Are there any "bad" areas in Winchester?

[BigEggLittleEgg]

Possibility of us moving there and we are going to stay for a few days and have a look round after Easter. Just wondering if there are any areas that are not worth looking at in terms of finding a house (ie full of scummy people ).

Couldn't resist popping back again - so excited to have a thread about where I live

There are tons of pubs in Winch, but I think a lot aren't actually v nice - esp for kids. Roll on that smoking ban! The Vine non-smoking in town square overlooking the cathedral v nice, good food - but a grown-up place.

There are loads of nice ones in surrounding villages some on rivers etc too many to mention, but the Plough in Sparsholt, pub in Ovington (forgotten name, but there is only one) spring to mind (ooh could start up a new thread on this!! - any suggestions for gems I've missed?)

We moved from small terraced house in Winc recently. We thought of villages cos, there are some v lovely ones nearby and slightly cheaper. You get a bigger house & es imp to us - a big garden. However, ended up in Fulflood like everyone else - near station (not that we ude it!) near good prim & sec schools, reasonable size garden, reasonable size house. Found you have to compromise (ie would like another bedroom & acres of garden but these big ones aren't available in central Winch apart from vv few mansions that have £1m tag)

Kept thinking on school run today how many MN posters I was secretly seeing!

Big egg etc..
Most of the locals ARE Londoners!
(ok me too but 9yrs makes me old hand!)

I miss Winchester

it's the Bush in Ovington

and it is lovely.

notyetused - funnily enough there was a pubs near winchester thread a few months ago.

Ahh yeah the Bush lovely surroundings, can eat next to river if weather good. Popular at weekends.

Useless Winchester fact - between the wars Winchester had more pubs per head than any other town in the country!!

Many have closed now, but that was cos of the large military presence here. Many of these barracks have also gone now, but there are still some and a bit of a lively atmosphere on Sat nights as a result of military vs local youths - usual market town problem.

Great place for small kids, really good playgrounds, river through town etc, but nowt for older kids (1 small 2 screen cinema) who go to Basingstoke or Southampton for multiplex, bowling, ice skating etc.

Sorry Im writing a book now.

(Mutters.. have been waiting 5yrs on mumsnet for this opportunity!)

aDad - thanks will have to search for it.
do you do Western School??
(just guessing)
ps - I'm cheating on here today cos my usual name is too easily identifiable and i'm a bit shy!

who me?

I was born there and left when I was 18, like most people who grew up there!

Whenever i go back I realise what a lovely place it was/is.

Hi. Decided to stick my oar in. Winchester is a great p[lace to live , but buying a house there is mindblowingly competitive - pretty much anything decent you see will cause a feeding frenzy which will go to sealed bids and sell well above the asking price ( I speak from bitter experience!). The surrounding villages are better for this, though I understand concerns re distance to the station. Theres a station about 7 miles to the north (Micheldever) which has a number of nearby villages which you may like to consder - not much within walking distance but some within cycling and a much easier drive than into winchster ( and much cheaper parking!). Gerat pub in Micheldever too (Half moon and spread eagle - very child friendly). And no chance of you being shunned - loads of ex- londoners! We rented for a year to see how the commute went before commiting, which worked well for us.

Wow I nip out for a while and everyone has been on giving even MORE info. Now I am going to be so upset if we dont end up moving there, and I haven't even BEEN there yet. Heard there are lots of nice schools.

More pubs per head than any town in country - what an accolade. Even if it is no longer true it is surely a great reason to move there.

Have told DH all about the positive comments on here, but cant show him as dont want him to know about standing room only on trains... Am I a very bad wife?

Hi Scooby - sorry did not see your message before posting my last one. Things like that are really useful to know, so if we do end up "going for it" it is prob wise to aim for something a bit under our budget so we can stretch a bit more if necessary?

I did look at Micheldever which looks really lovely, but think trains take slightly longer, or are less frequent, or something? Please correct me if I am wrong as it gives us more options!

no micheldever is 5 train minutes nearer london but most london bound trains dont stop there.

Yes, that would probably be wise. I'm assuming you're looking for the "usual" family type house (3/4 beds, garden, close to station, fairly quiet location etc.)and there is a huge undersupply. Also no estate agent will take you seriously unless the property you're selling is at least in solicitor's hands (preferably completed)- there are so many people in that position already who are still desperately looking that they don't need to. We lived in rented for a year partly to test out the area, and partly so we could sell our house in London and be in a better position to buy - may be worth thinking about (plenty of rental about, though also expensive). Sorry to be a bit of a doom-merchant, but don't let it put you off- it is lovely down here.
Trains from Micheldever don't really take any longer (maybe 5 mins) but are less frequent - not really a problem during normal commuting hours, but does become more of an issue later in the evening when they are only hourly. You do usually get a seat though!

LOL re little old ladies in Weeke. My parents live there (in a rather nice road) and help out at a weekly lunch club for oldies. One of the other helpers is 77, not much younger than those attending .

Azure !

Scooby dont worry you are not being a doom merchant (well, you are , but these are all things we need to know). Have heard before (think it might have been on Phil & Kirstie or similar) about being in the best position if you are under offer on your own house when you put in an offer on new house. Think we need to do a big clear out before letting any estate agents in here... bombsite is not the word!

Found this thread when I was searching for info on new house - we're moving to Harestock in a couple of weeks :)

Good to hear there's lots to do for kids - we have a 3.8 year old boy - so far science museum and the trains are on the list for summer days out.

Dear all
we are looking for host families to host Italian Students from 14-28 July in Winchester and surrounding areas. 2-3 students per family and good rates of pay.
please get in touch.

Our eldest and her boyfriend live in central Winchester and love it. They are about four minutes walk from the ticket office so communting wouldn’t be an issue but they both work locally.
You don’t get a huge amount for your money and parking is limited. They have a little Victorian terrace with nice big kitchen/ breakfast, a dining and sitting room, a master bedroom and study/nursery and a large attic en suite bedroom. It was 500k with no parking and a small garden.
They love being able to walk into city for meals, the theatre, good walking and a very safe feel. They’ve been there about a year and I suspect they’ll stay there for a good few years.

Well i am growing up in Weeke and as a child i love the area. Everyone is nice, schools are amazing,and the local facilities are rlly nice (E.g parks,coummity spaces.)
Well, as it is a council estate,it is a bit scruffy.The local shops and the concil flats/houses are not too atractive yet stylish in diffrent ways.But, it is worth the vist, you will feel nice vibes.It is a bit scruffy but full of kind-hearted people i love Weeke.