believe people would go often, it’s very bland and echoey and I paid £6.30 for a pain au chocolat and a pot of tea whereas a few days earlier in a tiny, cosy and friendly cafe in Godalming (Thyme for Tea if you’re local!) I paid £4 for a pot of tea and the most delicious piece of lemon cake.
Maybe people go to recognisable places the first time but surely most people like a little independent place.
Mind you, I cannot fathom the ongoing popularity of Neros or Starbucks when there are so many lovely little cafes in the U.K.

I live in London and quite a few independent shops have closed here too if that makes you feel better.

I bet it wasn't even all the fault of the 'londoners' either, our pure gym is less than half the price of the leisure centre, why anyone would pay double for a shabby leisure centre is beyond me.

Exactly this

Hmm, I was priced out of London, where I was born and bred because of people from 'towns' and all over the country moving to London over time

Never get threads about that though.

Presumably if all the locals had kept using the original local shops and facilities they would have stayed open though?