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

That was a reply to @Crossaintqueen ☺️

Durham, thriving city lots of ongoing investment, good transport links, close to the coast, beautiful countryside, lots of family attractions nearby, reasonable house prices.

I'm not LGBTQ, so not speaking from experience (surely anyone who is is in a better place to say than randomers who may or may not be lol)
but I'd say Leeds and surrounding areas is a great place to be.
Very live and let live.
There's a lovely LGBT cafe in the city centre with amazing hot drinks and cake too
People saying York, maybe it's just my experience (LOVE York, don't get me wrong!) but some of the surrounding villages can be very small minded and conservative.

@Evasmum88 consider Sheffield. We have lots of good school options for SEN & the support here for the children who need it is fantastic.
I would look at parts of s8, s10, s11 & s17.

Dear god. Are people actually saying how they’ve met ‘progressive’ people in the north, like we’re usually a bunch of knuckle-dragging racist, homophones.

@Hdhdjejdj

Dear god. Are people actually saying how they’ve met ‘progressive’ people in the north, like we’re usually a bunch of knuckle-dragging racist, homophones.

Aren't we? News to me

I grew up 20 mins south of Bath. In defence of my area, I can't think of anyone I went to school with who is small-minded and conservative, so we all survived.

If I were making a similar move I would move to a Leeds suburb with access to the moors, not a small town or city.

My goodness has mumsnet turned into Twitter? I’m a proud northerner myself, born and bred, just offering a few words of description of a town as the OP asked. In the best spirit and intention!! The word twisting is so cynical.

I went to the WPUK talk in Todmorden, it did seem like the kind of place you'd feel happy in if you were lesbian!
I'm not sure how old your DD is but there are still a few grammar schools in the NW/Lancs and they centrally have s good reputation for children with ASD who are bright.

I think Lancaster is a nice place. It's a small city with loads of rural areas nearby and right next to m6. Normal house prices and a big student scene. I think you have to go bigger than the likes of Kirkby Lonsdale to achieve what you're after. It's good to fit in but diversity is good too.

I live in the North and I think most places are progressive and accepting of different people do people think we are knuckle draggers ??

A few more suggestions: Chorlton in Manchester is fab. I don’t know if Wales is an option but Mold is a bustling market town and worth a look. Also, Otley in West Yorks. Or further north - we used to live in Newcastle and loved it there - check out Jesmond.

Op hasn't said that to be fair. She's said she wants to avoid what she experienced in Somerset so I don't know why people are offended. I've definitely lived in areas where there are loads of openly racist people and I've lived in areas where there aren't so it is a thing.

The Wirral. (Specifically New Brighton)
😁

Hebden Bridge is brilliant, also would say York is a good option. Harrogate does have quite a conservative edge though also very nice. Also further North if you like the coast then Tynemouth is very cool xx

Huddersfield definitely isn’t what you’re looking for, the 2 villages mentioned probably yes but not Huddersfield on a whole defiantly not.

I live in Harrogate and this place is extremely progressive. We've bizarrely had a very large influx of people from London over the past few years.

We currently have 8 new build developments, (along with 4 gigantic ones in Knaresborough) so the town is expanding exponentially

Oh! We also have a Victorian primary school which has been voted the most diverse in the whole of Great Britain

@Evasmum88

Thanks so much all your suggestions are really helpful. We are going up for a nosey around in a couple of weeks, so far got on the list:

York
Manchester area
Newcastle
Hebden bridge
Saltaire
Ulverston
Huddersfield area

Can’t do Scotland unfortunately job-wise.

Would villages/towns around those areas offer similar progressiveness e.g knaresborough near york, etc or not?

Many thanks

Knaresborough has a very small town centre but LOTS of homes! It is however, 10 mins drive from Harrogate which is, as I described above, a large and very progressive city-like town with lots to offer. Is also the hometown of Yorkshire Tea and Betty's Tea Rooms (same company!)

Sheffield. Big student population, loads of trees and parks and Peak District right on your doorstep.

Definitely W Sheffield if you want city, liberalism and access to the countryside. Another vote for Marsden though if you want a smaller village, or Altrincham, south of Manchester. You're budget is petty good so you might want to suggest other criteria to help narrow it down.

Not Lancaster . Good schools and access to the Lake District but relatively expensive property with no gardens . No shops and very little to do. If you want countryside there are some villages around Blackpool, which has a big gay community , that are pretty and have easy access to Manchester . Some of the cheapest property in the country too. Schools are a bit so so but a couple of good private schools .

There will be areas of most Northern cities which fit your criteria. Personally I wouldn't move to Hebden Bridge as it's hard to get to and from other places.

York is lovely but personally I find it a bit flat and boring as its in a valley.

I find Manchester too big, making it hard to get out to nice places.

Leeds is good for easy access to the countryside which having a big city/cosmopolitan feel.

Otley and most other villages mentioned are quite white (not sure if it's ethnic diversity you're looking for).

Heard good things about Sheffield but don't know it well.

If you want diversity with good access to North York Moors etc I'd look at areas in North Leeds like Roundhay.

Also, the coast near Newcastle is lovely (e.g. Tynemouth) albeit a bit white.

@Rosieandjim04

I live in the North and I think most places are progressive and accepting of different people do people think we are knuckle draggers ??

I was wondering this as well ?