To ask you what the area you live in is actually like?

[Lilypad789]

I have young children (8,9) I do not allow them to play out with friends yet as this would usually entail crossing a busy road. So I walk them to the park, sometimes arranging to meet a school friend etc. I sometimes stay and scroll my phone for a bit and watch from a distance while they play or occasionally I will do a small 10 minute walk and circle back round before watching them for a while.

Even if I (and more adults sometimes) are sat watching our kids most of the other kids are awful and it’s so depressing. Swearing snd screaming and just being absolutely stupid. I dread to think what they’re like if there's no adults there to be honest. I don’t want mine around it anymore (not naive, 100% know they would join in a bit but my youngest has moved away from them before because she doesn’t like it and they’re her school friends!) and I’m considering moving house. We do live in an underprivileged area but to be honest in the villages and towns around us I can’t imagine it being any different.

What is it like where you live? Other countries / counties.

At this point I’m considering the Highlands!

Tis lovely

It isn't like that where we live. When we lived in London ot was a tale of two cities and within a quarter of a mile it was probably far worse - drug dealers - inner city deprivation.

Where are you based please?

Outer London. Safe enough but lots of annoying entitled people. Lots of people do not think it is safe though.

If it’s nice then please share a rough location, thanks!

I’m in southwest cornwall , a town 15 minutes from the beach . It is pretty safe apart from the very occasional rare proper crime . Lots of areas in cornwall have drug presence but I would say on the lower side of average compared to the rest of uk .

parks are safe and clean , teenagers are fairly well behaved and don’t cause too much trouble bar a few of them that get up to no good .I am able to leave my backdoor unlocked without being to concerned .
I have also lived in the northeast so have experienced two very different areas !

A semi rural village in North East England. It’s lovely. Like all areas it has its good and bad, but overall it’s lovely and safe.

I mean, I live in a Salford district (not a fancy one) and it’s fine. Some issues with stupid kids, but mostly lovely.

My oldest is 12, and he regularly goes Trafford centre with his friends on the bus, or to the local gym, and park. He has never asked to stay out so I don’t have a curfew yet.

My middle son is 9, he likes to play at the local skate park which is attached to our local swimming pool. I often drop him off there and go into the swimming pool cafe to work and have a cup of tea so he knows I am close. When he is a bit older (maybe 10) I will probably let him walk there along with friends.

Sometimes children at the park swear, mostly if you ask them not too they will apologise and stop.

I love Salford, and I am fierce proud of it but like anywhere there are idiots. My sons know my expectations and understand that sometimes people don’t act the way I expect them too.

Small (population 1500ish) village, 5 miles outside a town in Northamptonshire.

Village is great with pub / shop / school etc, close to M1 and the trains to London are under an hour.

Wouldn't want to live anywhere else, other than perhaps by the coast.

We're in a small village, about 500 people, with an old part and a small 1980s estate. We have woodland and fields immediately on our doorstep, fields over the back gate, woodland across a minor road. A stream about 50m away. Plenty of quiet lanes to play in, lots of footpaths and places to explore. We have more and less unruly kids, everywhere does, but very little if any really nasty element. Generally people get on.

Ds is older now but he can cycle safely to a traffic-free common, and then in to the nearest town four miles away. He can get to his Saturday job under his own steam.

It's not trendy and I've taken a decade to renovate our house but it's been a good place for ds to grow up.

We live very rurally in the south west. Our closest full time neighbours are about 3/4 of a mile away. My kids just roam. They have fields and woodland and rivers to play in. My youngest has played out alone from 4 as we are not close to a road (private drive only and I can see anyone who comes down it). We have a WhatsApp group with all the nearby friends so we can find whose field they’re in when we need to collect them for dinner. They have a very old fashioned childhood. Riding bikes and campfires and coming home when it’s getting late (obviously not on school nights or when they have sports, activities, etc).

I think it matters less what part of the country you live in than the sort of area. You can live in the South East or Wales or Scotland. But you need to be able to afford to live in a nice area that provides you the lifestyle you’re after. When we bought our house, we moved 2 hours away and started life totally over purely for a bigger house, land, amenities, hiking, beaches and a nice community.

I live in a village in the Peak District and it's really nice. Very quiet.

Classic Surrey “market town” that is just outside M25. Quiet (i.e dull) but in a beautiful location and easy access to London, airports, coast etc. Some low level crime, a few “hooded youths” bombing around e-bikes, and apparently some County Lines activity near station. But feels safe - I don’t worry about my teenagers like I would have done had we stayed in London (although I still love London!)

Thank you. I know nowhere is that safe anymore but the children around here just seem to not care about anything and I’m at the point where I’ve got two lovely children that I don’t want them to think they have to be like that to fit in.

Thank you.

Outer London, nice neighbourhood, very safe, most people are decent, don’t feel I’ll get stabbed by youths in hoodies. I wouldn’t want to raise my kids in a rough area and in your shoes I’d move if I could afford it.

Surrey, we all agree here that we live in a bubble here compared to most of society.

Central scotland. Its fine where i am and there are a few local play parks within walking distance. There are the wee wideo posse but im sure every town has them. We just tend to ignore them.

It’s difficult to explain. I know children swear, I swear and I wouldn’t clutch my pearls if my children dropped a swear word to be honest. Its mindless though and repetitive and the words aren’t used in any sort of context 😂 they’re graphic etc. It’s more that they have no ambition, they are destructive and quite frankly a bit thick because their parents don’t have any respect for education. My children are like aliens compared to them! And they’re reaching an age where I’m scared they’ll just emulate it.

I think this might be the sort of move I’m going to consider. We’re in West Yorkshire so not too far. I’m thinking that rural is the way to go. Thank you.

I live in a North East town, right on the outskirts. It's a "new town" which means it's quite well set up for kids to play out, plenty of green spaces and parks. We are quite behind the times in a lot of ways up here and kids play out just how they used to in the 80s/90s and we've never had any major issues

Nice semi rural market town in the North West, good transport links that are a godsend.

It is as most places a tale of 2 cities as only 3 miles away its rough and a lot of low level drugs going on I certainly would not have wanted to raise my children there.
Im grateful everyday for the green space and sea that we have within walking distance.

It's not like that here, it's pretty safe and friendly, but touristy in the summer - Suffolk coast

Mine is quiet and peaceful. I love right by a play area and I never hear lots of screaming and swearing at all. It's a beautiful little village in the Lichfield District

Small village in Wiltshire, it's lovely but I wish the nearby A road was always like it was during Covid. Then it would be perfect.