Have to re- locate to Birmingham in the new year but have no idea where to start as im a south east girl!

[Pinkranger]

Dh Job is relocating to Willen hall ( Birmingham) in August and if all goes well we are looking to move up there in the new year but i have never really step foot out of South east England so have no idea where to start!

We live in a nice area of Maidstone at the moment in a 3 bed but would be looking for a 4 bed, also have 2 ds, aged 9 months and 5 so schools is a big thing, we are hoping to go up in the next few months to get a feel of the areas so any advice on whats nice and not would be great!
We are looking for any where on the outside of Birmingham or central but no more then 1 hour drive!

Thank you everyone!

Willenhall is actually between Walsall and Wolverhampton, so its not actually Birmingham but Black Country.

There are mners who live around those parts, so hopefully one will be along soon.

I am in Birmingham

Thank you, you can tell i have NO idea!!

PILs live near Brum, but not the area you are thinking of. The centre of Brum is getting much nicer now.

Solihull & Olton are nice neighboroods I think.

I'm sure someone who knows a lot more will be able to help!

Hi, used to live in Maidstone

My brother lives in Tamworth (ok, no Bluewater but big retail park) where the house prices are v gd for a big 4 bed house but check out school catchment areas. SIL commutes to Birmingham and it takes 30 mins good day, 1hr bad day.

Brother also used to live in Solihull (Touchwood shopping centre v gd) which has well regarded schools but house prices really reflect this.

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Halesowen is terriby nice too.

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The centre of Birmingham is lively, with loads going on and good shopping, and Brum is generally much better than people who don't know it think. However, Willenhall is between Walsall and Wolverhampton, and though I am sure there are nice parts of both, neither of them are the kinds of places that would make anyone say 'ooh Walsall, you are lucky to live there'. You could commute from Brum to Willenhall, but it might be a bit of a nightmare journey. And maybe not what you want if you are used to smalltownville.

What about Bridgnorth in Shropshire? Handsome old market town, nice mix of property (if you can spend upwards of £400k, there are some stunning period properties), and Shropshire is utterly beautiful.

I've just moved from Oxfordshire to Solihull (Olton in fact!)

Tis nice enough (also expensive as Heated points out) but looking at the map, it's a long old commute to Willenhall, along the M6 which is a nightmare in rush hour.

Might be worth looking at Walsall; it's the right side of town for you, and has some 'leafy'-type areas. DH went to the grammar school there but I'm not sure what it's actually like to live in.

ooooo come and live in warwick-only a 40 min commute and MUCH nicer than willenhall!

hey swifyknickers, are you a fellow Warwickian?

Just looked at the map and realised you'll be round t'other side. The only areas nearby that I know and like is Cannock but others will be able to advise you better.

Thank you for all your ideas, dh will drive into Willenhall, he is happy to commute a bit as he does now. He has been up to Willenhall a few times recently for work and he did say that it was quite industrial and not what we want, so surrounding areas would be good.

Bostin

You'll need this

Bridgnorth, Stourbridge, Penn (nice suburb of W'hampton) are what you want. Solihull/Warwick etc are totally the wrong side of Brum and anything involving the motorway commute should be avoided.
And the dc might have slightly more bearable accents if you are inShrops or Worcs (she says, snobbishly )

Swiftyknickers, are you thinking of Willenhall in Coventry? that would prob take about 40 mins at peak time from Warwick.