Didsbury or Wilmslow? Or some other recommendations...

[k4mi]

DH, DD and I are looking to relocate from SE London to Manchester shortly which we are excited about. Priorities are:

Good primary schools

Not feeling like our life is over because we have left the big smoke...ie would like to be near some cafes, bars, restaurants, cinema, exercise classes etc but but obviously would be happy to drive a short distance to some of these things.

Garden/outdoor space for kids

Easy ish to commute into Manchester and get train to London (happy to commute up to 30 mins or so/drive that to train station)

We ideally need a 3/4 bed for approx £330-350k. From research looks like this should be do-able if we are happy to go for a more modern semi in Didsbury particularly (which we would be).

I would like to hear opinions on what differs between these two areas? is one more 'family' than the other? Also are there any other (perhaps smaller) areas / villages that would be easily accessible to either of the above / central Manchester that we should also look at? We don't know the areas that well so would value some local advice.

Thanks very much.

Oh and the whole of the area has great restaurants and bars pretty much everywhere.

If you're looking at Didsbury avoid West Didsbury it is very studenty and can be pretty hectic parking wise and most houses are turned into multiple flats. The area as a whole has no room to breathe and most people I know there have mould or damp issues - I know 2 people who had to get rid of furniture within 3 months of moving into their new houses. Once you're over Pal Rd and into Didsbury proper it is much better and far more of a grown up, family friendly vibe. I've heard very good things about Beaver Rd Primary. The are around School Lane is becoming a real hub for 'yummy mummies' and 3 wheel pushchairs.
I really love the parks in Didsbury. You have Didsbury Park which is great for kids to run wild in, Marie Louise Gardens which is beautiful, calm and tranquil, Fletcher Moss and all the way along the banks of the Mersey.

We live in Chorlton and love it but can't afford to buy here so we're hopping into Cheshire.
Have you thought about Sale, Stockton Heath, Appleton, Lymm, Timerley, Northenden, Gatley (prices are going up fast in G), Alderley Edge, Cheadle Village (v nr Dids) or Bramhall?

Areas other side of Stockport are really popular such as Marple, Disley, New Mills etc. but you have to deal with the A6, however I understand train links are good. Although they are def a bit more cut off.

I'd choose Heaton Moor over Dids or Wilmslow any day, if I could afford it. It has a 2 stop train into Pic (under 10 mins), has Stockport station v close (or 1 stop) which is less than 2 hours to London. It is in the catchment for a very good secondary school and has lovely leafy charm, access to lots of parks and even the river with a bit of a walk and yet still has shops, bars, cafes, independent cinema and a vibrant and supportive community.

The schools thing about Didsbury is true! Someone on here ended up having to go private as they not offered anything local! Quite astounding! If you are Catholic I would think you would get St Caths as a cert though. Not from West Dids though.

Not Catholic so definitely need to bear that in mind re schooling. From what people are saying I definitely think we need to widen our search to outside of Didsbury, although we like the 'vibe' there I did feel it was quite young couple-ish rather than young family (we are ourselves early 30s) one child but hoping for another soonish. I like the sound of Heaton Moor and some of the smaller villages and would have no problem driving / using public transport to get into town / visit friends in Didsbury.You are all selling the area very well indeed...i might bring the move date forward at this rate!

One question...someone mentioned to me that some of the villages / Wilmslow are quite posh/well to do and far away from the more 'urban' feel of Didsbury...is that right? I don't mind if somewhere is posh but from where we live in SE London might be a bit of a culture shock I suppose.

k4mi, very similar situation. We moved out of Manchester city centre aged ~34 with an 18 month old and plans for a second. We looked at Didsbury (which we'd considered before when childless but preferred the centre) and decided it would suit us short-term but we'd quickly outgrow it. If we could have afforded a nice house by Fletcher Moss it might have been a different story.
Also Didsbury schools - secondary is a challenge and primary you want to be Catholic or CoE, or alternatively get into Beaver road which has a very good reputation but is a bigger school than we wanted.

We looked at two houses in Heaton more then decided we wanted to move a little further out/to more greenery (also I have a hatred of the A6 there!). Having said that it would be great for you on the train - no time into Manchester and easy&fast switch at Stockport for London.

The places with a reputation for 'poshness' are Mottram St Andrew, Prestbury, Alderley, Hale, Wilmslow, Knutsford & Lymm. The reality is that the bigger places (Lymm, Knutsford & Wilmslow) are all towns so have a complete mix of people (lots of prestige cars but also council estates and between). For me, Hale and Alderley and the most 'blingy'. I like both during the day but not on a weekend evening.

In between is probably Bramhall - still suburban like Didsbury & Heaton Moor, less 'urban' but a little more 'family' in some ways, nice centre, good park, a superb primary and very good secondary. Either the best or the worst of both worlds!

Posh is different here than the SE imho. The problem is you are compared to the stereotypical gritty northern towns that are nearby so its regarded as posh in comparison. Its just relative. If you are moving from London you might not actually notice the north/south culture differences as much in south Manchester as you would in the rest of the NW.

The BBC actually recommended Wilmslow to its staff moving north to the new Salford base. So much so that its actually helped push up prices a little there. Its a trend that isn't just restricted to the BBC either - if you can afford property in the SE the chances are if you move north its where you will head for simply because of the nicer reputation of the area.

I personally think Didsbury can be pretentious every bit as much as Wilmslow just in a different way. Wilmslow can be 'home counties snobbery' whereas Didsbury can be 'too cool for school' if that makes sense. I don't think one is necessarily worse than the other. Just different.

I would probably say that South Manchester is probably as close to living in the SE as you are going to get outside SE if I'm honest.

Yes Wilmslow has an Aston Martin dealership (Knutsford has a Rolls Royce and MacLaren dealership) but they are not reflective of everyone who lives in the area. Don't be put off by it. Plenty of 'normal' folk too.

Yes I do think we would outgrow Didsbury in a couple of years (if not before) RCheshire. Also interesting that no mumsnetters on this blog (correct me if wrong here...) actually live in Didsbury which is a big sign that it is probably too young for us (sob).

Everywhere sounds pretty nice really...don't think we can go far wrong by the sounds of it! We are defo 'normal folk' though RedToothBrush and won't be frequenting the Aston Martin dealership much!

Yep, agree completely with RCheshire especially re posh.

Lymm, Knutsford and Wilmslow have reputations but certainly do have areas which are more down to earth and mixed. And yes council estates!!! (Another reason why some property in Knutsford is cheaper). But then I would argue that the 'poshness' of these three actually is more familiar to those from south of the Great British Divide too!!

All three of the above are very easy to commute from by car as motorway connections are good. In some ways they are easier than places closer to the city because you get straight on big roads and aren't stuck at traffic lights every 5 seconds until you actually get into town.

Hale, Alderley, Mottram St Andrew and Prestbury are definitely the 'footballer estates' and are something else entirely though...

The Aston Dealer pretty to gawp in the window of as you drive by and dream of winning the lottery!!!

(The MacLaren dealership in Knutsford is better for that mind. Quite often has F1 cars there. Its right on a roundabout by a zebra crossing, and how there are not more accidents there as people are distracted by it I do not know!!!)

Happy to answer any questions - we have been in H Mersey/Moor for 16 years.

Just wanted to say I'm in Hale and definitely lots of normal people here too. Have 2 families on our road that relocated with the BBC. I think most of the places mentioned in this thread have a mix - plenty of very wealthy people, a few WAG wannabees and then just normal families looking to live in a nice family oriented area with good schools.

Didsbury is not too young for you! The other areas mentionned are all lovely but I wouldn't dismiss Didsbury for this reason, if it would suit you in other ways.

I am just outside didsbury (as in estate agent claims it's didsbury but it's not really). I see lots of families around in didsbury, the primary schools are all over subscribed and you have to live within a short walk to get in (even though beaver rd takes 90 in each year group), there are lots of toddler groups and activities for older kids too, restaurants are family friendly, there are several playgrounds.

I'm sure you'll be happy with many of the areas mentionned, just didn't want didsbury to be misrepresented!

I used to live near Didsbury, with kids. I still have lots of friends there with primary and secondary aged children. It's very family oriented, not studenty compared to most of the Oxford Rd/Wilmslow Rd corridor further in. My friends' children are mostly going to Beaver Rd primary and Parrs Wood secondary, they seem fine, if we'd stayed there I'd have been very happy with Parrs Wood.

Heaton Moor is nice too, similarly affluent to Didsbury.

I know your little one really is little but honestly, if you can factor in secondaries at this stage you might well be glad you did.

We had a lovely extended semi in the price bracket you are describing but we always knew we wanted to move to something bigger when DD1 was 5 and DD2 was 1. We did move but we'd actually been living in that house for 13 years by that point and had made friends locally.

We looked at several areas, most of the areas described here in fact but in the end we had to factor in that this felt like 'home.' It was fortunate that the local high school has a good reputation as the alternative would have been us feeling forced to move elsewhere for high schools when in fact we wanted to stay put.

I still love Knutsford though!

Sixtiesqueen, we've liked various areas slightly east of Knutsford (East Mobberley, Great Warford, Ollerton etc and Knutsford High School has always been a concern. But we're 8 years off high school and 13 years off GCSEs - who knows what will happen to schools over that time? If you've enough in your back pocket to keep The Grange or Kings as options then obviously that's great but of course most don't.

alderley isn't all football and wag lifestyle!
There us a good state primary, Wilmslow high has a very good reputation.
you will find an interesting mix of houses and people st the heart of the village

Where are you in SE London?

(I've heard the grange isn't very good....I'm sure somebody will quickly disagree but I've heard it quite a lot)

Definitely have a look at Bramhall, nicer than Didsbury IMO. Wilmslow nice but overpriced. Bramhall has easy access to Stockport station which is excellent for trains to London. Schools there are good (no grammars in Stockport so less ridiculously competitive). Poynton is the next place along (further out)- nice and has a waitrose :-)

Just came on to say everything toothbrush said. Good luck with your move.

MrsJoeHart we are on the edge of East Dulwich. We have really enjoyed being here but also happy to head back North and get a bigger place to live in!

We live in Bramhall, I think it's friendlier and more of a community feel than Wilmslow. Wilmslow town centre not very good for shopping and lots of shops closing. Bramhall has some of the best primaries in Stockport. Only 1 train an hour to Manchester though but free parking at station. Cheadle Hulme has more trains and not too far to drive. Stockport station is 10 minutes away out of rush hour and plenty of trains to London (2 hours).

Bramhall is nice - also Poynton which is even more 'villagey'. Both have excellent schools. Train to London from Macc takes 1hr 40 - or slightly longer from Stockport, where there are three trains an hour to Euston.

Good luck with your move, I grew up in Cheadle Hulme, moved to Surrey, but came home when my DCs were small. The South Manchester villages are lovely places to bring up a family.

Two words to put you off Poynton

Double Roundabout