Progressive towns in the north

[Evasmum88]

Me, my husband and 2 kids are on the hunt for a place to move to from the south west, we have considered Hexham, Kirkby Lonsdale and other places and were going round in circles a bit until we both realised our main criteria was a town/village or even a small city that is progressive if possible, somewhere where that is known for being more focused on gender equality/diversity/LGBTQ equality issues etc than others. We really don’t want to move somewhere where there is a strong sense of having to fit into the norm, or where there are very old fashioned views as a norm.

Very open to any ideas. We would ideally love to be near some countryside or the town/city have green spaces. Basically we want to fit in and I want my two girls to be able to be who they want as they grow up. I lived in deepest darkest Somerset when I grew up and did not have the best experiences there for those reasons.

Many thanks

I do like Hebden Bridge, I used to live not too far away but there is basically one road in and out of the valley and it gets busy. Throw in some roadworks or flooding and it’s a nightmare

Prestwich is a very orthodox Jewish area so maybe not so accepting of LGBTQ.

Prestwich is a very orthodox Jewish area so maybe not so accepting of LGBTQ.

Some parts of Prestwich are. By no means all. Estate agents should be able to help with this if it's something you want to investigate.

Bury
Ramsbottom

I'd look at Chorlton, Didsbury and Sale.
They aren't small towns though, they're just part of Manchester/Trafford.

Also, Urmston. Maybe.

@JaninaDuszejko

Everywhere is more progressive than Somerset (or London) was twenty odd years ago. The north is not some backwater where we don't get Channel 4 and have never heard of women's lib . I live in the NE and my not very progressive town is currently bedecked with rainbow flags for the Pride Parade and there's a good range of childcare options because the majority of mothers work. Or are you looking for something more blue haired?

Totally agree with this.

In fact when I read the op I nearly fell off my chair until I started to wonder.... how has someone sent a post to Mumsnet from 1973?

#offendedinyorkshire

Which big if the South West are you leaving?
I live in Somerset & whilst I agree that diversity isn't on a par with a major city like Bristol or London it certainly isn't on a League of Gentlemen level.

Surprised no mention of Leeds?
We are East Midlands so not proper north but most cities are diverse and university towns or villages near unis tend to be to ...I love west bridgford in Nottingham which is a posh leafy suburb which I would think is pretty liberal

Hunters Bar or Meersbrook/Heeley in Sheffield.

Definitely look at south-west Sheffield - brilliant access to city life and countryside (you can walk into the Peak District from some areas). I would also consider Hathersage, Hope Valley and possibly Bakewell - don’t know them well enough to be sure how progressive they are but lots of professionals move out there.

Ramsbottom
Prestwich
Hebden Bridge

Potentially Saltaire

Chapel Allerton/Roundhay in Leeds?

@EducatingArti

Prestwich is a very orthodox Jewish area so maybe not so accepting of LGBTQ.

That only applies to a small part of Prestwich, and as someone who is LGBT I have always felt comfortable there.

Hebden Bridge is not the capital of lesbian relationships. That was years ago when property was cheap and the hippies amongst other groups moved in. Then it was really alternative and progressive. Now it's fully of middle class types or rich folks who are letting out the terraces as Air BnB's.forcing out the local population. Neither is it the drug capital of the UK. It has it's problems with this like everywhere else no more or less. However, there are plenty of unfounded myths that continue to annoy and cause eye rolls.

I would add Todmorden, which is next door to Hebden and gets the hippy/gay overflow from those who can't afford Hebden prices.

I second Hebden Bridge, and also Slaithwaite in Huddersfield, or just Huddersfield

If you're considering Liverpool I'd be looking around Aigburth.

Whitley Bay/Cullercoats/Tynemouth but you will pay a premium for a property on the coast compared with a lot of areas in the NE.

What’s your budget and what are you looking for in terms of property?

Ah thanks all, Some really great suggestions so really appreciate all your input. Me and my husband feel we would be able to be happy in most places tbh and would love to be in a really rural location but feel that due to my oldest daughter finding it a bit difficult to find like-minded friends (she’s not neurotypical) and also very tomboyish we feel that she would maybe feel more comfortable with a wide range of people to find who she fits in best with, whoever she grows up to be. If it was up to me I would live in the middle of the Yorkshire Moors, not sure that would be the best for them though (aged 9 and 6).

Budget is around 550k, would love a detached house with a decent amount of garden around it. I live 20 minutes south of Bath at the moment which is rural and beautiful but with quite a homogenous demographic compared with other places which has its limitations. I grew up further south in Somerset and some relatives of mine experienced a lot of discrimination (but that was in the 90’s, so def improved since then). It doesn’t help that I work across the SW supporting teenagers in my job and see the negative impact on their mental health where diversity is less accepted (pockets of this, not the whole of the SW obviously).

Looking to move up north for a better quality of life and beautiful scenery.

Thanks again

@Hoppinggreen

As I said I’m not Gay so don’t have direct experience but I doubt that areas such as Knaresborough or any of the more white Mc places in North Yorkshire are going to be as progressive as some places mentioned. If you are coming up to Huddersfield to look at Marsden and Slaithwaite try Lindley and Honley too.

I'm Bi and grew up in Knaesborough/Harrogate area. Never had any issues, have gay friends round there too, nobody bats an eyelid 😂

I knew everyone would say Hebden.

Yes, it's progressive but I am not so keen on the Calder valley as a place to live: one major road through the valley that gets very congested and all other roads extremely steep. Good train links though.

@JaninaDuszejko

Everywhere is more progressive than Somerset (or London) was twenty odd years ago. The north is not some backwater where we don't get Channel 4 and have never heard of women's lib . I live in the NE and my not very progressive town is currently bedecked with rainbow flags for the Pride Parade and there's a good range of childcare options because the majority of mothers work. Or are you looking for something more blue haired?

This! And the poster who said how progressive Harrogate is because it has independent businesses and arts festivals thats not progressive, it's just middle class...

There are some cool places between Manchester and Stockport, SIL lives there, of course, I can't remember the place name now, maybe Heaton Moor? Not sure of prices there though.

Hi, just to clarify as perhaps I miss worded - I said I’d met progressively minded people living in Harrogate. Not that culture / festivals make it or any location ‘progressive’. Hope that clears it up!