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Original poster

Moving house - Village v Town

9 replies

DogAndWineLover · 20/11/2022 20:05

Hiya,

This is my first ever Mumsnet post so please bear with me! 

I am 34 and pregnant with my first baby (thought it's quite early days so I don't know if it's ok for me to be lurking on here - sorry if it isn't!).

We've been trying to move house for ages but have found the whole process a nightmare. We're now finally nearly sold up but haven't yet found anywhere to go. My question is is anyone able to shed a bit of light on town v village life?

We currently live in Esher in Surrey and life very much revolves around commuting into London and socialising. I'm aware that this is all about to change but I am finding it difficult to make decisions for my future self.

My husband is keen on moving to a village and we have found Chiddingfold beautiful and a tiny bit more affordable than commuter towns like Godalming and Guildford, though these are also options. I suppose I'm just keen to hear from others how they have found the transition? Is driving to a train station to commute to work very complicated? Do most baby classes happen in the towns? Basically I'm looking for words of wisdom and I'm scared of being a bit lonely as my husband works in London 5 days a week, so it'll just be me and our dog for a while!

Sorry for the long post! I'm aware it's a very first world dilemma but just after some advice really.

Thank you for reading!

OP posts:
RandomMess · 20/11/2022 20:07

Villages are very inconvenient once your DC hit secondary school. Would this be a forever move?

RagzRebooted · 20/11/2022 22:18

We've loved village life with small children, less so with teens but our village has no buses at the weekend. Another village with better connections like 10 minutes bus to town would be fine.

RidingMyBike · 20/11/2022 22:59

I had mine in a town and it was fantastic as I could pretty much walk everywhere with the pram - shops, park, river walks, multiple toddler groups all within walking distance.

Smsquared · 17/07/2023 11:12

Hi OP - just came across this post. Did you end up buying in Chiddingfold? We have just found a house we love there but currently in central Guildford, so moving from a busy area to quieter village life with a baby and toddler. How have you found it?

Original poster
DogAndWineLover · 17/07/2023 14:20

Smsquared · 17/07/2023 11:12

Hi OP - just came across this post. Did you end up buying in Chiddingfold? We have just found a house we love there but currently in central Guildford, so moving from a busy area to quieter village life with a baby and toddler. How have you found it?

Hello!

We actually ended up in Farnham. We were so close to moving to Chiddingfold but at the last minute, my husband was asked to commute more into London and we just felt it would be making things trickier in the interim.

From what I've heard though, it's a super friendly village with lots of young families. Witley station is the go to and there's a WhatsApp group of commuters who help each other out should the line go down. I've also heard there's a big nursery, excellent schools and lots of baby groups.

Happy to try to answer any other questions! It's a massive decision! X

OP posts:
lookingforhomemum · 22/07/2023 14:24

DogAndWineLover · 17/07/2023 14:20

Hello!

We actually ended up in Farnham. We were so close to moving to Chiddingfold but at the last minute, my husband was asked to commute more into London and we just felt it would be making things trickier in the interim.

From what I've heard though, it's a super friendly village with lots of young families. Witley station is the go to and there's a WhatsApp group of commuters who help each other out should the line go down. I've also heard there's a big nursery, excellent schools and lots of baby groups.

Happy to try to answer any other questions! It's a massive decision! X

Show quote history

Hi, thanks so much for starting this thread! Me and hubby are in a similar position to you back in 2022. We are considering Guildford and Godalming as commuter towns, but I also want our area to be a home, not just for London commutes. Good neighbours, good coffee shops to walk to etc.

We like the quietness of Godalming and nice coffee shops (that's our main leisure activity haha), and Guildford is great for shops, activities, classes and things like that with generally more options, but we dislike the noisy side of town/city life (a lot! I am quite sensitive to noise). I am also considering Farnham now, but I know nothing about it and wondering how it's been for you? :)

Where we move to next we would like good schools, primary and secondary, and we think it would be a forever home so kids have opportunities and not get too bored as they get older. But this is so hard to balance with a place that's a touch quieter for our liking. Thanks so much!!

Annewithane1982 · 06/10/2023 11:01

Moved from Godalming to Chiddingfold with a toddler and have loved it. Miss having a few more shops but everyone has been very friendly and love being closer to Sussex - for trips to the coast and Cowdray ect

Smsquared · 10/10/2023 11:41

Hey @lookingforhomemum - We moved from Bristol to Godalming 5 years ago. I was commuting into London and DH to Portsmouth so it was the central point. We found it far too quiet for us and only lasted 8 months (we were renting) before moving to the heady heights of Guildford which was a good compromise. Godalming is very very quiet in the evenings - I would get off the train at half six and hardly see a soul on my walk home, (no one in any pubs/restaurants beyond 8pm) and the general vibe on weekends is young families with buggies and OAPs. Currently we are a young family with a buggy so 5 years after moving we often pop into Godalming for a coffee/mooch, but be warned that if moving from a city it's a HUGE change. I'd suggest spending some time there first before committing (which we didn't do and then regretted). Other posters may be able to share different views of course.

Smsquared · 10/10/2023 11:43

@DogAndWineLover thanks for this! We offered on a house in Chiddinfold and waiting to exchange this week. Fingers crossed....it's such a stressful process isn't it. @Annewithane1982 glad to hear it..am definitely a bit nervous moving to a village having never lived in one, but have only heard positive things. Hope we're there in time for the big bonfire. Sounds legendary!

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