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!

I always 🙄 when I see it on threads. Scotland is up north!!

@Notplayingball

You’re not wrong. I was slightly regretting my snarky comment this morning- but it has been completely glossed over. Interesting.
I am absolutely sure there are lots of lovely places to live in the North of England.

Yep, no one is paying any attention 🤣 I agree, lots of lovely villages in towns in North of England.

I’m just 🙄 about the entire topic. I’m about 800 miles north of Sussex. It’s like they think there are only 3 towns north of Watford and one of those 3 will be the definitive solution.

and… if you’re making such a life-changing decision it’s probably best to scope places out first yourself or at least say “where in Lancashire would you recommend?”.

We recently relocated to east Cheshire from north London for DH’s job. We absolutely love it here and would never go back. The people here are unbelievably friendly and we just love the space, fresh air and green. We can get to Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool in an hour or less. London is only an hour and a half away from Crewe station. There are lots of beautiful towns, parks and things to do as a family. North wales is an easy drive away for the coast.

We’ve both never been so happy and don’t feel disconnected from friends as we’re not a million miles away.

We looked at lots of towns in Cheshire/Staffordshire to buy, and you should be able to get the house you’re looking for. We like areas around Nantwich and Sandbach in Cheshire. Also some lovely places in Staffordshire and near the Peaks, like Leek, Stone and Eccleshall.

Good luck!!

What about Sheffield? It has wonderful green spaces, lots of nice parks and close to the Peak District for family days out.

You might be struggling to get a 4 bed detached though for 400k in the nicer areas though.

I agree with this. the 'north' is huge and varied. Thinking that you can just ask for recommendations in 'the north' makes someone sound pretty ignorant tbh.

Like, do you want city stuff, arts, culture, good restaurants? Coastal scenery? Hills? Scotland or England? Do you need to be able to get to London for work occasionally? What transport infrastructure will you need?

I also get the impression that the type of people who ask about 'the north' have zero clue about the differences in climate / daylight hours in the various areas.

They're probably the same posters who assume on other threads that everyone is sweltering in a heatwave, or everyone is being rained on, just because the SE and London are. No concept of the fact that life is different beyond the Watford Gap.

York is lovely. Some of the areas around it are nice. Villages with community feel and good schools.

Although it is not North, Lincoln is lovely. The city is undergoing a real regeneration. House prices are reasonable, schools are good.

I live and work in Leeds. To give an idea of house prices, there are no four bedrooms detached properties available at all in my postcode. They are the holy grail of housing.

Currently the only matches according to Rightmove in my postcode area are a 9 bed detached or an 8 bed detached, both on sale for for £2,750,000!

All these comments about people in Scotland being, it's seems, offended that people in England refering to the North mean the North of England rather than Scotland, are really bizarre. They seem to assume that when people talk about geography they are doing it through a UK level lens rather than a nation level lens. In Scotland, when people talk about North and South do they not mean north and south Scotland? Wouldn't they need to specify if they meant England or does everyone in Scotland describe where they live as "the North of UK"?

That's a dinky 2 bed cottage. It illustrates that you can't buy a mansion with the lost change you find down the back of the sofa in all of 'the North' but it doesn't fit the OP's brief at all.

The part of Sussex the OP hails from might have a bearing on what sort of area she is looking for. The famously liberal city by the sea is very different to some of the more run down seaside towns, which are different again to the market towns inland which in turn are different to the chocolate box, picture postcard villages.

Shrewnipper it just depends on who we're speaking to for the most part. If I were chatting to my Scottish neighbour, living in Scotland I'd use north/south (or highlands/islands/central/south).

If I were speaking to people from different parts of the UK or perhaps my colleagues in Europe I'd specify the country.

Indeed. So fair enough that someone not in England might ask for clarification where the Op meant by "up north" (which is a very common phrase in England to mean the North of England and was being used by someone in England), but doesn't explain the snippiness or suggestion that somehow OP is unaware of/doesn't care about Scotland or where it is and is therefore feeding the case for independence.

I did this . I moved from East Sussex to near Bishop Auckland. First of all, I took a holiday, no planned places, just staying in B&Bs which I found by going to Tourist Information places. I'd then have a look around, call in at estate agents to see house prices etc. Had a great time, and it was very successful.

Shrewnipper pretty much. I think it's more a long standing frustration and it boils over on platforms like this where England is thought of as the default so clarification needs to be sought rather than offered (as I would do).

It's really clear the OP wasn't trying to offend anyone and you never know...we might sell her on Wick 😂

But if you know York or Harrogate, you wouldn't want to live in those houses....?!

Noting the Teeside/Yarm suggestions and really hoping the OP buys a mansion in Stockton for £200k without bothering to visit.... 😂

In my view misdirected frustration. It just feeds division, but maybe (cynicalme thinks) that was intended.

Never been to Wick. Maybe I'll come and check it out from "up north"!

For me it is about the assumption that the rich southerners can afford a luxury lifestyle by bringing their wealth to the cheap north.

Wherever north is, dunno, they just heard it was cheaper.

There are truly lovely parts of the north with great standard of living and good schools but £400k won't go so far there.

!! Yes, important to understand the different towns in Teesside. You can easily get the type of house the OP wants for the money she has in really "nice" towns (Yarm, Eaglescliffe and - slightly different as it is new - Ingleby Barwick), there are also parts of Stockton, Middlesbrough and Thornaby (mostly suburbs/attached villages) that are not suffering the effects of deprivation and which are a little cheaper. The whole area has a real identity and is an interesting place to live.

Yep. This as well.

If it's 'just' house prices OP then I think you may be actually better staying put- many nice parts of the most liveable places 'up north' really aren't much cheaper

Example of 2 4 bed detached in sussex- neither of which look from to me

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/121620680#/?channel=RES_BUY

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/126021608#/?channel=RES_BUY

Oops ignore the one in east grinstead its for over 60s!! Quite like it myself actually

Or somewhere like this in lovely Bruton (somerset). Very nice community, on the train -upmarket- handy for Frome and Bath etc- unless you specifically want to move 'up north ' other options are just as affordable - although I'm not sure if you fancy it more as certainly in Yorkshire/lane etc there are far more big cities in the doorstep

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/124237385#/?channel=RES_BUY