Harborne, Birmingham?

[SummaLuvin]

DH and I are a young-ish couple (late twenties, early thirties) looking to settle down in what would hopefully be our forever home. We're thinking Harborne could be an ideal town/suburb for us, but were wondering what people thought it was like to live in?

-is there a nice community feel?
-is it possible to make friends, or do people keep to themselves?
-does it feel like living in a town, or like living in a city?
-are houses with drives/garages really that rare?
-what are state schools like in the area?
-is it a good place to raise children?

Yes is the answer to all the questions BUT make sure you have a driveway as parking is a nightmare oh and plenty of money as very expensive area.

I have always found Harbourne very very congested, nightmare parking with cars everywhere. Very affluent area though and lots of period property, thriving high street and good schools. Personally I prefer neighbouring Bournville, much greener with beautiful housing.

*Harborne

Very expensive area. Lovely high street. Good schools. I'm very jealous of your obvious massive budget as a FTB!

To me, I see it as part of the city. I lived for years in another part of Bham and to me, they all feel like 'Birmigham'. But I'm a country bumpkin at heart.

Other 'naice' areas are Edgbaston and Moseley. I see Harbourne in the same 'group' as these areas.

There are some really nice properties coming up in Bournville at the moment which is much quieter than Harborne.

Bournville is much better for space and parking than Harbonne. But it’s not got much going on. You need to leave Bournville for cafes and bars. But lovely for bringing up kids.

Primary schools are good in Harborne but lots of people round there & Edgbaston send their kids to private for secondary so the main state secondary is very average.

So if a good local state school is important I think you might be better off in a less affluent area tbh. But if you don't have kids yet it's a while til they'll be at secondary!

I’d be surprised if FTB in their 20s could afford harbourne!

-is there a nice community feel?

Depends which part of harborne you live in, I know moorpool always used to have lots on for people to get involved with. There’s generally a reasonable amount going on. I’d say it has less of a community feel than places like Mosley or Bournville.

-is it possible to make friends, or do people keep to themselves?

As above, it’s generally a naice area so people do talk to each other.

-does it feel like living in a town, or like living in a city?

I don’t think people who live there don’t consider it to be like a town, it’s very much part of the city. Eg, harborne primary doesn’t have a playing field. There are parts with some very pretty streets where I guess it doesn’t look like a city.

-are houses with drives/garages really that rare?

I’d be surprised if the kind of house that a FTB there can afford would have a drive or a garage. There are houses with them but you’d probably need aleast 500k.

-what are state schools like in the area?

My knowledge is a bit out of date but harborne primary used to be really good but had quite a small catchment, chad vale didn’t used to be as good and it’s catchment covered some more deprived areas. The secondary schools for girls always used to be pretty good but the ones for boys were terrible. Most of the people I knew set their kids to grammar schools and if they didn’t get in they’d send them to independents of which there are a lot to choose from. This had the effect of making a lot of the secondary schools much worse than you’d expect for such an affluent area. That may be different now though.

-is it a good place to raise children?

We’ve chosen to live a bit further out where there’s more green spaces, better rail/motorways links and better state secondary provision. And we can afford a bigger house lol.

I think if you’ve got a lot of money and can consider independent schools then yes! I think the location means there’s always lots for kids to do.

Op didn't say she was a first time buyer. Lots of Drs and medical staff in their late 20s early 30s live around that area due to the QE, I am sure op knows the price of housing in the area.

Having lived in harborne and Moseley I’d choose Moseley. I didn’t feel the same community feel in harborne as it’s larger - the high street is good but everything is more spread out.

Parking can be an issue, whereas some of Moseley has residents permits. I’d also recommend kings Heath. Both have a stronger community feel and good schools. I know the Alcester Rd is a pain but so is harborne high street!

Yep, just to confirm, we are not FTB, I didn't mean to be misleading in that respect if my OP was. I am aware that Harborne is a pricy area, and will be pushing to the top end of our budget, but have visited a number of times and love the vibrancy and how happening it feels, so felt if it ticks other boxes it would be worth the stretch!

Definitely keeping in mind what has been said about state schools, particularly, secondary. We don't have children and probably won't for a couple of years so secondary school is at least 13 years away! However, DH and I really feel we wouldn't want to go private so this is a big consideration and sticking point.

Both DH and I grew up in the countryside and have long said that we wouldn't want to raise children in the city. But as time has ticked on and our time in a city would be ending we have been questioning why we feel this way, plenty of people grow up in cities and are just fine!

Thanks for all your responses they are really helpful.

I agree that Moseley and Kings Heath are probably better than Harborne.
Harborne parking is a nightmare. State secondaries have, traditionally, not been good as pupils are creamed off to private schools.
M & KH feel a bit more scruffy but 'genuine'. The schools are better. There are more parks (Cannon Hill, Moseley pool, Highbury). Traffic up the Alcester Road is horrendous but they are re-opening railway stations at M & KH so that will probably increase house prices (if it hasn't already). Check up about the railway as the timeline seems to be forever slipping. I think that it was supposed to happen in time for the Commonwealth Games but they are now saying another 18 months.

Harborne definitely seems to have a good community feel, from what I’ve witnessed with friends who live there. It’s close to the city centre/Five Ways for entertainment once your future kids reach teen years too!

In terms of secondaries, I think the Lordswood schools are pretty good now, however the other benefit of Harborne is that you’re central to all the grammars. It’s in the Five Ways catchment (and that’s the only grammar that only tends to offer to catchment kids) but you can also get to the Handsworth or Camp Hill schools very easily on the bus (maybe half an hour to each?) and the Sutton Coldfield schools on the train from University station. All these grammars have offered to out of catchment kids in the last few years as long as they score decently.

Yes sorry OP for making the FTB assumption!

I agree that the grammar schools are a real benefit of the location. If you aren’t familiar with them they aren’t fee paying but you have to get good 11+ test score to get in. There’s one that’s co-ed (the closest one to harborne) and the rest are single sex. There may be more co-ed ones now, unsure!

Harborne and Edgbaston are both nice but pricey. Both have a lot of large older Victorian houses. Moseley has a lovely community feel. Interestingly all 3 have excellent cricket teams. If you like cricket very worth joining local team even if as non playing members as very good social events, quiz nights, theme nights, cheaper alcohol in clubhouses.

Harborne is fine, but it strongly depends which road you're on. As others have said, many of the streets of smaller terraced house near the high street can be incredibly busy and parking is a nightmare. The high street has some nice shops but is busy, lots of traffic, and pretty ugly. Roads to the east of the high street, towards Edgbaston are quieter and more spacious, but much more expensive. Harborne Junior School is, I believe, Ofsted Outstanding.

Moseley and Kings Heath both have some great roads to live on, but are getting very expensive now. Moseley is slightly more upmarket but both can be quite rough in places, there's lots of late-night drinking, vomit slicks on pavements, etc. I lived in Moseley but left when child was on the way, it didn't feel like a great place to raise a child (unless you're on St Agnes Road, Chantry Road, Cotton Lane, etc and have a nice big garden). Moseley CofE long been an outstanding state primary. The Montessori nursery is fantastic too.

Edgbaston is great, if you can afford it, but you'll likely have to drive for everything. Bournville is the most green, the prettiest, quietest, and has an outstanding primary (Bournville Village Primary School). There aren't many larger houses in Bournville, and its a mix of expensive owner-occupied and Bournville Village Trust rented housing, but has a strong community feel (Community Hub / Bookshop, christmas carols on the green, Village Fete, Friends of Bournville Park). It is quieter - possibly a bit sleepy - but it does immediately neighbor Stirchley (5-10 min walk depending on where you are), which is probably the most 'happening' part of south Birmingham (lots of new bars, cafes, restaurants, bike co-op, community spaces). You could also consider Cotteridge which neighbors Bournville and Stirchley, is cheaper and has a strong community vibe through the park, Friends of Cotteridge Park, and annual CocoMad festival.

One other comment about Bournville (perhaps relevant as you mentioned you both grew up the countryside). George Cadbury - founder of Bournville - believed that all his factory workers should have lots of green space and the opportunity to grow their own fruit and vegetables. So along with there being lots of communal green space - even though the houses are not large, they usually have quite big (often long) gardens with original fruit trees planted when they were built >100 years ago. Lots of trees, lots of birds etc

He, he. OP hasn't even got DC yet and the pressure is already on to get them into the Grammars.
Sure you want to live in Harborne?

Have a look at Halesowen maybe. Slightly further out and not technically in Birmingham. Best areas are on Quinton border, around Manor Lane. Lovely feel, nice houses not as expensive as Harborne. Decent comprehensive schools and no grammar angst. Great transport connections. Not far from Harborne too if you need to visit.

I'd avoid Halesowen at all costs. It's not what you're looking for at all if you want that community/relaxed/easy city access vibe.

Since you're looking for a 'forever home', I'd go one stop further on than Halesowen and suggest Stourbridge.

@girlmom21 we will have to agree to disagree! I agree though about the vibe.

I don't live in Harborne but have friends raising raising families there. There seems to be plenty going on for young professionals and families. Nice, foody pubs, family activities etc. Agree that parking is a problem.

The primary schools are all good. Someone mentioned Chad Vale being a bit less nice, but the whole area has picked up, and it is certainly a desirable school these days.

For secondary, Lordswood Girls has been excellent for a long time, and has recently been taken on by the King Edwards Foundation which will only strengthen its position. The good news is that Harborne Academy (mixed) seems to have turned a corner and friends have been very impressed at recent open days.

Regarding the grammars, the King Edwards Foundation has, a couple of years ago, introduced catchment areas, and this has divided Harborne/Edgbaston a bit, because for years the favoured grammars for this area were Five Ways (the only mixed grammar) or the Camp Hill grammars, but much of Harborne/Edgbaston is now out of catchment for Five Ways (or very much on the edge, which doesn't guarantee a place) and the catchment grammars are Handsworth Boys/Girls (less desirable in the eyes of the Harborne set, but still excellent schools). So you might want to check the catchments, even though that might sound a bit like too much forward planning at this stage! The favoured school list will no doubt change a bit over the next 13 years...

My impression of Moseley is that it is more vibrant, with loads of bars/restaurants, but quite 'edgy'. Great fun for younger adults, but less safe and 'naice' for raising a young family than Harborne.

There's very little available in Halesowen as well at the moment to be fair, same with Stourbridge. The whole 30 mile radius of Birmingham is dry.