Relocating up north - looking for recommendations!

[Relocationlady]

This is my first time using mumsnet so hope I’m posting this in the right way but I’m after some advice please!

My husband and I think we’d like to relocate up North (currently in Sussex) for better quality of life, house prices etc but all our family and friends are local to us now so we really don’t know where to start!

We have a 1 year old and would like to continue growing our family so somewhere suburban, family friendly with good schools, parks, nearby towns as well as green space would be ideal, bonus points if it’s within a reasonable driving distance from the beach.

Has anyone got any recommendations of nice areas we could research? Or has anyone ever done a move like this with new prior connections and might be able to share their experience/some tips etc?

thank you in advance!

Maybe if you had mentioned north in which country you'd have avoided the more offended replies. There are a lot if posters from Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland and Wales (as well as many other countries) so up north is really subjective.

I loved living just outside Manchester. It offered rural and city life. House prices were lower just outside (then anyway) and transport options were brilliant

If your family is all dahn sarf then pretty much anywhere oop norf is going to be so completely different that nobody can tell you where you will most enjoy. Nobody knows what your current quality of life is but if it includes socialising then say tara choock to that as it gets ridiculously expensive to travel back and forth. And the price of trains these days - cor blimey.

I've done it for various reasons (from Kent to various places ending up in Derbyshire but now in France) but I'd not be doing it if all my family and friends were nearby, and I had a child that might need the odd bit of childcare or cousin interaction. It can take years to build back up that network, and I can honestly say I never found 'my tribe' when I moved, made some top friends but none were really in the know about what I liked or did.

So I unless you really love Bakewell Tart I'd rethink it, in all honesty.

Nice parts of 'The North' can be as expensive as The South.

I live outside Altrincham, Manchester and work in Wilmslow. Both lovely but £400k won't go far. A 3 bed terrace near us is about £500k.

Harrogate in North Yorkshire is lovely, as is Skipton. We also like Hexham near Newcastle. There are some lovely parts of Leeds, and Otley and Ilkley to the North are nice. But again your budget would be an issue.

Heswall on the Wirral is convenient for Liverpool (great city) and is accessible to beaches. But it is expensive.

You need to be realistic.

I would suggest renting your place down here and renting up north. From my families experience their property up north only went up in value a little while properties down here sore in value. Have a look at Barnard castle it’s lovely big town lovely walking

It wasn’t!

Have you thought about Lincoln ,not too far but very affordable. Lovely villages on the outskirts ,uphill area around the Cathedral is beautiful.You would get a lot for your budget .

You can cross off Leeds and Nottingham with those requirements. How many bedrooms do you need as a minimums as I’d imagine in most areas you wouldn’t be able onto afford a four bed.

Lancashire! I've just bought a 4 bed detached for £390k and I'm in Chorley, if that helps! Adlington is also lovely, and Euxton. If you're feeling a bit fancier then maybe edge out to Parbold (gorgeous countryside) or Burscough, or Eccleston.

Nice countryside, busy town centre, good schools, good motorway and train links to Manchester, Preston, Liverpool etc.

@verliec Actually yes Lincoln has come up, we’ve never been but other people’s descriptions of it sound lovely and the town looks to have quite a similar feel to the one nearest to us now! If you have any tips on the typically nicer villages/areas around Lincoln vs the ones we may want to avoid that would be great! Thanks for your help!

I love County Durham.

Noooooooooo.

not Lincoln. Step away from Lincoln. It’s awful. Racist, backwards, miles from anywhere, no motorways nearby, honestly, it’s cheap for a reason.

However like Sussex you think it is. I can promise you it isn’t anything remotely the same.

I live in oooop north and it's definitely gone a lot more expensive. Many places you won't get a good 4 bed for 400k.

Food salty? in the North? How do you come to that conclusion? My food isn't salty, because I don't cook using salt or add any salt, OP will still be in control of what she eats surely.
Southport, Ainsdale and Formby are nice and so is Lytham, St Anne's and the rest of the Fylde coast, and you also have the advantage of being within a hour's drive to the Lake District.

West Lancashire isn't too far from the coast. Good links to Liverpool and Manchester but still fairly rural in parts. Parbold as mentioned by a previous poster is very lovely.

Yes it is really lovely . To be honest most of the villages are really nice . The ones that are really popular are Nettleham ,Sudbrooke , Reepham ,Scothern . They are all located maybe 15 min drive from the city centre, The other end of the city are Navenby ,Branston and Washingborough. If you go on Right Move it will give you a rough idea of prices etc . If you do consider it then just message me and I will hopefully be able to help .

Worcestershire is a lovely area and with very good motorway and rail connections to the SE. Close to Birmingham if you want a city. Worcester is a beautiful city with good schools both state and independent.
As it straddles the river Severn there are lots of water based activities and a very active country set, shooting, riding, farming etc.

Another vote for Lytham here!! Ticks all your boxes

Another vote for the North East here. Tynemouth/whitley Bay actually on the coast. Hexham, Ponteland and Morpeth for market towns within 30 mins of coast with good commuting distance to the cities. Whickham in gateshead for proximity to newcastle with a village vibe. If you can stand to go slightly more rural also look at Rothbury and Alnwick and Alnmouth.

Moved to Northumberland from somewhere down south at the age of 10 in the 90's. There is something very special I find still about the friendliness and sense of community in the North East.

a fourth vote for the Wirral Peninsula. Your budget would get you something nice, there’s lovely beaches and Liverpool, Chester and North Wales are all very easy
to get toRandom house in budget for you

Just go on the M1 or the A1 and drive to signs saying "The North"... And you'll get there.

On a more serious note, Durham is pleasant.

The city centre is nice - close to Newcastle for job opportunities (15 min train). And the culture is very special. The North is very far from homogeneous...just go to a Sunderland vs. Newcastle match!

If you work in healthcare, the opportunities are substantial and pay almost identical to SE.

Have you ever actually been 'up north'...?
Do you mean north of Watford or the actual North?

£400k will get you bugger all anywhere nice and absolutely not a 4 bed detached!

It is a bit ludicrous of those of us who see everything you describe as "up North" as down south. It was predictable that op meant north of England though, many people in the south of England are a bit like that.

Sort to hear others have formed bad opinions of lincoln. Like any city there were obviously more affluent areas and areas. On a recent trip I found the people friendly, plenty to do in the city, and a great independent shopping and food and drink scene in the area around the Cathedral. Absolutely less culturally diverse than Nottingham or Birmingham. Also don't agree it's miles from anywhere Sheffield and Nottingham are reachable in an hour. House prices seemed to be 5 years behind the rest of country which may be very appealing to many!