Relocating to Norwich for a young family (from London)

[JollyTeaScroller]

After looking at Cambridgeshire and finding the house prices quite expensive, we stumbled upon some very beautiful houses in Norwich which we could afford! In Cambridgeshire, we seemed to have settled for Ely, as a more affordable place. (Budget around 450k for a 3 bed house, which did not take us very far for Cambridge.)

I have been reading threads on mumsnet and reddit and a few people seem to compare Cambridge and Norwich, with Norwich coming up as more friendly and Cambridge a bit more 'snobbish'. Of course I am sure these are generalisations and exceptions will exist.

The most appealing facts I have read about Norwich was that it was walkable, doable without a car (I am currently learning to drive but do not love it) and that people are friendly and there is a sense of community.

Others said it was more 'sleepy', 'backward' and more like a retirement place. Again, I take these with a grain of salt. The other thing I read, is that it can feel quite isolating as everything is far away, with Cambridge being the closest, but if we have everything we need close to us, I am sure we will be okay.

We looked at some properties in NR2 and NR4 and the Golden Triangle, and we also saw some great sounding primary schools.

We are Danish and Greek, and we are used to the diversity of London but want something calmer for our young family. Do you know anything about any Danish or Greek community in Norwich? In Cambridge there is a Greek church and I believe they teach Greek on Saturdays.

Ideally we would like to be close to a nursery and a good primary and a good secondary, so we don't have to consider moving again down the line.

We both cycle and like it.

We like pubs, coffee shops and love food, so it would be great to be near some nice restaurants.

Any recommendations for a nice area, walking distance from a good primary, and in the catchment for a good secondary?

We will be going to stay in an AirBnb soon, so we can explore it.

Many thanks!

My parents lived in a village out of Norwich but it's a great little city! I would totally move there.

It’s got some good schools! It’s not as nice as Cambridge but it’s a good alternative

@JollyTeaScroller , do you need to access to London or international airports? It's difficult to live in Norwich and commute to London whilst it's easy from Cambridge. Stansted airport is not the same as living 2 hours from Heathrow.
I'm from Cambridge, Norfolk is great but it is a bit cut off from London.

In NR2 and NR4 you’ll probably be in the catchment for City of Norwich School (CNS) - beautiful old building and good reputation. Check the catchments for primaries like Recreation Road and the Avenues which feed to CNS.

You might like the stretch of Unthank Road between Park Lane and Dover Street - there’s a row of coffee shop, restaurant/pub type places. Blue Joanna, William & Florence, the Unthank Kitchen, Greek Actually.

There’s a nice house on Rightmove on Glebe Road at the moment - that’s walkable to restaurants, coffee shops, primary schools, CNS and the city centre.

I lived in Norwich many years ago. Is the golden triangle still known for postatution?

Don't think so. A lot of student rentals. NR4 also popular for student rentals as near to UEA.

Golden triangle is lovely. As previous poster said CNS is great High School. Eaton Park is fabulous. A wonderful city with everything you need plus easy access to green space and very close to amazing beaches.

I love Norwich, I actually prefer it to Cambridge. My grandparents lived just outside for years. It’s a lovely small city and also has the UEA, and I think being a student city brings a certain vibrancy and diversity. The countryside around is much nicer than Cambridge, it’s really not far to the Norfolk broads and the coast. It’s a bit remote from some other areas of the country but connections to London are good.

@JollyTeaScroller did you make the move? We're also in SE London and thinking of doing the same...