Bournemouth and New Forest area - I just don't know where to start!

[whereishome]

Hi everyone,

I don't know if anyone remembers an old thread I started a few weeks ago asking people to 'name this town'? Basically, we have to move next month and had absolutely no clue where to go.

We have decided to fly home and look around the New Forest area and around Bournemouth - so a huge area really : / We don't really have any real needs; dh will probably need relatively easy access to an airport and will need to go to London occasionally. But that's about it. I also want to be able to walk to school and quite a few shops and not rely on having to drive everywhere. But I don't really know where to start. I think we have decided that deep in the New Forest eg. Lymington is going to be too cut off and too hard to get anywhere from. But I haven't a clue where to start now. I think the most important thing for us is to find a great primary school (happy to sit on waiting list). I have just tried to find a list of outstanding providers on the Ofsted website but it doesn't seem to be that user friendly - it doesn't state where the schools are so I would have to trawl through them all to find out which ones are around the area we are looking at. I know not to rely too much on the 'outstanding' label but that is a good starting point for me at this point in time.

So, what am I asking? I guess, if anyone can help me home in on a really nice spot near where we are looking at, fairly easy to get to an airport and with some outstanding schools, I would be immensely grateful!!! We have to move next week and I am totally lost!

Sorry, next month, not next week! I think that was a freudian slip for 'panic'

Have a look at Ringwood, v near the a31, outstanding infant and junior schools and a nice market town. about 10-15 mins from the airport, and on the edge of the forest. It's popular though, house prices are pretty high and the schools are often oversubscribed, but it's definitely worth a look.

Boscombe East and parts of Southbourne are good. St James and St Katherines are the top 2 Bmth primaries. Grammars still there and a good RC comp for later. Stations at Pokesdown and Christchurch for London (Waterloo) train also goes by Southampton Airport. 5/10 mins to the beach.

My DD`s grew up there and did very well at St James, one went to grammar and the other went to a girls sec mod and then the RC comp for A levels.

Plenty going on for younger kids.

Stourfield is Ofsted outstanding if you're not churchy- Southbourne.

Although heavily over subscribed so you need to live pretty close. St Kaths and James have slipped a bit in my opinion.

What is your housing budget....if it is on the higher end look at Lower Parkstone and Lilliput in Poole. Good schools there are Lilliput and Baden Powell.

Broadstone in Poole is a lovely area with good schools.

You're right, Lymington is lovely but ages from anywhere.

Ringwood is a good suggestion - no train station but hour and a half drive to London or you can catch the train at Brockenhurst/Southampton.

Just wanted to say thank you for all your helpful replies. I am on the case!

We live in Ensbury Park in Bournemouth and the facilities for children are lovely have a lovely park and paddling pool 5 mins walk away and a lovely community feel to the area. The local peimary Hillview is fantastic but over subscribed. Northbourne is the next price band up from Ensbury Park and we would like to move that way eventually as the properties have more space around them. Secondary schools in the area currently arent great but my children are only young so not worrying just yet as there was a really underperforming school in another area of Bmth where people would never send their children that had lots of money invested in it and now it has 700 people going for 200 places!!!!

My children went to Hill View in Ensbury Park until fairly recently. Lovey, lovely school and all of mine thoroughly enjoyed their time there. We moved away due to the poor Secondary schools, but if your children are bright then they will get into the grammar schools.

Ringwood was my first thought too :o

Also Hythe might suit, being a short ferry trip from Southampton and a hop, skip and jump from the motorway?

How about Wimborne? That's a lovely little market town - don't know so much about the schools though.

Northbourne is nice in Bournemouth as peppajay says.

'Poshest' bit of Bournemouth is Talbot Woods, houses on third acre plots.

What about New Milton - has a mainline station to London Waterloo? A good selection of shops and half-way between Bournemouth and Southampton for bigger shopping needs? Close to the sea too.

Trinity - bwahahahahahahahahahahaha

It's all charity shops!