Arty commuter places?

[Lostmarblez]

Exploring moving at the moment. Looking for a commutable arty/creative type town/village to London. Commute up to an hour. Maybe slightly more for right place. Have £700k max. Need 3 bed min. Have 2 children. Where would you recommend?! TIA x

Brighton , Reigate , Dorking, Horsham ?

Or Rye?

Brighton, Kew, Hampton, Kingston, Richmond, Twickenham, Teddington, Reigate, Oxted, East London.

Overnydeadbody yes difficult I'm not quite sure what I'm looking for either!

Poss prob is that commuter towns are that...commuter. People leave to go to work rather than stay and there be some soul to a place.

Yes "soul" I suppose but could argue u get that anywhere too.

Great ideas thanks everyone. Am feeling quite inspired again and philosophical now.

July it is so nice. I get such a feeling of such peace when I am there. One stop to Canterbury for more buzziness, great schools, nice pubs and rolling hills too. Half the price of properties in the other areas mentioned too. You can tell we have researched this ourselves can't you???!

Good luck lost. And for my last tip - Saffron Walden. Flipping lovely and lots of independent shops. Not sure terribly artsy but big Quaker presence which is a bit alternative-y?

Saffron Walden is lovely. So is Haslemere. And Walton on Thames!

Cambridge isn't all physicists and engineers. I'd say it's fairly creative and arty as well. We have a brilliant literary festival each year, an alternative/arty cinema which also hosts an annual film festival, the Cambridge Folk Festival which is world-renowned, plus lots of small, independent cafes, poetry venues, art galleries etc.

And it's less than an hour to Central London, and within your budget. Immediate countryside's a bit boring though.

Oops sorry, forgot Hitchin - has a nice medieval centre and lots of independent cafes etc. Easiest commute of the lot - about 22 mins into KX. But ease of commute means getting a bit built up.

Has a world music festival too!

Hertford?? My cousin lives there and it feels arty and it's on the canal

Obviously London not commuter-belt, but Greenwich is still quite quirky and arty, and just about doable with your budget. West Greenwich and Blackheath have a lovely, villagey feel.

Ouch...twitching slightly at overs comments... I have a combined Engineering ans Architecture degree! (though I am a bit of an anomaly, admittedly).

We actually live just outside oxford, down the road from Wolvercote as it happens. My commute is about an hour to Paddington and then about half an hour from there.

Problem will be, as pps have said, anywhere within an hour of London that still has that arty vibe is going to still be pretty pricey and, once you factor in the fact that my commuting costs are equivalent to £10k pretax earnings, you're not getting much more. If you want green fields or the sea on your doorstep then definitely consider it. If you still want the variety and quirkiness of London though, you might be better off staying put.

Plenty of art in Cambridge - see for example Cambridge Open Studios and Kettle's Yard.
Strangely, some of those Engineers, Medics and Scientists appreciate Art.
It is also excellent for music, philosophy, books ...

I like scientists and geeks too!

For me the main thing is does it have a sense of personality or is it just Anywheresville?

And are the local people friendly, community-oriented, broadminded and not too materialistic? I like lots of Kent and Essex, but the prospect of inadvertently moving somewhere dominated by UKIP style thinking brings me out in hives. Or rows of posh houses behind tall, locked gates. Yuk.

Margate? Ramsgate?

I'd look at Farnham. Just under 1 hr to London, good state schools, a thriving art college which spills over into the Farnham Maltings. Strikes a reasonable balance between commuter and arty.

Bruton or Frome in Somerset. Pretty/arty/plenty of affluent DFL but also lots of locals. Reasonable house prices.
Longer the 1 hour commute though.

Dorking, quite rural but arty!

Wivenhoe is arty - village just outside Colchester - train into Liverpool St. Lots going on - no need to really leave the village but Colchester is obviously on your doorstep. Uni of Essex just up the hill.

Cambridge is incredibly musical - is that arty? I'm always amazed at the amount of concerts, choirs etc in the centre. Kettles Yard is the loveliest art gallery. Forgot St A has fashion week too and college and Uni full of art/fashion/film students. Not sure 700k buys you much house now though sadly.

Another person speaking up for Cambridge here! Kettle's Yard and the Open Studios, the Folk Festival, a major annual film festival have all been mentioned by others, I think, but there's all sorts of other stuff going on - Wysing Arts and the annual Mill Road Winter Fair to take two examples. There's more to do in some areas than others, perhaps - the Mill Road area always has things happening.

I'm really glad to hear St Albans has finally got a cinema after 20 years or so of not having one! When I lived there it was definitely not a place you would move to if you wanted to go somewhere with any kind of cultural life - I left as soon as I could, partly for that reason.

Whitstable's a longer commute yes but is super.
this is my current favourite.

Or this in Tankerton. (VV near the station I think).

FatherReboola - St Albans is full of cultural activities.