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Rural living

Looking to relocate to the countryside? Find advice in our Rural Living forum.

Original poster

Anyone know the Sussex area? Uckfield?

12 replies

CharCharxxx · 23/10/2018 21:02

Hi, we are looking to move next year from Greater London/Kent area to a more rural place that isn't too far away. We want to be in a village type location as we would love to be able to integrate into a community. We have 4 children under 7 so decent schools are crucial. We've driven down to a number of places in east Sussex as it seems to have what we want but i don't know anyone who knows the area to give me info. We really love the villages surrounding Uckfield from what we've seen i.e Buxted, Maresfield and I've read online the Uckfield community college is a brilliant school. Is this true? I'm desperate to get this right as I've never moved area before. Unfortunately the secondary schools where I am are not now places I would feel happy sending my kids too. Any insight would be much appreciated! Thanks :)

OP posts:
LostPlatypus · 25/10/2018 22:18

I'm not sure I'm going to be a huge help OP, but if nothing else my reply will bump this for you. Maresfield is gorgeous, and Buxted is nice too. Unfortunately I can't help you at all with the schools as I haven't lived in East Sussex for a while, but I have people I can ask so I can try to find out for you.

If you need more info about the area in general, I should be able to ask about that too, or tell you myself.

Original poster
CharCharxxx · 25/10/2018 22:40

Thank you so much for the reply Lostplatypus! Yes that would be fantastic, any info would be very much appreciated. I do want to know what the local youth is like in Uckfield, one of the main reasons I want to move is that there is so much anti social behaviour from teenagers here and gangs etc not the life i want for my children at all. Obviously I know that no area is free of this but some places are worse than others! We have also looked briefly around Horsham/billingshurst I don't suppose you have any knowledge on the surrounding areas? I know there are some great secondary schools there. X

OP posts:
LostPlatypus · 25/10/2018 23:40

No problem at all CharChar Smile

I can totally ask about that. It's always seemed very quiet when I've visited but that's a very brief snapshot so I will ask and check. I would guess that a lot of teens travel to Tunbridge Wells as there isn't an awful lot to do in Uckfield (tiny cinema, a handful of shops, one park in the town centre), and T Wells is reasonably easy to get to by bus. I don't think T Wells is a bad place, but I do think people get fooled by its posh reputation - it has its dodgy bits just like any large town.

Horsham/Billingshurst is a little too far west as far as my knowledge/experience goes but again I can ask. Horsham itself is lovely but that's as much as I can tell you. I'll see what I can find out for you. Might take me a few days because my DM is never the most reliable when it comes to replying to texts!

letsdolunch321 · 31/10/2018 13:56

You could try joining a mums group or looking online at crime figures in Uckfield area

LostPlatypus · 03/11/2018 17:46

OP, I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you. My DM is useless at replying to texts and hasn't actually given me that much helpful info either. Blush

She says that Uckfield hasn't been that great but has recently improved, although she thinks that Heathfield is better (Uckfield has better transport links though). She doesn't know about the Community College unfortunately, or about the areas surrounding Horsham/Billingshurst as she's only driven through them not really been there much. She was basically just like "well tell them to visit the area to find out" which is typical DM unhelpfulness, sorry.

I'm really sorry OP. I tried my best.

Original poster
CharCharxxx · 04/11/2018 20:41

That's ok hun i really appreciate you going out your way to find out for me! I do agree that we probably need to spend some proper time there and see what we think, maybe speak to locals when possible etc. Thank you again! Xx

OP posts:
LostPlatypus · 08/11/2018 00:56

You're totally welcome. :) Sorry I couldn't be more helpful. I hope you find somewhere you like. :)

Shouldbeworkingnotreadingtalk · 14/11/2018 22:35

I've just moved (Feb 2018) from a bustling city of Brighton to a village just outside Uckfield (East Hoathly). Can throughly recommend this area in general. You can even park for free in the High Street whilst shopping!! Unheard of where I used to live Smile... crime seems fairly low and people are lovely. Not huge amounts of nightlife, but it's there if you look for it. We've embraced total life and now have pigs, goats, geese, ducks, chickens and I've hatched my own peacocks this year too. Go for it!

Original poster
CharCharxxx · 17/11/2018 22:15

Hi thanks for your reply! Wow it sounds like you are living the dream!! Seems like such a nice part of the country. I appreciate your insight thanks 😊

OP posts:
JMY123 · 12/07/2019 17:09

Hello,

It’s probably too late but the area is great... great schooling is just taken for granted. I’ve had 2 children go to Uckfield Community College, yes it’s a big school but the staff just appear to know the children and are passionate about them getting on and doing their very best. Really supportive, never appeared to be many problems with discipline. Bullying is taken very seriously. They both did really well in their A levels. There are great primary schools in the surrounding villages, just look at the Ofsteds... the primary schools in Uckfield are probably fine too.

There are a lot of houses being built in Uckfield but to be honest I’ve been in the area nearly 25 years and there has always been development. People are just as polite now on the roads as they were 25 years ago.... nice people tend to move here. Granted the trains are are a little more crowded than they were back in the 90’s but then they are 4 times the size and they now have round wheels.

Hope the move went well wherever you ended up.

JMY

Whatsthekey · 18/08/2020 17:07

Hi OP, did you move to Uckfield in the end? Interested myself particularly in secondary schools so any insight would be great!

CityDweller · 05/09/2020 00:10

There's a massive housing development being built in the north of Uckfield at the moment. It's going to put a massive stretch on schools, traffic, etc.

I know the area/ town and anyway don't love it. There's really not much going on on the high street and even in non-Covid times it's dead after 6pm bar the two restaurants (one of which is Pizza Express) and the cinema (which is lovely).

If you're moving purely for a rural idyll, then there are some nice spots around there and so long as you're not relying on Uckfield to find a social life or anything like that then it's fine in terms of food shopping and stuff like that.

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