Kimberley in Nottingham

[Lou333]

Hi all,
Anybody living or knowing of Kimberley in Nottingham? What are the schools like?
Primary and secondary? The house prices seems good and there seems to be a big Sainsbury's and all. But just want the opinion from the locals.. We are moving from Gloucestershire

I'm reasonably familiar with Kimberley and have mixed feelings about it, not sure I would make a particular point of relocating there, although it does have a few things going for it in terms of amenities, transport, countryside and property prices - and as others have said, neighbouring Watnall and Nuthall are worth a look. School-wise though, although Kimberley is not the worst (gets better exam ratings etc than alternatives in Eastwood, Hucknall, Selston for example) you can still do better elsewhere in the county.

Not that familiar with Mapperley although we did consider it ourselves some years ago and it felt a bit hemmed in... depends what your preference is, but we're happier being not too urban.

Beeston seems good from a multicultural point of view, not sure about primaries but I think part of Beeston is within catchment for the Alderman White school in Bramcote which I is OK I think. But as others have said West Bridgford and nearby Rushcliffe secondaries have the best reputation around Nottingham by quite a long chalk (no pun intended, seeing as they don't have blackboards these days :)).

There's also Wollaton, which seems to be regarded as a nice area for the most part (home to Wollaton Hall and deer park) - schools include Bluecoat Wollaton Academy and Fernwood School.

Outside the city itself, if schools are a priority (again, I can only really comment on secondary) then it may also be worth a look at Bingham (Toot Hill School), Burton Joyce (Carlton le Willows Academy) and Radcliffe-on-Trent (South Notts Academy).

Some useful pages to research if you haven't already:
www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/education/school-admissions/school-catchment-areas
www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/
parentview.ofsted.gov.uk/

Good luck in your endeavours!

I drove through Woodborough this morning, the playground there looks amazing. It would get my vote :-)

Westdale infants and juniors are both very good schools. Mapperley is lovely, and Sherwood is just down the road which has a more varied high street. It’s good for a night out. Woodborough is leafy and beautiful but a bit isolated.

@Vicliz24

Newark is lovely. On the Main East Coast line and you'd get a lovely house for your budget. It's 20 miles from Nottingham city centre but very accessible by either road or rail .

I second this.

It isn’t classed as Nottingham but there are some lovely villages around Newark and Southwell with good schools and you could be in Nottingham city centre in 30 minutes by car or train. You can also get the main line to London from Newark in 80 minutes which is faster than Nottingham.

Hi all, thanks for your responses...
We put in an offer for a house in Mapperly (that came in last week) yesterday and was rejected 😕 It went to somebody in better position which I think means somebody with a shorter chain. I've got 4 including us in a chain. Sigh! Second house to lose because of the chain.

Thanks a lot @DadManners for the catchment area link. So useful.

@Vicliz24 @Santastealer I am looking into Newark now. Seen houses in Ollerton and Winthorpe online. Are they good areas in Newark? Newark is looking good for DH commute to London once a week as only 1 hr and 40 mins. From Nottingham other places it would be 2 hrs (which is also okay and we were prepared for it but under 2 hrs would be amazing!!!)

@AquaticLicence DH went to see a house there and said it was a lovely village. The house wasn't good for us though. I'm going to Nottingham this weekend again and will go there for a look. Thanks 😊

[quote Lou333]**@Vicliz24* @Santastealer* I am looking into Newark now. Seen houses in Ollerton and Winthorpe online. Are they good areas in Newark? Newark is looking good for DH commute to London once a week as only 1 hr and 40 mins. From Nottingham other places it would be 2 hrs (which is also okay and we were prepared for it but under 2 hrs would be amazing!!!) [/quote]
Ollerton definitely not. Very run down and school is terrible.

Winthorpe is a nice little village. As are;
Collingham
South and North Muskham
Little Carlton
Carlton on Trent
Sutton on Trent
Southwell
Upton
Hockerton
Coddington is nice but more a Newark suburb now than village.

Thanks @Santastealer. How about actual Newark town centre? Closer to the North gate station. Would be easier to get the direct train to London if DH decided to take the train. Do you know about the schools that area?

@Lou333

Thanks *@Santastealer*. How about actual Newark town centre? Closer to the North gate station. Would be easier to get the direct train to London if DH decided to take the train. Do you know about the schools that area?

Most children in Newark don’t actually go to the Newark secondary schools as they used to be not great. However they are improving rapidly and some are now over subscribed.

The area near North Gate station isn’t great. It’s not terrible, most of Newark is pretty ok, but not the nicest. I would recommend looking along the A1 for villages that are easy to access the station from.

If you want Newark town centre then London Road area is the most popular.

Fernwood is a large new housing estate on the outskirts of Newark. It has a new primary school and secondary school and green areas/parks. It’s quite built up with limited parking though. Same for Middlebeck which is being built at the minute,

I love near the station. It's nice but definitely a town location. As has been mentioned London Road is lovely as are The Park Milner Street and Winchelsea avenue. Appleton gate has some nice old terraces . Winthorpe is gorgeous and there are some nice houses on Winthorpe Road too .

How are you getting on @Lou333? We are looking to relocate to a similar area, we're currently in Hampshire. Grantham is where our family are living, but we like the look of the area to the West, running towards Nottingham, Bingham has popped up on our radar. Houses are just flying off aren't they! We're heading up next week to try and get to know the area a bit better. Schools are hugely important to us, and can't be over subscribed, as our eldest is currently in YR.

@Lou333

Thank you all so much for your responses. I'm so glad I asked about the area here. I have a 19 month old so schools are very important. We are from an Asian heritage therefore multicultural atmosphere is also important. I think I'm going to drop the Kimberley house. Another area where we have seen a good house is Attenborough. Anybody living there?

West Bridgford, Beeston, Sherwood would all have a more multi-cultural community vibe. I think narrowing in your search to areas close to the universities and hospitals. I would not recommend Kimberley.

Hi @genwales87
Yes it's pretty hard as houses come and go pretty fast.
We like a house in Newark. But still not sure about the schools over there 😫

@Lou333

Hi *@genwales87* Yes it's pretty hard as houses come and go pretty fast. We like a house in Newark. But still not sure about the schools over there 😫

Yes - I've heard primary's are good, but there's an issue with secondary's in Newark? I do like the idea of being a commutable distance from Grantham for the grammar...but that's a long way away, and is subject to them getting in and actually wanting to go?!

Hi @genwales87 I'm actually not sure about the primary schools. Even the outstanding schools have Average for Maths, Writing and English etc. Whereas schools near where we live currently the 'good' schools have well above average for Maths English etc.
Is there a Grammer school in Grantham? I thought there's no grammer schools in Nottinghamshire.

I dont think you could class Newark as particularly multi-cultural if that’s an important point - it’s a Midlands market town. No grammars in Notts.

@Lou333 Grantham is in Lincolnshire, they have two, Kings is the boys grammar, and has a very good rep (?) from what I've read. It's why we're keen to live close enough to Grantham for it to be a viable option for us. I've noticed primary schools in general across Lincolnshire seem to be 'average'. My son is at an Outstanding primary in Hampshire at the moment, so I am quite concerned about that...but our budget buys us a shoe box here!

@Lou333

Hi *@genwales87* I'm actually not sure about the primary schools. Even the outstanding schools have Average for Maths, Writing and English etc. Whereas schools near where we live currently the 'good' schools have well above average for Maths English etc. Is there a Grammer school in Grantham? I thought there's no grammer schools in Nottinghamshire.

Yes Grantham has a grammar school, it’s classed as Lincolnshire despite having an NG postcode.

There is also a Grammar school in Sleaford.

Hi all, just wanted to say thank you to everyone who commented here to help me narrow down an area.
We put in an offer for a house in Newark and it got accepted yesterday.
Thanks again :)
If you can suggest good restaurants, play areas in Newark, please do..