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Original poster

Relocating to Durham area

61 replies

Cookie369 · 22/06/2020 13:57

Hi, help I’m in the process of selling my home in the south and looking to relocate around the Durham area, can anyone please give me ideas of better areas as I’m taking my youngest two daughters who are 11. Going to me a big move and so worried about getting it wrong! We are looking to buy there and spending around the 220k Mark.
Thankyou smile

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Original poster
Cookie369 · 07/07/2020 17:15

Thankyou everyone, I will start looking now, if anyone has anymore suggestions then please let me know xx

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CremeEggThief · 08/07/2020 13:49

I live in Spennymoor and it's not as bad as some people are making out. Tudhoe is nice, particularly Tudhoe Village. However, we used to live in Langley Moor, which was great, as it's so close to Durham city centre and it was in the catchment area for Durham Johnston.

CremeEggThief · 08/07/2020 13:50

Was in the catchment? Still is!

Disfordarkchocolate · 08/07/2020 13:51

I'd consider Belmont too. It's a different secondary school but I know lots of people who've been happy with it.

If your going to be working in Durham take this into account, travelling across town in the rush hour can be awful.

Auntydarah · 08/07/2020 13:53

I live in Newcastle I'm from the area. Previously lived in London and returned as we couldn't buy a house on our 80k joint income. It depends where you live now and what you are used to, but a lot if the North East is fairly deprived or just generally working class. Durham in particular has lots of former industrial towns and villages. I don't mean being working class is bad but if you think you are very middle class it is probs going to be difficult to fit in.

Consett isn't very nice tbh. I used to live close by. It feels very cut off and the high street feels very dead.

Auntydarah · 08/07/2020 13:57

I'm not working class but the students in Durham really onnou me. So if you're a bit of a class war warrior. Grin the privilege and entitlement is wearing. But it doesn't bother some people as not everyone feels the same about privilege.

Starmer · 08/07/2020 14:00

We’re in Darlington, which I would really recommend. Nice town, good transport links, easy to get to the coast or the countryside, good schools and excellent 6th form college ......

Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 15:59

@Starmer

We’re in Darlington, which I would really recommend. Nice town, good transport links, easy to get to the coast or the countryside, good schools and excellent 6th form college ......
Hi, there’s a property in Nebraska close for sale, do you know if it is in a good area as hubby is on about going to look at it?! We had given Darlington a thought first of all but I kept reading reports that it wasn’t nice.
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Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 16:01

@Auntydarah

I'm not working class but the students in Durham really onnou me. So if you're a bit of a class war warrior. Grin the privilege and entitlement is wearing. But it doesn't bother some people as not everyone feels the same about privilege.
Lol, definitely not a class warrior... have enough of that with my eldest daughter who graduated Oxford university two years ago and now claims to be better than the town we live in! We are moving just to have a fresh start with our youngest two Smile
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Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 16:04

Hi, is stud how the best part of spennymoor? I was looking at houses the other day and saw a few nice ones. The secondary school has a excellent ofsted report which is what attracted us to the area Smile

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Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 16:04

Sorry the damn autocorrect, I put Tudhoe, is tudhoe athe best area x

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CremeEggThief · 08/07/2020 16:11

@Cookie369, Tudhoe village is lovely and Tudhoe and Croxdale are both nice. I have discovered so many lovely walks and green spaces within a 3 mile walk from my house since lockdown and it has kept me sane.

I do think though that living on the outskirts of Durham city or Darlington (technically a town, but much bigger than Durham!) might be easier to adapt to, moving from the south. It's what we did, when we moved up here initially.

Yamashita40 · 08/07/2020 16:14

I'm from Consett. My H moved here from Central Newcastle and wouldn't move back as we can afford such a better house here. He loves the nearby countryside too. We are on the border with Northumberland and are spoilt with absolutely stunning views. It's an old steel town so yes its mostly working class but there's been thousands of new houses built here so we have people from all over now settled here. I've met a lot of new friends from the South who moved here for the house prices.

My eldest goes to St Bedes in Lanchester which is an outstanding secondary. It's fairly difficult to get into unless you are Catholic. I wouldn't personally live in Lanchester even though it's a nice village as it often gets flooded.

My little sister buses it to school in Hexham. A lot of locals do if they don't get into St Bedes as the other local school isn't as good. Hexham is a lovely place to live but expensive to buy. As soon as you cross the border to Northumberland prices go up. Shotley Bridge is where I was born and its a really beautiful village and you would still get enough for your money.

Other nice villages in the area are Castleside, Medomsley and Tanfield village. I'd happily move to any of them.

Anyway pm me if you want any more info.

Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 16:15

@CremeEggThief thankyou for answering me so quickly. I just hope we sell up quickly as this lockdown has really put the brakes on things. Can you believe we even looked towards the east coast for a new start 😅.

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Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 16:19

@Yamashita40 thankyou for replying, you’re right that the house prices are a very good attraction to the area. We looked at a few new builds there and it seems lovely, do you really get a lot of snow there? I think my girls would love that! We aren’t catholic so I guess that school will be out of the question but I hear the local academy is quite good.

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Yamashita40 · 08/07/2020 16:27

Would your girls be going into year 7? You could always try for Bedes. Some years are over subscribed and some aren't. The local comp, North Durham academy was only built a couple of years ago so the building is beautiful and its attached to the local swimming pool so great facilities.

The snow doesn't really bother me as I work within walking distance but my H works in Wallsend. I can say he's never missed work due to snow in 15 years of living here. We get a bad winter maybe 1 out of 3. If you get decent snow tyres you'll be fine and it's great fun for the kids.

merryhouse · 08/07/2020 16:29

I wouldn't recommend going to Emmanuel College - it's a creationist place.

Belmont is nice (well, I would say that) - our estate is middle-class but not achingly so, and the wild common areas are lovely. The school is a bit of a mixed bag and doesn't have a sixth-form; but I don't think many people have trouble getting into the school they want unless that's Johnston. Certainly twelve years ago only three people didn't get their first choice of secondary Grin, though the demographic is bigger now (Fram's lower school is MASSIVE).

Lots of the county has some very run-down bits, often quite close to posh new builds or delightful rural idylls. Places like Consett (as mentioned) and Tow Law will get snowed in if anyone so much as sneezes in winter.

Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 16:29

@Starmer sorry, also apart from Nebraska close is Great north road any good or are the both areas to stay away from, thankyou Smile

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Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 16:33

@merryhouse, thanks I did see a house in Belmont so trying to see if it’s still for sale and then we will go up there and look at a few properties over a couple of days... this whole relocating thing is hard work lol.

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CremeEggThief · 08/07/2020 16:35

No problem at all, @Cookie369. Happy to help if I can.

Original poster
Cookie369 · 08/07/2020 16:35

@Yamashita40 yes my twins will be going into year 7, they really aren’t looking forward to having to go to our local school and we were hoping that we might have sold quicker than this but this damn lockdown has thrown so much our way that I’m wondering if someone somewhere is trying to tell us something Grin

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Brieminewine · 08/07/2020 16:40

Like most northern towns our high streets are run down (spenny, bishop, consett) but there is some nice area and there seems to be plenty investment in the area. Rural bishop Auckland is lovely, it depends what you want, tudhoe is a nice area and only a 15min drive to the city if that’s important to you.

CountFosco · 08/07/2020 16:52

Hi, there’s a property in Nebraska close for sale, do you know if it is in a good area as hubby is on about going to look at it?! We had given Darlington a thought first of all but I kept reading reports that it wasn’t nice.

The east of Darlington is bad, the west end is lovely. Nebraska Close in the north would put you in the catchment for Longfield which seems to have a very good SLT but the intake isn't as middle class as Carmel (outstanding faith school) or Hummersknott (didn't have the greatest Ofsted) or Polam (free school, run down buildings) . Best area to live in Darlington is the triangle between Woodlands Road and Grange Road (A167).

Tigerty · 08/07/2020 17:03

Consett is lovely and takes 25 mins commute in Summer but 49-45 mins from sept to Christmas because of traffic (pre-Covid). You will get snowed in but there’s a lot of amenities here eg leisure centre & swimming pool, a large Morrison’s & Tesco, and lots of new houses to choose from if you like that. You get a good amount of house for your money. Good bus routes Newcastle and Durham too.

I had a stint in Lanchester and it’s an older population (curtain twitching is an long running joke) with a lot less amenities. Very pretty though.

Spennymoor has estates of new houses too so you’ll need to have a look round.

Persimmon are building new houses in Aykley Heads in Durham which is in Durham Johnson catchment area. I’ve had a quick look and the prices have gone up since I was looking (just over a year ago). Might be worth a visit to the sales room to have a chat with them.

There’s roadworks in Durham City centre at the moment, they’re repairing one of the bridges and it will take quite a while so would check the council website.

Tigerty · 08/07/2020 17:08

Are your DCs die to start year 7 in September? A lot of the schools in the area are oversubscribed so best to ring the council to see where there are places available.