Moving to Edinburgh

[Hillary17]

Me & my boyfriend are currently debating a big move and so far Edinburgh is very much a favourite. It would be a massive move as I've lived in the Midlands all my life, but we're both in agreement that 2019 is the year we make the jump! We did contemplate a move down south but it doesn't make sense financially. His company has an office in ED so it would be an easy move, but I would need to find another job [I'm not too worried about as I have a pretty strong CV].

Ideally we'd like to live somewhere with decent public transport [I can't drive], a few cafes etc. and good primary school. At the minute we rent a 3 bed semi-detached house in the suburbs for £750 a month but we have room to spend more for the right house.

Any tips on living in Edinburgh? Best areas for a young family? Has anyone else made a big move?

Hi Hillary17. I moved to Edinburgh from southern England about 20 years ago as a single parent with two primary school-aged children. It was definitely the best move I ever made. I live in Portobello which is Edinburgh's seaside. It has a two-mile sandy prom (Firth of Forth, but feels like the sea, just with Fife on the other side!), lots of cafes, a lovely community feel, and fantastic public transport - buses are frequent and reliable, and you can be in the city in 20 mins and get buses out to the East Lothian coast. I'm not really that up to date on schools these days - the obvious ones for Portobello are Towerbank Primary, and Portobello High. I was very satisfied with both, and Portobello High is now in a spanking new building which I gather has gone down well. It's a very popular area with families, and there's lots of children's activities in the immediate vicinity.

Public transport is good in Edinburgh, there’s a good bus network.
Where is the office? Travelling across the city at rush hour can be long
If you go to the espc website you can search by school catchment.
Popular schools I know of are south Morningside, James Gillespie’s, sciences, Bonaly.
£750 rent wont get you much though, 1 bedroom flat If you want to be central

Thanks for the help. We’re happy to commute - up to 45 minutes for the right place. We’re more after a small town than the hustle and bustle to be honest.

You'll definitely get more for your money outside the city.

Maybe think about South Queensferry - good transport links in to town, especially for Gyle & city centre. Perhaps Ratho, Winchburgh, Balerno to the West/north. Or Livingston/Linlithgow.

Or you could commute from Dalgety Bay, Aberdour or Dunfermline by train. Charleston/Limekilns/Culross are pretty but don't have a train station or such good transport links. And you'd have to brave the bridge if crossing from Fife - not for the faint-hearted in rush hour traffic.

Plenty places in Midlothian too - I have friends in Roslin who like it there, Dalkeith or Eskbank - or there's East Lothian - Haddington, Gifford, North Berwick (lovely bit pricey) Dunbar.

If you can be more specific about your needs, am sure we can point to in the right direction. It's a huge area.

Don't forget to factor in different taxes and potential for greater divergence from rest of UK in future which may or may not be to your taste. I love Edinburgh and the ability to have excellent quality of life compared with working in SE England, but come with your eyes open.

Lucky you. It’s a fabulous city.

Do you need easy access north or west for work/friends etc? If that is the case go for Balerno or Winchburgh or south queensferry.

East Lothian is lovely - haddington/north Berwick but not so easy for getting to Glasgow or north.

Midlothian is hugely expanding just now so many of the towns are sadly losing their feel of being outside Edinburgh. But lots of options eg eskbank/Dalkeith and somewhere like Penicuik which is improving all the time. It a wee village like Roslin which has great bus links.

Thank you for all your suggestions! We’re planning a long weekend to visit and explore in the next few weeks. Ideally we want something with a good school, few pubs / restaurants / supermarket without having to go all the way into the city. We don’t mind being further out of the city, and would love something a bit more rural than we have right now if possible! It’s a bit overwhelming planning a move hundreds of miles away and never even having visited the place so it’s very helpful!

There are lots of areas of Edinburgh which fit your criteria. Somewhere like Stockbridge has a villagey feel and decent schools. Great restaurants and bars. Minutes from the Botanic Gardens and Inverleith Park. It is only 10 minutes from the City Centre. You probably wouldn't get much for £750 rent wise. Loads of option further out of town too. Edinburgh is a great place to live with kids.

I think the key to it will be work & commute.

If your partner is working in the Gyle for example, you won't want to be travelling along the bypass from Musselburgh in rush hour.