Wellswood or Brixham Torquay?

[Milliemoo1991]

Hello!
we’re hoping to move from Brighton, hove actually lol! As it’s just too busy here now and we don’t use any of the facilities so not worth staying anymore.

we are considering Torbay as we love the beach and want a bit of a slower pace of life now!

we both work remotely my dh offshore hove every 6 weeks and myself as a building surveyor for the air force so travel at times when required.

we are wanting proximity to the beach and a nice quiet area, no drama and lots of outside space, schools are also important as we have a y5 boy. Who’s outdoorsy, loves go karting so any recommendations on if there is anywhere to do that as a club!? And he’s also a beach bum.

We are looking at clearing our mortgage and love brixham and Wellswood, specifically ilsham road. It looks so idyllic and peaceful.

any roads to consider? Avoid? Is either area better than the other?
we drive, are outdoorsy but also like to be able to nip to the local shop with ease for essentials by foot of an evening! For Chocolate and wine 😂

thank you!!

😁😁😁😁

I wouldn’t move to Torbay op

tge crime rates in Torquay are absolutely horrendous now adays and the area is so run down and empty.

Do you have dc?

have you looked further up the coast?

Thank you for your reply, do you live there? Yes DC is 10.

we have but don’t particularly like anywhere else and we lived Torquay when we visited.

id consider exmouth but don’t know much about the area

thanks ☺️

My friend lives in the south end of Goodrington. Seems quiet, you can walk to the beach and there are a couple of parades of small shops handy.

To be honest if you buy up Ilsham marine drive way you won't see too much of the negative sides of TQ, I have friends who live there and it's beautiful. I lived in TQ as a teenager and it was great. Schools are good if your son will get into grammar, other schools are better than they were in my day, but they suffer from having the grammar able students taken away!
Wellswood is lovely as a little village you have the Co op and a couple of cafes, and a pub. One thing I would consider, (I moved from London to TQ) is the change in opinions and politics amongst the people, it can feel like stepping into the past a bit, it's not a particularly diverse area, and they do love a bit of the Daily Mail.
Honestly though the beaches, walks and nature outside of the town centre make it worthwhile for me. I want to move back down after my kids are finished school for a kind of chill twilight to my working years. (Before the raucous city life I have planned for retirement 😂)

there are better parts of south Devon than Torbay

pwrhaps you’re seduced by cheaper house
prices

there isnt a lot going on in the area.

I used to live in Wellswood and it is it's own little area. It's just a shame about the rest of Torquay.

Brixham is also nice but for me, always having to drive round the bay to get anywhere would eventually drive me nuts.

Do you actually have to be on the beach, or just much nearer than you are now? If you relax your beach criteria, what you really want is Totnes.

I wouldn't choose Torquay or Exmouth. Rundown and really sad now. Teignmouth is much nicer than either. If you have the money, Kingsbridge is lovely too. Inland, Bovey Tracey is a buzzy town.

Thanks so much for all the messages, in answer to questions, yes must be directly on the beach or within 5 minutes walk.

currently located in hove it’s so manic although we have a beautiful detached house with a large garden and a drive. I want a quiet life now I find everybody here a bit up themselves 😂😭

we have a healthy budget selling for close to 1m and clearing the mortgage and buying for approx 7-800k but hoping to spend less.

the wildlife in Wellswood attracts me as the houses back on to beautiful scenery, and the beach there looks like it wouldn’t be as manic as some of the others.

thank you for the advice on Brixham I didn’t think about driving round the bay!
dh works away a lot so need a nice safe area and after the drama with parking and people using our driveway in hove a gated house sounds ideal!!

we’ve worked like mad and we want to just live a slower pace of life if possible!! Without being bored.

really appreciate all the advice and if you have anymore please do keep it coming! We’re still open to options and teigenmouth is another on the list but doesn’t look like there is much there??

thanks again!

Ilsham Marine Drive is lovely, I would choose that over Brixham as more exclusive, quieter and easier to access. I am also a big fan of Shaldon as it's just really cute and again very accessible to the main roads. Last time I tried to get to Brixham I gave up as the traffic was too bad.

There are also some really good restaurants in Wellswood, plus you've got the beach cafe and The Osborne.

My best friend used to live in Wellswood. We often did day trips to Brixham, lovely as it, is there is NO WAY ON EARTH I'd opt to live in Brixham, the trip back round the bay, whichever way you go is hell on earth especially the summer.

Wellswood itself is lovely but so much of Torquay is very very run down, drugs, homeless beggars etc, many not very nice areas. I think you might be disappointed.

What about Sidmouth? Or other Dorset coastal eg Budleigh Salterton or Seaton? Bit quieter, nice area and easier access to Go Karting at Exeter (there is none in Torquay, it's Exeter or Plymouth (again horrid journey around the bay), and an easier access to the M5 in the summer months where the A380/A30 gets stuffed because of a silly accident. Or even Weymouth (again Go Karting), lots of outdoorsy stuff around and a huge amount of beach based activities.

I do wonder about Bournemouth as an alternative (has Go Karting), would some areas (Boscombe, Southbourne eg www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/161480858#/?channel=RES_BUY has nice shops on the High St, or even Christchurch) be quiet enough yet still accessible - & where you're not in the thick of Bournemouth itself? And also has an airport, and good road links.

Meant to add you're not far from New Forest when in Bournemouth.

Thank you jazzy and ariela- I will look into the other towns you have mentioned. Sidmouth is cute looking but a bit small? Never been but looks lovely!

now that the traffic has been mentioned getting out of Brixham I think that will be out as I will need quick access onto the m5 for work visits. Also dh flys to work every 5/6 weeks and then back again. So an airport close by would be handy.

little one does go karting with team sport and they have one in Bournemouth. I just heard such bad things about Bournemouth and the crime rates. Is it not that bad? Beating in kind I’m coming from Brighton 😂😂😂 every second person is either homeless or in a Range Rover. There is no middle ground.

that house is stunning!! 🤩

thank you ☺️

I live in S Devon and agree with others that a lot of Torbay is rough and run-down (not all of course). Brixham is known as Brexitham so go there if you like being surrounded by Reform voters.

South Hams is far better, low crime, fabulous beaches but pricey. Personally I'd rather have a smaller home in a great area than a larger home in a naff one.

East Devon is lovely, pretty villages and lovely seaside places eg Sidmouth and Budleigh Salterton (avoid Seaton). They are pebble beaches not sand though if that matters to you. It's similar in price to the South Hams.

Edited to add that Exeter Airport (international) is closer to East Devon but it's only just over an hour's drive from the South Hams so totally doable once a week if necessary.

If you need motorway access, Torquay is 100x better than Brixham (although I love Brixham). We live in St Marychurch, which is great with its own high street and village vibe. Wellswood is considered the ‘posh’ bit of Torquay, and we looked at Wellswood a lot when moving here, and liked it because of the housing stock and general leafiness, but it does have a much older, Daily Mail vibe to it, rather than a fun, family vibe. Maybe because I deal with complaining neighbours for a job, I just get fed up with curtain-twitching Wellswood residents!
I would also add Teignmouth and Shaldon to the list.

I would say look further up the coast into east Devon. Beer is a favourite village of mine with a beautiful beach and south west coast paths to Branscombe and beyond.
Dunkeswell also has a kart club - https://www.dunkeswellraceway.co.uk

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/161174906#/?channel=RES_BUY

Thurlestone (South Hams) short walk to the fabulous sandy beach, nearby surf school and opportunities for kayaking, paddleboarding and windsurfing. Village shop and Post Office - good pub. Good secondary schools nearby (kids have school buses to transport them). Golf course and leisure club on your doorstep (tennis, spa, swimming pool etc). Just over an hour's drive to Exeter Airport and 45 mins drive to Plymouth with all its city facilities.

Brixham over Torquay, even Wellswood, any day.

The grammar schools are great academically but I wouldn’t recommend raising a teenager in Torquay. There’s not much to do, I wouldn’t want my teen hanging out in town. There are big issues with homelessness, crime, drugs and county lines. Don’t assume that nice, well behaved, middle class kids aren’t at risk.

Interesting, I have just moved my boat to Torquay marina and so far really enjoyed it there, I travel down weekends from Hampshire.

First time there I had an impromptu night out on the harbour side, a pub crawl with four 50 something men I met in the sailing club when I popped in to enquire about joining.

There's a really lively family dinghy sailing programme there and a lovely social programme and an outdoor terrace for drinks. There's a tennis club over the road too.

The atmosphere around the harbour was amazing that Friday night, my new friends knew people in every pub we went to, there was a wonderful middle aged women band in one and we even chatted away with a university lecturer in the Yates. Normal friendly people who've lived there their whole lives.

I live in a diverse city surrounded by people from all over the world all here for their own reasons. It's not a community, no one speaks to you, no one even catches your eye. I don't feel much like I live in England anymore, the buildings are English but the majority of the people i see and live by are not.

I know Mumsnet is very sneery about the normal white middle, working class and poor British unless they are the diverse kind but I actually had a fantastic time realising that the far west is still England. For now.

Just to say though, in case the Mumsnet misery guts get you down, Torbay is a fantastic place to live. My kids go to a lovely school, our street is quiet and friendly, the scenery is world class and there’s lots to do for families.
Not to mention the fact that I’m on the beach right now having a dinner picnic after a warm day at work/school!

Thank you all for the advice!

I have looked at lots of other towns and keep coming back to Torquay, it’s great to hear the practicalities.

we’re young (ish) I’m 33 and dh is 45. Weather that might not be suitable for Wellswood as we do have a child although he’s not noisy and I do prefer not living around young children as can’t beat the noise 😂 now I sound old lol.

I know every town has its downsides and I do worry about when we reach teenage years how ds will entertain himself! It’s so great to hear the positives too.

coming from Brighton everything is very inclusive and bit too much so for me. Noons is allowed an opinion 😂😂
and no one is friendly all ignore you and wrapped up in their own stuff. I loved the friendly vibe we got from Torquay and hope for that in our new town.
Hannahthepink sounds absolutely amazing 🤩 we have a space at ilsham for ds available and hoping it’s a good school! Have you lived there long? X

prefer east Devon to Torbay. Sidmouth is great, but no train station. Exmouth has a train station and decent bus service to Exeter. The beach is fabulous, but the town centre is starting to look very run down and local comprehensive is massive and doesn’t have a great reputation, however, there are buses to Colyton grammar. Budleigh Salterton is God’s waiting room.
Topsham is lovely, but estuary, not beach and house prices are pretty high.

@Milliemoo1991

you really need to look into shaldon

absolutly Beautiful little village hi has lots of community and regattas and stuff going on.

is just a short drive from from teignmouth

I don’t have direct experience of Ilsham Primary, but you won’t go far wrong with it. It’s going to have pretty much the best demographic in the bay. Obviously, that’s not all that matters, but it definitely helps.
We’ve lived here for two years, and don’t regret our move at all. The wealth divide is just wider in places like this, and that can feel jarring. My workplace is in arguably the worst spot in town, so I see the worst of it, but I can’t see how that can realistically affect anyone’s day to day enjoyment of life as long as you can afford a nice house in a nice area.
We’re now just watching a sea swimming club having a race, a gaggle of SUPs, there’s a few yachts moored up and my son is searching for jellyfish on the shore. I can’t imagine anywhere I’d rather be!

Hi
moving to Devon we holiday there most years have stayed in wellswood very nice near sea. Schools good as my friend had young family and rented house there until she bought a property. Torquay town not so nice but nice places on the outskirts and retail parks. Best to go for weekend and look at the villages and surrounding areas. Ilsham very nice. My friend was happy in wellswood local shops and pub and good schools it’s more upmarket. And we loved our holiday cottage near the shops with lovely walks.