Which town the south-ish should we move?

[swimtree]

We have a budget of about 325k and want to move from Sutton in London to a nice town where there is a sense of community and we could walk to shops/station/school rather than drive everywhere. We are looking for more green space, some cafes and a slightly slower pace than London. We're thinking about Somerset or Oakham but really these are just a bit too far from London but obviously more affordable because of this. Any suggestions for a nice town would be great.

Do you need to commute to London? How much house do you expect for the money?

Cirencester

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/82921420#/

Emsworth

Reigate
Oxted
Caterham
Coulsdon

All close enough to check out easily. But not sure your budget will go very far.

Depends how far you're happy to move.

Do you need to get to London regularly? What do you expect 325 to buy you in terms of space? Ex South Londoner who moved to Folkestone for a change of lifestyle and we all absolutely love it. However property prices are rising quite quickly here owing to the HS1 connection to St Pancras and the post lockdown effect of people deciding they want to live by the sea/countryside (we have both) whilst being able to work from home and pop into the London office only sporadically, so whilst 325 will go far further than London it probably isn’t the cheapest option out there...

I must say, it's not a massive budget if you're commuting to London regularly and want a family home. How big a house do you need for that amount?

We need three bedrooms and we don't need to commute to London. I have a 12 year old and so need a secondary school too.

Best bet is the Midlands with that sort of budget if you want a family home and also good train links to London.

Milton Keynes or Bedford would probably work for you. Green spaces galore (check out the Castle area and Embankment in Bedford) and MK has fast trains into London (30 mins from MK central).

If you don’t need to commute, why don’t you just move to Oakham or Somerset if they’re your favourite locations?

Another place that springs to mind is Hythe in Kent. My MIL lives there and it’s a small, pretty, historic town so similar to Oakham in that respect (from what google tells me about Oakham as I’ve never been). You’d get a 3-bed there.

However, have you considered waiting until your son has finished his GCSE’s? I imagine you wouldn’t be moving if he’s in a Sutton grammar so he’s probably at one of the non-selective schools. They’re better than the vast majority of secondaries across the country, anyway, so you’d struggle to get a place at a comparable school as that likely to be the very desirable one wherever you move to.

Oh yeah sorry you won't get 3 beds for £325k where I suggested

What about down at the coast?

Worthing?

Banbury?

what year is DS in? as most but not all schools pick options at end yr9 so your window for moving is before then ideally as new school plus differnet exam boards etc just add more complications!

Also on average Sutton schools are better than most... however if you do want to move some areas in somerset (Chedder I know off) still schools starting at 13 so he would be joining with everyone else...
you could probably get something in your budget as well.....

Chippenham?

Good secondaries.
Easy access to M4.
Good rail links to London.
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-72652479.html

I've just done a search on Rightmove for 3-bed houses between £300k and £350k in the area around Milton Keynes, and the town of Newport Pagnell seems to be coming up with quite a few.

@PumpkinsPatch

Oh yeah sorry you won't get 3 beds for £325k where I suggested

What about down at the coast?

Worthing?

I have parents into their 80's in Harrow and am having a big guilt trip about living too far away. So caught between needing to move further from London for budget but not too far for parents. Two hours is reasonable I guess.

Thank you everyone for your suggestions - really helpful food for thought.

Look around Aylesbury. The railway stops at Harrow on the way to Marylebone. If you want a smaller town, try Winslow. There are villages too around Aylesbury but the schools are grammar or secondary moderns and the best ones are full. Your budget would get something reasonable though unless you choose a very swish village.

Worthing is expensive. It's one of the more expensive south coast towns.

Kent coast?

Oakham comes up as being under 2h drive from Harrow.

Check out some of the Bedfordshire towns too. There is still the middle school system so your son may be able to start a new school along with everyone else if you timed it for him starting year 9. Not too far from Harrow. There are several towns on train lines

Actually, some of the pretty towns in the South Downs might be ok for Harrow too. Eg Peterfield, Midhurst, Arundel. Nice towns, gorgeous coutryside, close to the coast and good motorway links to Harrow.

@JoJoSM2

Actually, some of the pretty towns in the South Downs might be ok for Harrow too. Eg Peterfield, Midhurst, Arundel. Nice towns, gorgeous coutryside, close to the coast and good motorway links to Harrow.

Yes indeed and the drive probably won't seem as intense from Sussex as it is from Oakham. We tried the Oakham drive and it felt like we were a long way away....could be psychological as I'm used to the SE. DH loves the idea of a place with a happening community vibe but that has a less dense population, hence he's keen on Frome. I'm just struggling, so mumsnet has been lovely resource and it's the first time I've used it.