We currently live in a rural village in Worcestershire, but we’re looking to move a bit closer to, well, everything. There is not a thing in walking distance where we are now, except for a dying pub and loads of countryside. Great for the dog, but not the child (soon to be 3). Or me. I’d want to be able to walk to at least a playground, a nice pub and a little shop. Ideally also to school when our LO starts next year.
We’re deciding between Worcester and Ironbridge. Worcester is the easy choice - we know it’s nice, has good schools, has good access to nature and countryside, nice restaurants etc. It’s familiar, my husband grew up around here (I didn’t). Ironbridge is an option because my SIL and her partner live there and will be having a baby this spring, so it’d be nice to be close to them so the cousins could grow up close to each other. We know that most of the things listed above are also true for Ironbridge, but I don’t know about schools.
Work isn’t a concern - my husband is self employed and works from home, and my job is so generic that there’s jobs everywhere for me. We don’t really have many local friends either, mostly due to living so remotely that all of our neighbours are pensioners, and my husband’s uni friends are scattered all over. Mine are in a different country.