Shropshire

[2littlemoos]

Hello all!

I currently live in Kent/South East London.

DP, 2 small DCs and I live in a small two bed flat. I am currently a SAHM and DP works full time. We want a bigger home but also a lot of countryside and the areas in Kent that have what we want are far too expensive for us.

I have been looking at a few areas for a while and since coming across Shropshire I am hooked. From what I see it looks exactly like the county I would like my girls to grow up in. Better yet, after looking at a few different parts we can definitely afford to buy one day (renting to begin with).

I have seen a few jobs in both of our fields and our starting location will be based on one of those but I am also looking for ideas on ideal places to live with two small children (a school is not a priority for us yet) but that also has some nice things going on and not so rural that it is difficult to get to anything!

One more question. Are there certain areas where local folk aren't keen on "outsiders"? My DP mentioned it so would be good to know!

Thanks for any tips!

[SayHelloDoris]

Where would you ladies of Shropshire area suggest for a bit of countryside but not too cut off?

I'm a keen horse addict and would like a stables near my home that I can regularly visit.

Great thread OP, cheers to you

[Lottie991]

Following this thread I too am looking to move to Shropshire OP!
We are also from the south east where house prices are too high and we want a nicer place to bring our children up!
We are going up there next weekend to have a look around! I can't wait!
Have you had a look around yet op?

[purplecollar]

Just to say I have several relatives living in Shrewsbury. Copthorne is great for secondary schools. They love it there, having moved from other places.

[Light69]

Lilleshall is rural but only a few miles out and has a lovely stables just on its out skirts. Not sure of the name of the stables but it is right next door to the Shropshire golf club so should pop up in quick Google search.

[scurryfunge]

Sayhellodoris, any of the villages around Shrewsbury, Oswestry, Ellesmere -plenty of livery stables across the county.

[GinnyBaker]

We have moved from London to North Shropshire. DH works in Chester and Cheshire and a little in Bham and West midlands.

I would suggest driving about and visiting some of the towns you think you might like as we really changed our minds when we got here...we thought initially around whitchurch or Market Drayton but when we had a good look about we didn't much like them and much preferred Oswestry and Ellesmere we instantly loved (very old fashioned market town, nice little shops and cafe, 10p to park for 2 hours (ha ha!), the sort of place we could imagine taking DS in on a saturday morning to the library and to buy him a comic which was the sort of feel we were looking for).

Our flat in London bought a 5 bed house with a bit of land here. (altho it needs massive renovation yet).

We have not found it to be unwelcoming, quite the opposite, but it is very rural outside of the towns and this is a bit of a shock out of london. If we need a loaf of bread or a pint of milk its 3 miles and 10 mins in the car, not walkable roads (fast, no visibility, no pavements). A local shop is one thing I really, really miss. And a pub in walking distance would have been great also.

[Irontheshirts]

Waves at Ginny from Ellesmere.

[TattyCat]

I think if you're renting initially then it doesn't really matter where you base yourself to start with as you can explore and move when you've found the right place for you. I think to ease your transition from the South, I'd look at Shrewsbury. It has a good public transport network, is right on the edge of rural but has all the shopping facilities you would need. And it's a very pretty place although quite steep in places.

I'd avoid Telford I'm afraid - I lived there for 5+ years and moved away last year. It doesn't have a 'town centre' as such - it's just one massive shopping centre with the multi-storey car parking facility. There are villages surrounding Telford, some of which are alright but on balance, I'd be heading to Shrewsbury in your shoes. Ludlow would be impossible if you don't drive and is very, very steep generally. Damned pretty though.

Oswestry is, as another poster said, very nice but would be too far out for my liking - I'm not over familiar with Oswestry. Ironbridge is nice and is close to Telford for shopping but tucked enough out of the way. Someone mentioned Lilleshall - again, very nice and Newport would be the nearest town, but has no railway (does have a Waitrose though!). Ellesmere is very ... wet ... and a bit quiet. Church Stretton is lovely and very popular with tourists and walkers but again, very small, ditto Much Wenlock - not a lot there really and very very quiet in winter.

[TattyCat]

Oh, and Whitchurch and Market Drayton ....

Both have a lot of potential but I think it will be a few years before they start looking a little less shabby (apologies to anyone living in either). However, you will get a massive amount for your money in these towns - there are plenty of old farmhouses with 6-8 bedrooms going for a song, with land too although most would need updating, some massively.

I'd recommend anyone looking to move spends at least a week visiting the different areas from a central base, because they do differ wildly in what they offer.

[GinnyBaker]

waves at Irontheshirts

[2littlemoos]

Thank you all so much, I didn't think I would get this many responses and you have all been a huge help!

Hop aboard the boat to Shropshore Lottie we haven't actually been there yet but I don't feel like I need to, you know? I already know it is far better than where we currently live. However, once (if!) DP or myself manage to secure interviews we will go up then and really get a feel for the place.

From my research and this post, providing one of us gets a job - and these seem to be located in Shrewsbury - then we will start of renting in Shrewsbury. I have looked into toddler groups already and found a great variety in this area. It seems Shrewsbury is the best of both worlds and therefore will hopefully be not too much of a shock from South East London and it will be a great starting point for us.

I have been amending our CVs and will start sending it to some recruiting agencies this evening which, even just planning to do it, is making this more real. And the butterflies start to flutter!

for you all!

[StillStayingClassySanDiego]

Afternoon 2 I'm Shrewsbury born, bred and still here!

It's a great place to raise children and we are very happy here. Let me know if you need any advice and I'll help best I can.

[ZeldaWasMyGransName]

I'm from Telford, lived there 25 years, now in South East, so have been watching with interest.

Just wanted to come along to say don't discount Telford - it's a new town, as some have said the town centre is "constructed" shopping centre rather than traditional market town, and there are a fair few council / ex council bits.

But, it's the right side if you're working in Bham, Wolves etc. the shops are useful amenities and transport links are good. If you want to be close to rural with stuff, it's worth looking at Madeley / Broseley / Ironbridge, Little or Much Wenlock, Wellington, or Shifnal.

Depending on what sort of house you want you can get great older places, or really practical big 80s style houses with big drives / gardens etc as there was a lot of building there then.

I love visiting, it's a great place. Not ready to go back yet...

[ZeldaWasMyGransName]

PS. Shrewsbury will be a big shock from South East London. But a nice one.

[Anjelika]

Following this thread with interest. We are hoping to move from the South West to Shrewsbury. We are a bit further along the process as we're currently in the middle of selling our house and buying another in Shrewsbury. We have older DCs so wanted to be near a town but also wanted some lovely countryside on the doorstep. Hopefully Shrewsbury will give us that. We stopped off on the way to North Wales about 18 months ago to confirm that Shrewsbury was as nice as we hoped then we had a weekend up there in Oct so we could have a better look round and try out some of the stuff we might do with the DCs. Good luck to everyone planning a similar move!!

[AnnaFiveTowns]

Lots of nice places; Bridgenorth, Iron bridge, ludlow, shrewsbury, oswestry...just avoid Telford - it is truly awful.

[BagelGoesWalking]

Shropshire was featured on Escape to the Country today!

[Mummyilovejokes1]

@lottie991 @2littlemoos i know this is an old thread but wondered if you made the move to Shropshire and if you did, where and how are you finding it? Is it what you imagined?