Where to live - NORTHAMPTONSHIRE?

[Forfamily]

Hi Everyone!

Sorry for the long post

We are currently looking into moving out of Beckenham/ Bromley area and possibly to Northamptonshire (Sept 2020 for the start of the academic year).

We are a family of 4, we have two DDs 4 and 6.5 years.

We are looking for a change in lifestyle but also don't want to be out in the "sticks" as one of my fears are moving out of London not knowing anyone and becoming very lonely and sad. I am a very social person and have great friendship grps here as well as my girls.

We are looking for a cosmopolitan/diverse area with good transport links (DH will need to travel to London for work), good schools, good sense of community/friendly, things for us to do as family on the weekends, good parks and not too far from shops/supermarkets.

Could anyone recommend where to look into/where to steer away from?

We are visiting soon and it'll be great to get any help, advice and/or suggestions.

Much appreciated in advance!

I dont know if you'll find it in northants tbh. It's quite a rural inward looking county with large areas of deprivation. The only major town is Northampton and it is very run down and the council went bankrupt recently too.
I think if you're looking for cosmopolitan you'd be better off looking more Leicester way which is a very diverse place.
Market Harborough is another lovely town which is quite buzzy and naice.
You could look further south to Milton Keynes which is diverse but not like any other city so is not everyone's cup of tea. There are some nice towns surrounding MK too which are quite nice too - Towcester, Buckingham and Olney for example which are not that diverse but are not insular places.
Good luck op!

Sorry just seen that you need good travel links to London. Market Harborough probably fits the bill then. The other places apart from MK don't have train stations.
Leighton Buzzard is nice too and has a train station and lots of nice countryside nearby

Isham is a nice village. Very family friendly and you wouldn’t be lonely as it’s a great community.

I am moving the other way - currently staying at my parents’ house in nptonshire and moving to Bromley on friday!
I don’t think you will find the same diversity as somewhere like Bromley. As pp said, MH is nice (and will be my choice for next move). Transport links from npton and MH are ok into London. Fast trains from Npton are 45 mins into Euston.

Why move out of London where you have everything? You won’t get the same lifestyle in Northamptonshire! Nor in north Bucks. I know both really well.

Larger towns do have a bit more going on and if you can afford it, Tring or Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire are far better. Wendover in Bucks is popular too but it’s on a different railway line. Of these Berkhamsted appeals most.

Hi OP,
Another vote for Market Harborough. It's a lovely town with great transport links (I commute to London regularly for work and the 'fast' train takes 55 mins to St P). The schools are good, the high street has a great mix of independent retailers and there are some lovely places to eat and drink too. Plus you have the countryside on your doorstep if you need it. Definitely pay it a visit.

Please stop telling everyone how nice MH is!!! The council don't need any excuses to build more houses

Not in Northamptonshire, but consider Berkhamsted. I call it ‘little London’ as it makes me think of Putney and similar, with a high street full of names you’d recognise. 30 minutes into Euston. It’s a smallish town but has an independent cinema, loads of classes etc. going on and you can shop for day to day things without having to get in the car.

Northampton itself isn’t the greatest. As others have said there is a lot of depravation and the council don’t have two pennies to rub together.

Despite this, there are some beautiful little villages and some little towns that with a bit of time and investment, could become a lot nicer.

It depends what sort of lifestyle you’re looking for tbh. Do you want to live in a small town, be near to cinemas/restaurants etc?

They’re building a lot of new homes now near Wellingborough and Rushden. Burton Latimer has a lot of new builds - a four bed detached is around £300 - £350k. As I said on another post about this area, a lot of people I know who live in Northampton are moving out towards Rushden way as that seems to be where the investment focus is for local amenities.

Rushden is attracting investment but still has a very long way to go and is very parochial. The a6 can also be a nightmare if commuting.