Moving west coast Scotland from midlands

[Daniellezll]

Hi,
I’m currently a Police Officer in the Midlands, I am looking to potentially transfer to Police Scotland, in particular the rural transfer option. At the moment the available areas are Argyll (Specified as South Kintyre and the islands/Mid Argyll/Oban inc North/South/Lorn and Isles.
This is open until Sept this year, I won’t be applying this year due to needing to sort personal circumstances here, so the locations could be different next time the opportunity comes up, but I would most probably be looking around Argyll/Isles/West etc.
I’m just after some guidance on areas, I have started some research on coastal Argyll areas but clearly it’s a massive area. I will be planning on coming up to look at particular places but just want to narrow it down as much as possible.
Things I’d like (I know I’ll have to balance out some..!) – Reasonable house prices, generally nice area, fairly local beaches/walking areas, reasonable transport links e.g. within 2 hour train of Glasgow, Within about 7 hours drive of home now (Lincoln – East Midlands). I’m single but like my own space so am happy to be fairly rural/remote, but would like to be within distance of some kind of infrastructure with a café or two etc.
Areas I’ve looked at so far – Helensburgh – Looks nice and has good rail links, can get to Glasgow/Fort William etc easily and close to Loch Lomond. Doesn’t seem to be a huge amount of property within budget (Up to around 180k) other than flats though and all seems to be within the town. I’d preferably want a little 2 bed cottage either detached or semi with garden.
Dunoon – Really reasonable house prices, some research has suggested it’s a nice place to live, some on forums say it is run down and there is a lot of drug use/violence? I’m happy to clearly deal with that at work but don’t want to live with too much of that on days off!
Bute and Oban – Both look nice but both seem expensive for property.
I’d consider the islands but don’t want to be so rural that it’ll cost hundreds in ferries/travel to get to a main airport or visit back home. I do love Harris/Lewis (I know it’s not Argyll) but think I would be too remote.
Any help/guidance appreciated. I know there will be a lot of research ahead! 😊

Have you heard of midgies?
Can you handle 3 solid months of rain?
Have you actually been to the west coast of Scotland?

This sounds like a dream come true, but I guess the reality could be very different.

Midges!

What's with 'Midges' every time Scotland is mentioned - surely the people who already live there somehow survive them!

Do they really affect the quality of day to day life?

Yes I am aware of the midges! 🤣 I’ve been up a few times now doing the NC500 and then the upper west coast, along with Skye/Harris but not lower down.

Oban is expensive but has lots of nice villages within easy commute such as Connel, Benderloch, Taynuilt and Kilmore. Good transport links to Glasgow/Fort William etc

I probably wouldn't go for an Island as you'll be at the mercy of the Ferry companies and the weather!

It is wet on the west coast but also beautiful - I'm from there so probably a bit biased! I'd love back but DD too much of a city girl now!

Good luck!

Oh, they really can some years. Never known anything like it!

Thanks very much I’ll have a look at those :)

If you have DC one thing to bear in mind is that depending on where you live the daily journey to high school can be quite long.

Beautiful part of the world though.

I'm in Oban, well just a few miles outside.
Houses are rare like hen's teeth, despite the massive development in Dunbeg. The local FB pages are full with people looking for accommodation.

If you fancy a bit of fiction-research read the Denzil Merrick DCI Daley novels, set in a fictitious Kintyre town.

What's with 'Midges' every time Scotland is mentioned - surely the people who already live there somehow survive them!

It depends where you are. In my area it isn't much of an issue, I've never been bitten, you see them now and again and have to swat a few aside if walking through woodland but they don't really cause a problem. In other parts of the country they're rife,

I can only imagine these posts aren’t filled as they are the back of beyond -if they were commuting distance from Glasgow they wouldn’t need filled.
you need to clarify where it is acceptable to live ie how far away you can live, and I suspect all the houses in the area are already Airbnb and therefore v v expensive to buy.

You could look at parts of Inverclyde, which is directly opposite Dunoon. Some of it has a lot of social and economic deprivation, but there are parts that are nice, and yes, house prices are definitely lower than other parts of Scotland. A lot of people commute between Inverclyde and Dunoon.

Argyll is beautiful but has some of the wettest areas of Scotland. That may not bother you but just something to bear in mind if you'll be working outdoors a lot.

My mil lives in arrochar and its beautiful! About 50 mins drive to Glasgow and there's also a train station a few minutes drive outside the village. It has a beautiful Loch and some great walks, including a couple of munros. Loch lomond is also just down the road. I think Helensburgh is only around 30 mins drive from there also. Oban is about an hours drive in the opposite direction.

You're not going to get a remote cottage with cafes nearby!

On your own there are lots of big spacious 1 bed tenement flats with amazing views in coastal towns such as Dunoon, Helensburgh, Gourock, Rothesay, Lochgilphead, Campbeltown and Oban.

On your own I'd say you are better in a town but with access to remote countryside rather than in a remote cottage with access to a town.

The train line is not extensive. Just look at the rail map.

The flip side is that most /all of these towns are run down.
There aren't many pretty coastal towns left in the whole of Scotland!

But go for it. You can build a good career by going for promotions in areas others don't want to live.

People who think they are being all clever and knowledgeable about Scotland, without ever having really been there much, say "midges" at every opportunity.

Maybe better leave the thread for those of us who do know what we are talking about...

Helensburgh would be a good choice, @Daniellezll. There are regular direct trains which get you into Glasgow city centre in about 40 minutes. If you wanted to be a wee bit more rural you could look at the smaller villages between Dumbarton and Helensburgh, like Cardross for example which also has a station. It's an easy drive too back towards Glasgow and onto the motorway network.

Dunoon - don't know this place nearly as well but it's accessed by ferry from Gourock. Only takes about 20 minutes but it's £40 for a car and passenger which could soon mount up. Alternative road route is 80 miles over the Rest and be Thankful road which has regular landslips and is a nightmare in winter.

I would also look at places like Largs, Troon, Prestwick, Ayr - south of Glasgow rather than north. More of a mixed demographic perhaps and pockets of real deprivation but nice surrounding countryside, good beaches and easy to get south to your friends and family. How close do you have to be to the station you are based in?

I would recommend drawing up a shortlist then coming for a reccie to spend some time in these places. I am also wondering if there is a "PoliceNet" site like Mumsnet where you can speak to serving officers about their experiences.

With the state of the ferries at the moment, I would think long and hard before moving anywhere off the mainland. I say this with deep regret. My parents live on an extremely beautiful island with a wonderful community, but the ferry service the last few months - well, years really - has been shockingly bad. People are starting to move away as a direct consequence.

Midges not really a problem there, in our experience.

Also, please bear in mind that distances that look quite short on a map are not short in practice, because the roads twist and turn, the gradients can be very steep, single track roads, snow, black ice, low light in the winter, lots of rain, floods etc etc.

Thank you all for the good advice! I will have a look at Arocchbar

@GenieGenealogy thank you some really good suggestions to have a look at! Definitely planning at least a couple of recce missions before I apply! There are forums so I’m sharing on there to try and find some officers that have done it. Lots of logistical questions to sort!

Would moving to a post that includes a police house be an option? Would give you a guaranteed home while you settle in and have a chance to scope out where to buy. It's also much easier to buy if you're already in situ, many properties in rural Scotland sell via word of mouth and never make it on to Rightmove.

I think you need to think about the type of work you want to do (which will ditacte what would be a good patch for you) and the kind of lifestyle you want.

Being stationed in Helensburgh will not be rural policing - its really just part of the greater Glasgow area.

You will be doing a lot of driving on fast country roads, often in the dark and rain in a rural patch.

You need to plan to spend some time up in Scotland.

Helensburgh won't count as a rural transfer option I think (tends to be grouped with Dumbarton and Clydebank in terms of rotas, etc) and is a 2 hour drive to Oban and a 3 hour drive to campbeltown. AFAIK the villages nearby (Arrochar, Kilcreggan, etc) are policed from Helensburgh rather than having their own staffing.

Greenock/gourock are on trainline to Glasgow but the ferries finish earlier than the trains normally so you could end up needing to leave Glasgow early evening in order to be able to get home to Dunoon or Bute by public transport.

I'm surprised Bute is as dear as Oban for property - there definitely used to be cheaper options. Campbeltown is lovely in some ways but is a very small and very remote town. Have you thought through what it would be like to be a "person of note" in a rural area where everyone would know who you are?

I love the west of scotland! Choose your area carefully as 20 miles can be the difference between hamish Macbeth and train spotting.

This is exactly what I was going to post!