Is anyone familiar with Heysham?

[Tweddle]

We’re looking to move to the coast and quite like the look of Heysham, which is on the outskirts of Morecambe, and wondered if anyone had any knowledge of what it is like?

The area we like is away from the hustle and bustle of Morecambe but is about a 20 minute walk to the site on which the new Eden project will be built.

Visited on a holiday. Tiny place, nice walk along the seafront to morecambe. Couple of pubs and tea shops, seemed quite well heeled. No idea of any practicalities, but one of our group wanted to move there!

There are some very nice streets/areas and some not so nice ones.

What's your budget?

Do you need schools?

We lived in Morecambe for several years. Heysham has some nice parts and some fairly grim parts. Where are you looking specifically?

Are schools a consideration?

Will you need to commute anywhere?

The port and the nuclear power station aren’t picturesque and can make that end feel quite industrial, obviously. But they do mean there is a train station there which connects in to the mainline at Lancaster, although I think the service is only once or twice a day.

Our Budget will be about £380k although we could stretch to £400k at a push. Our preference would be to be as close to the sea as possible.

We will need a high school but looking a Heysham itself the two high school don’t have the best Ofsted reports.

Thanks everyone for the replies. They are really helpful

Schools wise there are the grammars in Lancaster which are obviously very popular. Friends have a DC at Bay Leadership Academy in Morecambe and seem happy with it. Other friends have DC at Ripley St Thomas and are very happy - but that requires church attendance.

My understanding is the grammars / Ripley do have an effect on the other comps because they are so popular and considered so good.

If I was moving to Heysham I’d probably focus my search on the Old Village because that to me is the prettiest part. But if you want more garden / driveway etc looking slightly further out from the centre would be necessary.

If you’re not set on Heysham, I’d also have a look at Hest Bank (although budget would be an issue likely), Bolton Le Sands, Silverdale (again budget issues) and Arnside (budget again).

Hmmm yes if they are already at High School I don't think the Grammar or Ripley will be an option.

Yes good point - I’m not sure if it’s possible / if there is ever room for joiners in later years. I believe you can move into both for the 6th form though

There are some lovely parts of Heysham and some less lovely. 20 mins walk would put you around Sandylands or maybe the cliffs. Sandylands is the west end of Morecambe and has a lot of issues with poverty and anti social behaviour.

The local secondary schools are terrible and you're unlikely to get a space at the grammars or Ripley. You'd be too far away to get into QES most likely, which is the only other good secondary in the area.

There's also not a lot of things for teenagers to do in the area, which leads to problems with large groups hanging around the barrows and heading into the village to cause trouble of an evening. To be fair, this is a common problem all over the country though.

This is sounding very negative but there's actually a lot I love about living here, especially being so close to the sea and the sense of community here. There's a great vintage vibe now and lots of festivals along the prom at the weekends as well as events at the Platform. The Midland hotel and the sunsets over the bay are beautiful. I'm really hopeful that Eden will be good for the area and turn things around a bit.