Move from Kingston, Surrey to Faversham, Kent

[Hannah567]

Me, my DH and two children (3 and 5) are contemplating a move from Kingston to Faversham.

We just need your honest opinion about the area , is it family orientated? are the people friendly? what is the social life like? what is it like at night? what are the primary and secondary schools like?

Also I have read many people tire of commute but would need to drive in to London and train a few times per week only so guess more doable.

This is a massive decision for us and we want to get it right as it would be a home which we would want to live in for a long while and grow our family in.

Main reasons for change is slower pace of life, be near coast and need more space both in home and surroundings we cannot afford in the current area

Any thoughts welcome...

i live near Faversham and i love it.

You will find it quite different to Kingston id imagine.

It is very family friendly and i think definitely up and coming area. To be fair, it used to be quite rough.

nightlife - best avoid weatherspoons! in fact give it a wide berth in the day too!
otherwise some great pubs. it is the home of the oldest brewery in England after all.

Sone lovely cafes and tea bars.

Schools - there is one grammar and one secondary school. i would imagine a lot of local children go to Canterbury schools which are very good schools. honestly don't know about Faversham ones.

it has a quirky little cinema.

some really lovely victorian properties. mostly terraced but some substantial properties of this type. More modern houses in the bysingwood area.

There wouldn't be much difference between Faversham and Whitstable in terms of house prices. Another 7 minutes on the train from london.

Which part of London do you need to get into?

Faversham is on the high speed rail link into St Pancras which is very useful and quick!

Thanks for replies, very helpful.

We loved Whitstable when visited a few times but imagine very busy for much of year and less likely to want to live there although great place to visit.

Have read on few forums about Faversham being rough but never seen this side and wondered if certain part of Faversham have more problems than others and if so where to avoid if anywhere.

Also any nice places around Faversham with similar feel albeit smaller as going to research more but don't know surroundings well.

I run own business so would be travelling to clients all over in Surrey but also more centrally and lot in West London.

Fear is this could get tiresome but expect benefits would outweigh and over time could work more locally potentially.