Relocating to Devon/Cornwall - should we do it?

[Lastyearsmodel]

We've done the classic thing of returning from holiday in Cornwall and wanting to move down there - are we stupid to think we should live somewhere lovelier?

We've been down quite a few times and have friends who moved there from West Yorkshire 6 years ago and love it, so we're not completely unaware of the pitfalls.

We're in South Yorkshire, DP has a secure but boring job (he says) and have DD (3) and DS (18 months). I'm a Londoner but have lived in Yorkshire for 15 years and DP is a Yorkshireman. The schools here are OK, not great, and I'd always said I didn't want the kids to grow up here.

We're outdoors types - cycling, walking, paddling, etc - is it worth the move to have better weekends?

He's seen jobs he could apply for and reckons now is the time to go. Are we being naive?

Has anyone relocated because you felt you and your family deserved a better quality of life?

All thoughts and opinions welcome - as you can probably tell, I'm a bit confused...

(Scroobi - your reasons for enjoying being there (fetes, community, safe schools etc) are exactly our reasons for moving down there! And we will do the city days too, into Plymouth or Exeter, or up to Bristol maybe, but will undoubtedly breathe the same sigh of relief at the end of it.

We live near a big city now and almost never go there, but it isn't as nice as Exeter or Plymouth.)

OP -house prices in Teignmouth are not bad, and it is a lovely seaside town, not as touristy as Torquay or Paignton, but still lovely for children with a playground right on the front and a nice shopping town. It was on our list of places to look when we were house-hunting.

Ivybridge also has affordable areas, and the school has a really good ofsted report/grades etc.

Scroobi - out of interest what do you think Cornwall can offer than Yorkshire can't?! Perhaps you just need a different part of Yorkshire?

Cornwall is amazing but your choice of schools and job opportunities will be limited, house prices and utilities are in no way connected to the salaries you'll be able to earn.

Saying that I will be returning to Cornwall in 2012, it's in the 5 year plan!

We moved to Devon after many years in big cities. We love it. We like the outdoor lifestyle, and the fact that it's warm enough to do these things for most of the year. We do lots of watersports and camping and just hanging out in forests and rivers and on beaches.

we did choose our location very carefully, near Exeter, which is only 2 hrs to London by train, and in a place where we don't need a car. rather than succumbing to the temptation of buying a house with lots of land in the middle of nowhere.

as for avocados. Honestly. Devon is stuffed full of organic farmers and eco-food companies, it has the highest proportion of such companies in the country. You can't move without falling over local organic food sources. vineyards too.

fennel - I find it quite odd the number of people on here who think that people eat really badly in the south west. It's stuffed to the gills with organic farmers and rare breeds farmers and lovely cheese etc. Fresh fish - as fresh as it's possible to get. You can eat better here than in many places - Ok you need to know where to look but it's all there.

I live in very West Cornwall, and like Orm says, we eat very well. Lots of farm shops, several fishmongers (it's not what you know, it's who you know for cheap fish )and a great local butchers, i know where the cows live

We do talk about moving away, but with 4dc this is the best place. Yes, most jobs are M.wage, but you can do well working for yourself (as DH does) down here.

I know several Guardian readers btw, and eat avocado often! lol. Though as MP says, it is not very multi-cultural here at all. I am struggling to think of a non-white person or different religion person...however there is huge gay community, we are into the arts down here darlinnnnngs

Ah yes you have quite a few weird arty folk down your way scorps

There are My Dad is very much into artwork in the house, and his art dealer is gay, its a family joke about my Dad going to see his etchings

Seriously though, i love it here. Yes, i know if we stay here some, if not all of my dc will leave me for university and jobs, but having a childhood here is fabulous. I get scared when i go to London (DH is from Surrey), he is always telling me to shut my bag

Is it always cold and wet in Tavistock or just when we visit .

we have a fantastic curry house in my town, and for someone whose tried almost every curry house on brick lane that's saying something.

We nearly did relocate to Cornwall from N Yorkshire a couple of years ago (had got the DCs places at a fabulous school in Truro), but chickened out at the last minute (or, rather, I did).

What put me off in the end was:

1. Too far from family and friends for my liking; makes anything other than a long stay impossible.

1. I did a lot of research into Things To Do With Children, and found that there is very little to do from September- March. We are very keen walkers and generally outdoorsy, but I still didn't like the idea of there being very little to do other than go to the beach in November.

1. Discovered that one adult can't supervise two children in the local pools; it has to be one adult to one under eight. So that ruled out swimming as a Thing To Do.

1. Poor choice of secondary schools; didn't like the idea of the DCs possibly having to board out of Cornwall.

1. House prices are very, very high in the nice bits of Cornwall.

1. I didn't see much future there for the children unless they wanted to be plumbers/electricians/holiday lettings people. And I didn't want to be stuck there on my own once the children leave home!

1. The nearest John Lewis is 168 miles away (Bristol).

Exeter seemed like more of a possibility, though even that's a long way. But another 100 miles further seemed to me to be just that too far. I suppose it depends largely on how much you want to be within reasonable striking distance of your family!

I did and do love Cornwall, and we do have a holiday house there so can have our little bit of Cornwall two or three times a year. But now we've actually tried to do it, I know that living there would not be for me.

Yes, it is ALWAYS cold and wet in tavistock.

IMO the villages nearest the coast get the best weather. it can be raining in ivybridge 10 miles inland and lovely and sunny in yealmpton.

It's been warm and sunny in Tavistock this week. But that's because I'm not there.

scroobiuspirate do you live in my village?? I'm north of teh moor.

Teignmouth.. huuuum, looks lovely when teh sun is shining, but is a bit of a dive. major issues with youth unemployment and teen parents.

Yes it does pretty much always rain in Tavi, tis on teh west of teh moor, so gets dumped on. Exeter is noticably in the "rain shadow" and thus drier.

Ivybridge College, Its huge school but a good one. Most of eth "rural" community colleges are OK, they kind of have to be as they serve ALL teh kids for a big area, no choice of going to any other school from a lot of villages unless you drive them there.

However, when it rains in Tavi that's a great excuse to go to Dukes for a bacon sarnie and a sink of cappucino, or a mocha with cream and a flake.....it just isn't the same in Belgium!

Alternatively, I while away an hour in Bookstop, and load my credit card...or even worse, Crebers!

I live in Saltash and am very happy with the outstanding primary school that my daughter is at.
We are members of a wonderful family country club (CFCC) with a pre-school, creche and a soft play area. Here she also does trampoling and ballet as well as the usual swimming lesssons. She has stage skills lessons (visiting facility like the ballet).

We have anual passes to the Eden project and the Aquairium (sp)in Plymouth. We always have something to do, rain or shine Summer or Winter.
I can walk to the train station and be in London in a few hours if I wanted. Yes there is a Waitrose in Saltash as Scarey Teacher says, just off the a 38 at Carkeel. CCornwall is great place to be and is at it's best in the Winter

I live in Kent and am thinking of moving to Cornwall to give my family a more relaxed way of life. I appreciate that it's best to secure work before moving to Cornwall. We currently rent our home so would rent in Cornwall and would eventually like to buy our own home. I understand house prices are rising in Cornwall. Our dream would be to run our own tea room - is this just a dream or do you think it would be possible, or is it just what everyone wants to do. I have read that people say it's best to move to a town where there is more going on - I would dearly love to live somewhere where you can can open your front door and go for a lovely walk, without having to get in the car first. We have been to Devon and Cornwall for most of our family holidays and love that part of the country. I also appreciate that life is different when you have to work in a place rather than just be on holiday, but surely it has to be a nicer way to live. I would love to receive comments, both good and bad from people who have experience in this or anyone who would like to comment. My children are 15 and 12 so we need to wait until next summer when my son finishes his exams. I currently work in an office and my hubbie drives a taxi - there has to be more to life!

Bumping for you, but wondering if you might get more traffic if you start a new thread?

Which part of Cornwall are you thinking of moving to?

Thanks I have started a new thread. First time of posting so just getting used to it!!

I would love to live in a village that has some life about it. We are holidaying in Hayle in a couple of weeks. Have been to Polperro, Port Isaac, Mevagissy, St Ives (very busy though) to name but a few! My teenage children would like to have things to do, where would you recommend, please?

Hi, I'm very new to Mumsnet it's my first time!
Myself, my husband and two children are soon to be relocating to East Devon from Manchester and we're looking around the area of Sidmouth. All I'd like to know is what local schools can be recommended, and is the area suitable for a family (children aged 11 and 3) our 11 year old is going to be in a secondary school and if possible our 3 year old in a primary school with a nursery attached to it.
Thanks, Joanne.

Joanne suggest you start a new thread, as per the poster's advice, a couple of messages above... don't worry, there are lots of people with opinions out there and down here!

We moved from the north to Cornwall. Took a massive paycut but well worth it. If you are hardy outdoor types you will love the quiet winters with empty (wet and windy) beaches. If you're drawn here by the sea then you might as well live by the sea. It can get very busy in the summer in the tourist hot spots but if you explore enough you will find the quieter (often harder to get to spots) for the summer. I'll never forget our first spring here - picking the children up from school on the first hot (ish) day, heading to the beach and watching them run into the sea in their uniforms.

We're hoping to relocate to Devon and were looking for any advice about 4 primary schools in particular-All Saints, Beer, Kilmington and Stockland. Although looking at each school's website has been helpful it's hard to get a true 'feel' for each school without living in the area. Any advice/suggestions truly appreciated. They all seem to be great so how to how to choose!