Welwyn Garden City

[Spalva]

Hello,

We are now considering a move to WGC and I have a few questions.

I really want eldest dd to get into Monks Walk School, so we are looking at properties in the north part of town. We don't have a car and I'm wondering how tedious that walk up and down Digswell Rd is. There seems to be a Cooperative in that area -- is it okay for emergency shopping? Is that area considered pleasant, nice? Is there anything in Digswell village like a place to buy bread? I'm hoping to convince dh that he can use the Welwyn North station just as well as the main one to commute to Old St.

If you are familiar with WGC, could you tell me if you think we should be as close as possible to Monks Walk to get in? Or could we rent farther away, for example, with the closest school being Sir Frederic Osborn and still get her into Monks Walk? On school guru it says there are places at Monks Walk in Year 8 but their website says they are oversubscribed, so I'm worried.

And, in general, is WGC a nice place to live? Is it friendly? Are the kids friendly? Monks Walk seems like such a good for elder dd as she is a tech geek and they seem to have some really good clubs/activities for her. Also, the librarian/deputy headteacher seems to be very cool -- someone my dd would enjoy.

just when i thought i could help as i live in WGC - but only just pregnant so can't help with the schools.

i really like living in WGC and work here as well - i think the town centre is surviving the recession and there is a really nice feel to the place.

my husband commutes to london and finds the train easy enough. Regarding Welwyn North vs WGC station, i know there are some fast trains that seems to have a first stop (after Finsbury) at Welwyn North but they are not as frequent at the main station - but it does give you options.

we live on the other edge (panshanger) and i know our neighbours are looking for their children to go to Monks Walk - even organising a bus from our side (as they have only just stopped it).

hope it helps

It has a John Lewis!

Thank you ladies! I was just looking at an ad for a house in Panshanger. It's a bit over our budget, but maybe I'll go check it out. Do you like that area? I'm really curious. I tried to get over there today but I was just too tired -- and a bit put off by the initial sights near the station. Congratulations on the pregnancy!

I know, I know John Lewis! I can't wait to get into that sewing/knitting department. I hear there's a knitting club that meets at the cafe there.

Don't forget there is a fab dry ski slope at Gosling Stadium too

Yep, my girls will love that!

hi spalva

I can understand what you mean about the industrial areas near the station (before you get to B&Q), and once you know WGC you will find that there are a number of them dotted around the town. But to be honest i think it is something that adds a real benefit to the town due to the number of people all these small businesses employ - also very handy when you need your car serviced etc.

The old Shredded Wheat building (by the crossroads) has been bought by Tesco (good or bad?) and they are wrestling through planning to build a big shop with an leisure/activity centre with swimming pool and some more housing.

Of course with the recession there is a few more ?to let? signs up than normal.

We are on the edge of Panshanger/wgc and over look the woods, which is perfect for us and the dogs. It means I can walk through the woods and onto the fields or Moneyhole Park which is an amazing park for children and dog walkers as it has a huge climbing/activity playground and about 6 football pitches as well as lots of space.

I think it would be worth while spending an afternoon driving round all the estates in Welwyn to get a feel of the place and the different areas and then you can narrow your search down.

Another WGC resident.
I'm more central/south and have been here all my life.

The Co-op you are thinking of is probably the Shoplands one and it's fine for an emergency shop. Not huge but will cover the basics.

Hardly any trouble. I don't plan on leaving yet!

Oh, I wish I could drive around. Our car is in Brittany and will have to stay there. So we are on foot -- for everything: station, shopping, schools, etc.

Yeah, PersonalClown, I visited the Co-op and it was fine. Thank you. I do like WGC quite a bit and would like to live there...quite a bit. I'm just not finding the property for us yet.

quinandthem -- Thank you! I do think Panshanger would be good for us. There's a house there for let right now but it's just about £100 over our budget.

In general, though, I was hoping the city would be a bit cleaner. I'm a terrible stickler about litter, I know, but I expected it to be immaculate somehow. What is it with the litter issue in this country? I really don't mean to sound negative but it truly gets to me that I've lived in much poorer yet cleaner countries. I guess pride in place lowers in relation to income/privilege? Or is it a lack of civic education? I lived in Hawaii as a kid, in the 70s, and they had this problem too for a while, but it got cleaned up after some educational campaigns (haven't been back so don't know if this is still true).

Well, the Panshanger property is probably gone but we're going to look at one in Peartree. Of course, I've read all sorts of things about Peartree on here. I read the OFSTED for the primary school and it seems decent enough to me -- especially considering dd2 is speaks a second language at home. I don't see any reason not send her there. What do you all think of the Peartree area? I know Holwell is close, too, but they seem to be full. I could ask for Swallow Dell, which someone on here said is improving all the time.