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Original poster

Moving to Newcastle upon Tyne area. Where to live?

63 replies

susanita · 12/02/2008 18:43

Hi there
Due to hubby's work, we'll be moving to Newcastle upon Tyne once we?ve sold our house in West London. We?re initially looking to rent and then, with time, look around for a house to buy. Ideally we?d like to rent in a location where we?ll be buying; we have 2 primary school age kids so want to avoid moving them too much (if we can get them into school in 1st place!) Whilst we don?t want to be in the city, we don?t want to be too far and we don?t want anywhere too rural. We?d like somewhere with easy access to Newcastle as DH will be working in central Newcastle.
Ideally we don't want to rely on car for work, school run etc and we'd like facilities for children within walking distance. Are we looking for the impossible?

We have no family in the area although we have some friends who all seem to suggest different places.
We did consider Tynemouth but not sure about living near the coast.
One area we?ve seen and liked is Ryton. When I do a search for properties around Ryton, Crawcrook and the villages of Greenside and Walbottle come up. Can anybody say anything about these areas? Are there any other areas that perhaps we should consider? Last time we went up for a look we did look around Whickham but somehow, for no particular reason, it didn?t feel right.

Any help/thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

OP posts:
hairtwiddler · 12/02/2008 20:55

Burnopfield and Rowlands Gill are also nice near that area.
North of the city - Morpeth.
West - Hexham, Corbridge.

hairtwiddler · 12/02/2008 20:59

Tynemouth is lovely and on Metro line which would be a big bonus if you wanted to use public transport.

Cazwa · 12/02/2008 21:18

I live on the border of North Shields and Tynemouth and its perfect for commuting to the city but with the beautiful beach in walking distance. However, for good schools I would suggest you consider Whitley Bay, just north of here. Its on the coast still and the metro line, has great schools and a reasonable amount of things to do for young people (I grew up there). It also has some lovely housing going from the cheapish to amazingly expensive, so if you have lots of dosh from selling in London you will be spoilt for choice!

Ryton is nice, have a friend who lives there but complains its a bit 'charverish', finds cans in her garden etc.

Jesmond and Gosforth are more central to Newcastle, but pretty expensive. Good schools again.

popsycal · 12/02/2008 21:21

tynemouth and monkseaton are lovely
jesmond and gosforth for closer to town - both on metro line

you should get good value for money on houses if you are moving from london

what are your priorities? may be able to help more

popsycal · 12/02/2008 21:23

best schools are whitley bay and gosforth if we are talking closeish to town

Original poster
susanita · 13/02/2008 18:33

Oooh thanks for your help and ideas.
Popsycal, our priorities are good schools, good transport links, house with garden and easy distance to Newcastle.
Yes, we do get quite good value for money i.e. bigger house for the money but there are still lots of houses out of our budget! We don't want to increase our mortgage, preferably decrease it or have none left at all (but that last one might be wishful thinking).
Still, got more food for thought now. Thanks to you all for your replies. It's quite daunting thinking we could move anywhere as there's no special hold for us!

OP posts:
popsycal · 13/02/2008 20:12

i teach in whitley bay - probably your best option

3Ddonut · 13/02/2008 20:16

All our docs live in Jesmond or the quayside, so I assume they're the best areas?!

EnormousChangesAtTheLastMinute · 13/02/2008 20:19

There are some good properties in Gosforth and I also like Rowlands Gill, you have to hunt to find decent houses but a friend's grandparents used to live in a lovely victorian house with woods out back and steep garden out front which i loved.

LaDiDaDi · 13/02/2008 20:20

I'd echo what everyone here's already said but I'd add another vote for Morpeth. It's a nice market town with good schools and with some lovely villages and rural areas near by. Good schools too but a bit further out from town.

Ponteland could be another good option for you as well, katwith3kittens on the Newcastle meetups thread lives there.

Gosforth and Jesmond are lovely areas and your dh would have a miniscule commute but they are busy areas too.

Original poster
susanita · 14/02/2008 10:51

Thanks for help.
Think next time we go up we'll definitely have a good look at Whitley Bay, North Shields and Tynemouth. We had a wander around there last time but only had chance for a quick look.
After doing some searches those areas do seem to tick a lot of our boxes and hubby seems quite keen now to be near coast.
Being the soft southerner that I am, I'm a bit worried about the cold winds on the coast!

We had a look at Morpeth at one point but it just seemed that little bit too far...We have friends who live in Gosforth and we've had a look around Jesmond but somehow neither appeal to us; think they seemed too busy.

Anyway, must get off computer and do some work!
It's also my son's b'day today so I'd better round to doing cake etc. Thanks everyone.

OP posts:
Original poster
susanita · 14/02/2008 14:12

By the way, how busy does the coast - Tynemouth, Whitley Bay etc get in summer?
Is there an 'issue' with hen and stag parties or clubbers?

OP posts:
popsycal · 14/02/2008 14:14

whitley gets busy but if ypu are in the monkseaton part it is fine
tynremouth fine imo

we are hoiping to move out that way soon

popsycal · 14/02/2008 14:15

cookes and co seems to be one of the most well used estate agents roubd that way btw

Cazwa · 15/02/2008 21:09

The coast is always milder in winter than inland, however this works against us in the summer when we can often have sea mist when the rest of the country is in sunshine 1 mile inland!
Whitley Bay is not particularly busy in summer, the seafront can get a bit busy with cars but not that bad.

Stag parties are concentrated on 1 street only in Whitley Bay town centre, which is well away from the housing I imagine you would go for. They really dont intrude on teh rest of the town.

Jesmond is full of posh students whose parents ahve bought them houses and make lots of noise and all have their own cars, consequently parking is a nightmare and loads of people have moved out due to the parties etc. Its v close to town but far too busy for my liking.

PatsyCline · 15/02/2008 21:31

Hexham is lovely - we moved here from West London. The schools are excellent (take a look at The Sele - main first school and outstanding). The drive into Newcastle is very speedy (DH reports very bad drive for some colleagues who live south of Newcastle - A1 can be nasty). I used to drive into the Quayside in under 40 mins. Hexham is a market town, but it has an arts centre, cinema, leisure centre etc. It's a really lovely place for families and might be worth a look.

Gosforth is where we would head for if we wanted to live in central Newcastle - Jesmond is £££££. Leazes Village (tiny conservation area right in centre) is also very nice and on the doorstep of lovely park plus all of the cultural fabulousness in Newcastle.

Tynemouth is lovely but I'd worry about the chill factor (and I am a hardy Northerner).

Good luck with your search.

Theresa · 15/02/2008 21:49

We have 2 children aged 6 & 9 and have lived in Monkseaton for 13 yrs and we love it. It has a kind of 'village centre' with houses in all directions ranging from brand new to 100yrs plus. We live 1 stop on the metro from whitley bay, or it is about 10 - 15 mins walk, its fine for shopping but best avoided in the evenings and weekends, especially bank holidays as thats when the boozey trips arrive. Sounds awful I know but really I wouldnt live anywhere else. Metro is 25 mins to city centre, we have the beach, a wonderful network of 'Waggonways' whihc were orignally small rail tracks for coal trucks and have now been turned into cycle paths, but drive less than half an hour inland and you're in the countryside. Its a lot cheaper than Tynemouth, where the beach is getting a reputation for surfing. Whitley Bay is meant to be getting 'regenerated' but is has been since we moved here so we're not holding our breath, although they have finally closed our local leisure pool and theatre for refurbishing! Schools are really good and we still have a 'three tier' system here in North Tyneside, which means first school to year 4, yrs 5 -8 are middle school and yr 9 is the start of high school. Not everyones ideal, I did think it was mine but my dd is 9 and starting middle school in sept and i'll be so sad that she's leaving our lovely 1st school. Anyway, lots of you to think about there, how exciting for you!

Theresa · 15/02/2008 21:52

lots for you to think about I meant!

popsycal · 16/02/2008 10:43
Theresa · 17/02/2008 09:29

Yes popsy am intrigued to know whihc school you teach at and your coment ixs making me even more twitchy at the thought of my lovely very well behaved (on the whole) 9 year old turning into a horrible monster at middle school, another 2 years at our lovely first school would suit me much better, although then i'd be worried about her starting high school at aged 11! I suppose parenthood is just a case of constantly looking for something to worry about!

popsycal · 19/02/2008 18:54

give me some clues about where dd is now

my ds1 is at one of the smaller first schools....

Judy1234 · 19/02/2008 19:47

Jesmond/Gosforth . Not sure about the state schools. My brother went to Newcastle Royal Grammar at 7+ which was a good school but an independent school (ex direct grant school).

geordiemacminx · 19/02/2008 19:58

Tynemouth, Whitley Bay, Jesmond and Gosforth are all nice, as are Ryton and Crawcrook. You will get a lot more for your money in the latter too. I personally would stay away from Greenside and Walbottle. My grandma lives in Greenside - havent been tere for a god few years but wasnt great the last time I was there.. Rowlands Gill is nice, as is Whickham. Hexham is beautiful - I was born there

Mog · 19/02/2008 20:15

Royal Grammer School boys are very ill mannered - use it with caution.

Zazette · 19/02/2008 20:33

There are very very few houses with gardens in either Gosforth or Jesmond. Some parts of Jesmond are nice, some really are overrun with students in a way that anyone whose knowledge of the city dates from 5+ years ago would find hard to imagine...