Been asked to move for work...but where (in UK)? Ideas very welcome!!

[MovingHousePenguin]

Title says it all, really! I've been offered a new job which is a significant step up but it means a move away from my current office which is small and fairly rural. The options are Birmingham, London, Leeds or Aberdeen at the moment, though there are potentially other places too.
We're currently leaning towards Birmingham but know little about residential areas - have had a google and it looks like Bournville or Edgbaston may be the best places? Haven't entirely ruled out London but I know from colleagues that there is a very different working culture there (even though it's the same firm!), and we'd probably have to live, and rent rather than buy, in a not so pleasant area which wouldn't be great for the DCs. I know nothing about Leeds. Ditto Aberdeen.
I'm hoping some of you will have handy local knowledge? I'm currently trawling findaproperty.com, google maps, and googling mad stuff!!

I work for a big firm which has office locations all over the country (and overseas). At the moment I work in a small office, in a lovely rural location which has been great BUT now that I've been promoted within my specialism I've been asked to move to a bigger office. So my options so far are:x. I can't say I'm thrilled about having to move but we're willing to give it a go.

I'd go for Leeds. Yorkshire is great :)

Also do have a look in the relevant Mumsnet Locals won't you?

We're in South Birmingham and I love it. I previously lived in London but there's no way we could afford to buy there so it's not for us.

We're in Cotteridge which borders Bournville. We have the cross city line on our door step and good bus links. Schools here are great, with the opportunity for grammar at secondary. We used to live in Harborne which I still miss. We couldn't buy there due to cost but it's a lovely area although secondary schools are questionable. Edgbaston can be lovely and can also be awful. Be careful there. Other decent areas are Kings Heath and Mosley but they're not well connected.

And regardless of what others may say, Sutton and Solihull are not Birmingham. Very small town mentalities IMO.

I'd say Leeds.

Having said that, I spent a week in Aberdeen and absolutely fell in love with it and the mind-blowingly beautiful scenery around it. It was, however, high summer at the time. Wouldn't move to live there without trying a full winter there. Great area for a holiday though.

wow! Thank you all, so much!! Plenty of food for thought - particularly interesting to hear about Leeds, as we hadn't given it serious thought (mainly from never having been there)! Thank you for pointing out good areas in Birmingham & Leeds too: we're essentially looking for somewhere that is safe, good value for money, possibly semi rural but easy access to office/centre, good schools nearby (but this is only if this is a permanent move which is TBC - DC not old enough yet!)

Leeds and live in Otley about 30 minute commute. Fantastic scenery, semi rural good primary and secondary schools

Definitely consider north Leeds. Great city centre, good transport, easy access to fantastic dales/moors etc, beautiful villages, welcoming neighbours. I lived there for 5 years 'twas fab.

We lived in Leeds for a while, in Yeadon which is on the outskirts, about a half an hour commute on a good day. Lovely place to love, great city to wok in and fantastic scenery on your doorstep.

If you want to live somewhere are bit 'posher' then Harrogate is just a short train ride to Leeds and it is a gorgeous place!

When I worked in Birmingham I had colleagues who commuted from surrounding counties (e.g. Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Shropshire), so definitely feasible to live out of the city and commute in. For instance, Warwick Parkway to Birmingham Moor Street can be done in 20 mins if you get the express train.

Funnily enough, I've lived in all of these places! Here's my thoughts:

Aberdeen - I went to uni there and loved it. Pro's: lifestyle, easy reach to beautiful countryside, beach on the door step, lovely relaxed community. Cons: it does get very cold in winter and you are pretty far away from anything else - this can feel a bit cut off (it's a good 2.5 hours to even get to the central belt of Scotland).

Leeds - I lived I'm Harrogate, gorgeous little town; easy reach to Leeds. Pro's: great shopping, nice areas to live in (Headingly, Otley - also, think about Harrogate as the train to Leeds is really easy), nice community, reasonable house prices, gorgeous countryside close by. Cons: seen as far away by people down south so they might not come visit even though it's pretty easy!

Birmingham - I didn't like Brum at all but I moved here alone when I was in my early 20's for work so was quite lonely - this might colour my feedback! Pros - great shopping, house prices are ok, great transport links. Cons - concrete everywhere!, the accent (some people might not mind it but it'd be a factor for me - do you want your kids developing it?), over crowded, I found it very inhospitable (but that could've been me!)

London - again, not my fav. pros - loads of culture, activity, opportunities, all the obvious stuff. Cons : house prices, transport difficulties (traffic everywhere, all the time - Ive been in traffic jams at half two in the morning), everything is expensive - even with London Weighting, you'll still be "poorer".

If it was me, I'd chose Aberdeen (I have ties there and am in Scottish) but if I was you, I'd choose Leeds. It'd probably be the easiest transition from what you currently have and could be lovely.

Good luck., whatever you decide.

Leeds is fab. Great shopping, cheaper housing, lovely countryside. Long way from the coast though ... I think that's its only downside!

Another vote for Leeds. Harrogate and York also nearby and easy journey by train. Ilkley train line offers lots of commutable villages/suburbs with lovely characteristics and access to great countryside, but train will have you in Leeds centre in under 20 mins! Yorkshire Yorkshire Yorkshire!!

Leeds hands down- it has everything you are looking for. The city itself has a lovely feel and is very diverse, theareas around are varied (built up, rural, places in between). The scenery is stunning and its a very suitable area. (plus Leeds and nearby Bradford do AMAZING curries!). could you plan a visit to explore?

OP - where are your friends and family based? extended family are important to DC s there are plus points and nice areas in all the options but if all your family are in Cornwall it would make relocating to Aberdeen difficult.

A vote for your original choice of Birmingham.
A large city with all that entails: shopping, museums & art galleries, diversity of culture. We have large venues so you get 'big names': NEC/NIA do mega-star pop and rock; Symphony Hall for classical(CBSO); NEC does big shows likes Crufts or Grand Designs; there are various premiership football teams and Villa is used for Cup matches; Alexander Stadium for athletics so you get the likes of Usain Bolt; Edgbaston is a Test ground; etc.
Because it is a large city with diversity (it is called the city of a Thousand Trades) your OH should be able to also find work.
It is easy to commute into the centre from surrounding towns / villages. The countryside is beautiful. These are the places that inspired the likes of Shakespeare, Tolkien and Elgar.
It is in the middle of the country, in the middle of the motorway network, so visiting anywhere else is easy.
And we are friendly!

if weather and daylight hours are relevant, think carefully about Aberdeen. Long evenings in the summer but do you fancy the winters?

London is always warmer, but there are prices and the commute from hell to consider. Birmingham is close to lots of wonderful places.

BTW, if you intend to continue furthering your career, it is very likely that you will end up working in London.

I don't know where you come from but it will be a lot bigger and more complicated than you are used to (inckuding Paris, Berlin, Rome, Sydney) and if you live on one side of it, getting to the other will be such a trek that you won't do it.

"The other side of the river" means "too far" and like a foreign country.

Ten miles on the map can take more than an hour.

I would choose Leeds of those choices.

Reluctantly, Leeds.

London is a fabulous place to bring up kids. I disagree it is not child friendly. Public transport is pretty good, safe and reliable, they can travel for free on their zip cards, there is masses to do, lots of free things, loads of buzzy places, lovely parks. I think eating out is very cheap, once out of the tourist traps, because there are so many local non-chain places in most areas, there is masses of competition. I am shocked when I go to medium towns for example, at the cost of both local buses and restaurants. But house prices are just ridiculous, if you don't already own a London property.

Do not, however, assume that schools won't be a problem outside London (some people do). You still need to check admission distances and so on very carefully.

If you will probably need to move to London in the end for your career, I would go for it now, if at all possible housing wise.

Out of those choices, it would be Leeds, but are there any other options??

I don't really know Aberdeen so can't comment.

I've lived and worked in London - I thought it was great whilst I was young, free and single with high disposable income, wouldn't want to bring up a family there (unless you can afford a lovely, leafy, green part of the city and private education).

Worked in Birmingham for a while, as others have suggested, I never really liked it - felt far too big and unfriendly. Don't know the surrounding areas very well (think Leamington / Warwickshire are nice) but Birmingham centre is v ugly.

I've worked in Leeds for 12 years (but I commute from the other side of the Pennines!) - as others have said, surrounding areas can be lovely (but others are awful and really run down - as with any big city I suppose) so check carefully. Commuting by car is rubbish (unless you go v early / after rush hour), I would say 99% of my colleagues commute in by train so if you're going to be on the outskirts (Skipton / Ilkley / Harrogate / York) etc make sure you're need a train station.

We looked briefly at living there. Housing cheaper than other parts of the country, schools OK (again, you will have to be selective). City centre has undergone quite alot of redevelopment and very cosmopolitan (in places!) now.
Good luck with your decision!

Be careful about school year groups for children. The cut off date in Scotland is the last day in February versus last day in August for England & Wales. If you are only staying a year or two it might be tricky swapping back and forth between year groups, depending on your children's birthdays.

London.

Aberdeen is freezing and expensive.
London is expensive.

I'd live outside Leeds