Relocating to Cambridgeshire

[MsPaddy]

We're a family of 4 (mum, dad and kids 4 and 2 year old) living in SW London and are looking to move to Cambridgeshire. We don't have friends or family there so would appreciate some advice on ways to refine our house search. Our budget is c.850, and we'd like a 4 bed detached with good size garden. The main reason for moving is to have more space and a slightly calmer way of life. We would like to live somewhere with a family friendly, community feel, and still be close enough to a town to socialise/shop/eat out.

We have visited and liked Ely, St Ives, St Neots, Godmanchester. And from reading other threads here, like the look of Sawston, Whittlesford and the Shelfords.

Our must haves

-Within walking distance to a pub, cafe, or handful of shops
-Good primary and secondary schools.
-Within 15 drive to a train station with direct links to London - my husband and I will still need to work there 1 day a week.
-Good public transport links into a larger town/place for us and kids to socialise when they are older (we don't want to be ferrying them around as teenagers due to lack of local buses for example)

Nice to haves

-Period properties with pretty market town eg. Saffron Walden, Ely
-Ideally primary school would be within walking distance

Thanks so much for any tips and advice.

Hertford, Ware, Royston, Saffron Walden. It’s all beautiful, you have a lovely budget, let the house choose you xx

St Ives does not have a good secondary.

It's run by an academy trust and there are ongoing issues with student behaviour and the management have brought in some quite draconian policies as a result. The unions are involved.

Avoid.

Ely secondary has improved a lot recently and is doing well. There are a lot of families in the area generally and the town is nice. The primaries are also good.

Can't comment on the other areas.

None of those are in Cambridgeshire.

OP - if you are looking in areas such as St Neots or St Ives etc, please pay close attention to where the flood plains are. There's a lot of low-lying land in Cambridgeshire and the River Great Ouse, and over time, large-scale flooding is getting worse, not better.

Such a shame as it used to be amazing. Plus it’s such a pretty town.

saffron Walden (in Essex btw) has a brilliant secondary, but has an issue with not enough primary school places. I think if you’re near enough to a school it’d be OK.

no station - but audley end is a few mins drive away so would be fine for once a week.

It’d get my vote over St Ives if secondaries are an issue for you right now.

Royston and the surrounding villages Melbourne, Meldrith, Bassingbourne are all considered South Cambridgeshire, I would think due to the close proximity to Cambridge.

Saffron Walden and the surrounding villages send you to Addenbrookes rather than Harlow or Epping as that is considered South Cambridgeshire too

Hertford and Ware are beautiful, vibrant, community led family towns, with wonderful schools, travel facilities etc etc

Secondaries are an issue across Cambs as historically everything good has been in Cambridge leaving everywhere else - well, not as good, to put it kindly.

This is starting to change as Cambridge's insane property prices mean surrounding towns are getting nicer but still has a way to go.

Also a lot of village pubs are closing, or only hanging on by being generic gastro pub places. Ours has just closed for the second time and I suspect it's gone for good.

Aside from that, there are a lot of lovely villages around Huntingdon and St Neots that are 15 min to the train station. Beyond that, don't expect any 'good transport links'. Most places are lucky to see a bus.

Not convinced that secondaries in Cambs are an issue. The Village Colleges - Linton and Sawston particularly have excellent reputations and results.

In fact Linton is a nice village worth looking at. It even has a zoo!

Histon/Impington (two villages in one) very much ticks your boxes, should be in budget and is near Cambridge (you could also consider Cambridge itself but would probably have to compromise on garden). The schools in Histon are great (the secondary named as best state school in East Anglia), lovely mix of shops/cafes/pubs, has a good feel generally, a lovely duck pond! Cambridge North Station nearby, easy cycle into Cambridge . I would choose it as a location some way above any of the other places you mentioned. It's pricey for Cambs but you have a great budget!

Here's a house - not period but loads of space: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/140034845#/?channel=RES_BUY

Eltisley near st Neots is beautiful. Although no shops within walking distance but well worth a look at

I'd also have to disagree with @AnnaMagnani - there are loads of good secondaries in Cambs! See Impington (as above), Comberton, Sawston. Even the 'less good' ones are usually well above national averages.

Also the 'lucky to see a bus' thing is just not true - the vast majority of villages have regular bus services (I think Histon/Impington's usual one is every 20 mins and then there's the 'guided bus' for quicker services into Cambridge)

We relocated from London to Great Chesterford (a village on the Cambridgeshire/Essex border) back in 2021. The primary school here is within walking distance and fantastic, I would highly recommend it. There’s a bakery and two pubs in the village.

I commute into London once a week, I drive to Audley End (10 min drive), then get the fast train into London Liverpool Street. Other friends I know walk to the Great Chesterford train station and catch the slower train into London. Saffron Walden is only a 10 minute drive away, likewise Cambridge city centre is a 15 minute drive.

It’s the perfect location and lots of lovely houses within your budget. I’ve loved the last 3 years here and would recommend it to anyone!

Public transport across Cambridgeshire is generally not good unless on the train line.

Buses are infrequent, stop early and don't run on Sundays. I lived in a south Cambridgeshire village and ferried my teens everywhere.

If you are on the train line (eg meldreth) there are trains to Cambridge/London but not vet frequent and the village is quite big so it would be a bike and train situation.

I disagree that the secondaries outside Cambridge are no good. People are happy with IVC, Linton, Swavesey, Comberton etc.
I would look at Histon. It's very sweet and quite pretty, and has good schools, but is big enough to have post office, pubs, small tesco, butchers,Co-Op, cafes and pubs etc and a proper community of its own. But it's also very handy for Cambridge by bike or guided bus.

The buses do run on Sundays @Octavia64 ! And are pretty regular IME. There has been an effort (and promised more) to improve buses recently. The tickets are all £2 at present, the county desperately needs people to use them more due to all the traffic congestion! That's something I would avoid at all costs in Cambs OP - driving! But buses for your kids as teens will be fine in most places.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/142331777?utm_campaign=property-details&utm_content=new-homes&utm_medium=sharing&utm_source=copytoclipboard#/&channel=RES_NEW

If you want a modern house, this is a development that recently completed.

Or if you’re looking for a house with character, this one is on the same street as the primary school in Great Chesterford:

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/135946673#/?channel=RES_BUY

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions

Glad to hear the buses have improved!

They didn't run at the right times to get my teens to sixth form and back so I did a lot of ferrying.

Wow that period property is beautiful @Spooky1408 !

No Sunday bus service to our villages (Cambs - Burwell - Newmarket route) and last bus home Mon to Sat leaves Cambs @ 7.15pm.
It takes Buwell kids longer to get to Hills/Long than Kings Lynn kids!

That's awful @Chasingsquirrels

https://www.onthemarket.com/details/13336380/

I know this area well, schools etc. Feel free to pm.

Saffron Walden in Essex is lovely and very pretty houses, train station at Audley End. Great schools, do, as in Cambridgeshire, be careful where you move to as some years have a shortage of school places. Central Saffron Walden should be OK and good community and quite a few commuters to London / international people.

Bus services vary and some villages do have issues with buses with further cuts threatened. I would have at least a family car if living in a village and if you may use a school route check the buses, same as if working.

Ely is lovely but don't know schools. Central Cambridge schools afaik are all good, village ones its much more variable (though could well change by the time yours are that age) and be especially careful if SN or not white. Some county lines issues but generally very safe areas. Comberton is excellent and heard good things about Impington. Hills Road is an excellent sixth form for the very bright, other excellent sixth form options also available.

Thank you much! I can't see any secondary schools in the area. Have you got school aged children and if so, what are your thoughts on that?

Thank you much! I can't see any secondary schools in the area. Have you got school aged children and if so, what are your thoughts on that?