Village recommendations - Girton, Barton, Dry Drayton, Harlton?

[Earhat]

Hi
We are planning to move to Cambridge and are looking at the above villages so far (any other recommendations welcome please).

Dh wants to commute to Bedford and we want access to good schools. We are toying with the idea of St Marys in Cambridge centre as well as looking local state schools. DD will be starting primary so we want to settle before she starts.

We are looking for a nice village with at least basic local facilities and about a 45min commute to Bedford. Would be really grateful for any advice our budget is about £500,000 what sort of thing can you get for this? We know Cambridge is not cheap! Thanks in advance for taking the time to look at this.

Girton is lovely, easy to cycle/bus into Cambridge, has 2 pubs, co-op etc. You would be commuting against the traffic but would have to go x country through madingley to the a428 (not far though). But houses go really quickly.

You get more house for your money in Dry Drayton, it's more countrified rather than suburb, and it's closer to a428 but has very few amenities (although quite close to shops/huge tesco at bar hill).

Rightmove will give you a better idea of house prices.

Someone else might know more about Barton/Halton.

Silicon Jen thank you so much,that is very comprehensive information; just what I was looking for. Will be taking a trip out to Girton to have a look over Easter.

Barton is pretty and easy to get in to Cambridge for private schools.

For state schools, Comberton Secondary is outstanding ofsted and Bourn Primary is as well (if that's the kind of thing you look at). Lots of villages in catchment for both if you google the catchment areas. Swavesey is also an outstanding ofsted secondary although I'm not as clued up as to what the villages are like over that way.

If I were you I would decide first on private or state then, if going private, would look at places closer to Cambridge and, if going state, would be narrowing down villages by catchment areas. Lots of pretty places to live but sometimes harder to find the right house as not as much comes up for sale.

You would get probably the most for your money in Cambourne although it's not everyone's cup of tea as it's more like a small town and all very new. They are building lots of new houses there though (although the catchment is of the 3 primaries and the new secondary that has just opened in Cambourne itself).

Make a big list of all the villages/places that might be of interest, based on that, then come and drive round them all in one day. You'll soon know which ones are more appealing to you as it can be hard to tell when you haven't visited them yet (that's what we did when we last moved!).

Good luck with your search.

You could also take a drive through Hardwick, which has pub, shop/post office and primary school. Maybe not the prettiest village, but Comberton catchment, cyclable to Cambridge and close to A428 for Bedford.

Thank you very much Charley and Olives. I agree Olives about Cambourne, not really my cup of tea. We are planning to spend Easter looking round a few of the schools first then making up our minds on location. I am leaning towards St Mary's at the moment but I would like to look at Comberton.
I don't go too much by Ofstead but it doesn't hurt if the reports are good.

I like the sound of Girton and Barton at the moment (although concerned motorway noise from M11 might be too loud in Barton?). Any thoughts on Impington or Histon? Thank you again so much for taking the time to reply, it is really good to get some advice in advance.

Impington and Histon - one big village really - really great place to live - worse for the commute I would have thought. Schools excellent too - when does your daughter start school - as she may struggle to get a space in some schools if it is this September - just because you can't apply until you have an address and schools are pretty full.
and access to town good -via guided bus or cycling
How prices last time I looked pretty high and house go quick

Thank you Northofcambridge - DD is still young, we want to move the year before she starts so there is no rush for a school place. We know that houses go quickly and we want to have plenty of time to look.

That's useful information about the schools and access to Cam. Really looking for the right spot as don't want to move again for a long time!

Girton and Barton are much better bets than Dry Drayton and Harlton in terms of facilities. There's no shop or school in Harlton (but there is a brilliant wood!). There's a school and a pub but no shop in Dry Drayton, and it gets an awful lot of through traffic as it's the only way to get from the villages south of the A428 to Bar Hill Tesco. There has been talk of closing the junction from Dry Drayton onto the A14, which would stop the through traffic but would also mean that people living in Dry Drayton couldn't easily access the A14.

In terms of getting to Bedford, you'd be going against the traffic, so that would be good. Barton has got a good village shop and a nice community feel. However, the school is very small. That might not put you off, but my dc started off in a village school with 2 year groups per class and one of them really struggled with that. Comberton and Bourn both have one year group per class. Bourn is an exceptionally good school ime (my dc ended up there).

Comberton, Bourn and Hardwick all have a lot of facilities. Hardwick has great sports ground, skate park etc, nice pub and good village shop. Comberton has a good shop, dentist, GP surgery, butchers and of course Comberton Village College although your dd is a long way off that age. Bourn has a good village shop, nice (but pricy!) pub, good nursery school, lovely primary, GP surgery, dentist, tea shop and butchers.

The best thing to do is go and visit. Also, I know you say Cambourne isn't your thing, but people who live there love it and there are loads of activities going on there for children - sports, arts, drama, music etc. It's worth being within cycling distance of Cambourne to access those opportunities.

Bourn is a lovely village. Very friendly.
We've nearly finished 10 years at the primary school.
It's a great school that people from outside villages travel to.
Very open and welcoming.
Lovely nursery in the village also.
Pleasant doctors and I can always get appts.

Barton is nice but more expensive. You wouldn't hear the M11.
Gransden is a pretty village that is very easy to get into the 428 to get to Bedford.

Ihatethecold, I don't like to disagree with you as I suspect you're my neighbour but you can definitely hear the M11 from some houses in Barton.

I agree that Gransden is very pretty, but it's that bit further from Cambrisge which is a pain when you've got teenagers. Great airshow though!!!

You probably right grow bag.
I don't live there. Just drive through or go to burwash manor.

The main road in Barton. (603) gets very busy during rush hours.
Lots of traffic. Sometimes non moving.

Thanks Growbag and Ihatethecold - Barton definitely looks good for access to Cam and Bedford. Bourn also looks promising. It really helps to hear from people who live in the area and can comment on day to day life as that is something you can't really get from just visiting.

Some areas can look great, but over time you wish you'd moved nearer some facilities, especially with small children. Aside from schools and short commutes to Bedford and Cam, like most I want the pretty countryside with fields and a garden while also being close enough to a few decent shops and a good pub! Thanks again for all the information!

hi :) We live very near Girton and are moving there soon. I have been commuting lately to Bedford, and its ok - its easy enough to get from Girton to the 428 - the tricky bit is the black cat round-about near Bedford, and then getting through Bedford itself! I now commute through the villages - thurleigh etc... and in through clapham. Anyway, Girton seems lovely, but we havent moved right in yet, so i might be wrong! Another village, if you are lucky enough to afford it (which we are sadly not!!!) - is Grantchester! it is gorgeous and great links to m11! and nicer (i think!!) than Barton! Schools-wise - I've heard good things about the new cambridge uni primary coming soon! not sure about the other schools in and around :) good luck!