Possible relocation to Kings Lynn area

[Elledee80]

Hi Everyone, forgive me: I'm new to this!
We're looking to possibly relocate from Scotland to the Kings Lynn area - wondering if anyone can offer some insight into good areas/areas best avoided? Whenever I Google info, a lot of stuff comes up that makes the area sound less than appealing - is this truly the case?
Thanks in advance!

I'm local and wouldn't live in Kings Lynn town if you paid me! The Woottons seem nice (have only ever driven through that bit though). The villages in the KL area are nice places too.

Thanks, Treasures. What's so bad about the actual town? I assume because the outlying villages are fairly small, most of the main amenities are in Kings Lynn itself?

What is the reason your relocation to this area? Work ? Family?
Depending if you have to work in kingslynn it depends how far your prepared to drive / commute.
There's some lovely villages around there but they're about 20 to 30 mins drives away.
Kingslynn town itself is not that exciting but it's not too far from Norwich and Cambridge if you want bigger shops and culture that you won't find in kingslynn. It's a 90 min commute to kings cross I think..

Ps I don't live there, I have family and friends that do.

Thanks. Yes, the relocation is job related. We have a dd, aged 1 so schooling is part of our considerations. I've heard the roads aren't great so it takes quite a time to get anywhere? Anything up to 30 mins drive would be fine for a commute. Has this incinerator I've heard about had the go-ahead/is it likely to?

It's just a bit grim in general and the town centre often smells of sewage. Quite a bit of violent crime, drugs, homelessness etc.
Good points: lots of shops, the older parts of town are nice to visit (like the quay area), museums, art centre, there's the Mart (funfair) every Feb half term, easy access to other places of interest like Sandringham, the North Norfolk coast, several local-ish castles...
I just personally would not want to live there, but it's handy having it nearby.

Incinerator not had go ahead yet. Can take an hour to drive ten miles at rush hour!

Disclaimer: all of this is just my perception!

haha, yes, thanks. Every bit of info is helpful as we don't know anything really about the area.

Definitely wouldnt live in the town, some of the villages along the a47 are nice and downham market isn't too bad

Could you live along the A47, use Norwich for amenities and commute to
Kings Lynn for work?

Dh was in KL today having a vasectomy...

We live about 15 miles from KL. What are your priorities? How big a town/village would you like? What amenities? Rent or buy? Budget? What do you like doing? Hobbies you want to continue? Absolute no-nos?

Norfolk is beautiful and you could be v happy here if you choose the right place. KL is similar to many towns. Good and bad.

We use Norwich mostly BTW. Or Dereham for some things.

One of the perceived issues with KL itself is that it is heavily populated with migrant workers who take jobs in the veg growing fields in the Fens/Lincs.

The villages around are lovely though and you should get quite a bit for your money as lack of transport links make it difficult to commute to anywhere else.

I live in a village about 12 miles from Kings Lynn, the wootons are nice and there are some nice places in Reffley, avoid the fairstead, hillington square and north lynn. There are some lovely villages in the area, I live in Gt Massingham which is beautiful :) If you need any more advice feel free to pm me :)

Thanks everyone.
We live in a fairly big town at present so have 3 supermarkets, cinema, parks, cinema, pool all within a couple of miles. Hobbies tend to centre around the parks etc. While I realise we won't get all this in a village, to be within a few miles of this would be advantageous. We also have a hospital nearby within 5 miles. We'd be looking to buy with max budget of around 230k. I'm a big hayfever sufferer so concerned re the number of fields!!

Seem some harsh views on this thread. I grew up round there, and the town is quite pretty, has a great market, and has most of the big name shops. Some of the outlying villages are lovely, some less so, like anywhere. The nearby coastline is glorious, with long deserted beaches. I have never really found traffic a problem, certainly nothing compared to cities. You can get a lot of house for your money, and there are lots of woods, pubs and a few theatres etc.

The downsides are that it take quite a while to get anywhere, because it is quite far from other places, and there are no motorways. Quite a lot of duel carriageways though! Yes, there is a bit of a drug problem and some schools aren't great, but I think that's true of most places.

The town has a pool, several supermarkets, cinema, a few parks, so it actually doesn't sound dissimilar to where you are now...

Oh, and a big hospital.

Castle rising is lovely and the Woottons have some lovely houses and good schools. Further along the coast is Snettisham with a nice first school and beach. I think the secondaries in lynn are a mixture but kes has always been very popular. I wouldn't opt to live in the town itself unless it was one of the very nice historic buildings

I would not particularly want to commute along the A47. Not for the sake of being able to go to Norwich, anyway.

Some of the villages up towards the N Norfolk coast are lovely. Stanhoe, or the Creakes (N and s), for example. Thornham. It depends whether you are looking for live in a beautiful rural village on one of the most beautiful coasts in the world, or would prefer to be more urban / suburban. The area between Lynn and the N coast is prettier and nicer than the more inland areas round the town, IMO. The N Norflk coast is fantastic, wth wonderful beaches at Brancaster, Wells and Holkham. Closer to Lynn is Old Hunstanton, which is quite charming.

As a town to visit for shopping etc Lynn isn't too bad. It has a big supermarket, cinema, Corn Exchange arts centre that has children's shows and concerts and comedy nights. Lynn has the old town that is very attractive.

There is a fast train line to Cambridge and then on to London, stopping at Ely, all good places to visit from Lynn.

All really helpful info, thank you. How have the recent floods affected the area?

I don't think there have been any areas flooded here, before Christmas the town centre got flooded and some coastal areas but nothing serious.

That's good to know, thank you. :)

Only just seem this thread. I really like the area but again, wouldn't live in KL itself. One word of caution, many Norfolk schools really aren't great, at primary or secondary levels, so research where you plan to live. There are efforts to improve education in the area though, so hopefully things will get better.

Thanks everyone. After a short break in the area, I can see what you mean about Kings Lynn itself, although some of it is rather pretty (the historic area). We quite liked Fakenham, Dereham and Hunstanton and then into Ely and Littleport, which we feel are relatively easy to commute to KL from. Anyone add anything to this, good or bad? All advice appreciated :)