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We've got a "depressing towns" thread but what are the best towns in England to live? (All cities excluded, so cockneys, brummies, micky mousers etc don't recommend your own vile cess pits as being a great place to live- cos they're not!).
I like a lot of the towns in Devon eg Exmouth, Sidmouth for starters
As 99% of all towns in Scotland and Wales would fall into the "Depressing towns" thread, only towns in England qualify. Ta
I like a lot of the towns in Devon eg Exmouth, Sidmouth for starters
As 99% of all towns in Scotland and Wales would fall into the "Depressing towns" thread, only towns in England qualify. Ta
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I used to live in Winchester. Only town sized (despite being a city). Was quite nice. Bath, Cheltenham, Bury St Edmunds, all alright too.
That is, quite literally, the price you pay coachbuster. Your best bet is to live in a nice bit of a cr*p town, or a cr*p bit of a nice town. I live in New Cross in SE London. It has a bad rep, but is actually absolutely fine. You could walk for 10 mins and end up in a complete hellhole though.
To make matters worse,all these nice places have gone up in price out of all proportion the last 10 years . foreign buyers ?
My bro lives in Cobham in Surrey, that's a decent place to live.
It very much depends on what you want and how much money you have.
Chorley Wood in Bucks, for example, recorded the highest smugness rating in a national survey recently as the "happiest town" to live in. Costs an absolute fortune to buy a place though. Similarly, towns like Amersham, Beacosnfield in Bucks and Marlow and Helney by the Thames are splendind; with good schools too.
Socially, they're death though.
Chorley Wood in Bucks, for example, recorded the highest smugness rating in a national survey recently as the "happiest town" to live in. Costs an absolute fortune to buy a place though. Similarly, towns like Amersham, Beacosnfield in Bucks and Marlow and Helney by the Thames are splendind; with good schools too.
Socially, they're death though.
Anywhere south of ther Mersey does not qualify, horrible mother f.....
lived in Pincott Place HM overlooking haberdashers playing fields
I used to play Haberdashers Aske at rugby wit-ham, that's a good school and we always got a good battle up there.
Lewes in Sussex would be a good choice, a bit vegetarian, organic and bohemian, but it does have very fine architecture and the best beer in England.
didnt Beverley win this in a nationwide survey a while ago?
In the north (Yorkshire) are some very nice places including Harrogate, Ilkley, Skipton, Otley
York, Wetherby, Easingwold, Stamford Bridge, Driffield, Malton, Boroughbridge, Bedale Helmsley
and a fair few others.
York, Wetherby, Easingwold, Stamford Bridge, Driffield, Malton, Boroughbridge, Bedale Helmsley
and a fair few others.
Harrogate is very nice ,just inherited a bungalow their 
This is very simple.
You only have to look where the immigrants choose to settle.
They've shown by their actions where they prefer to live.
I doubt if they'd choose any on the places above.
You only have to look where the immigrants choose to settle.
They've shown by their actions where they prefer to live.
I doubt if they'd choose any on the places above.
Got to say that within mainland GB the only place that I'd be tempted to move to is York (OK it's a city), wouldn't mind moving to the channel islands if I had enough dosh though.
I live in York (well in a village just outside) and can confirm that it's AOK. I would consider moving to somewhere SW/Cotswoldy though, as my two loves are Rugby and NH racing and we get too little high quality action in either up here.
A newspaper ran this a few weeks ago done on an independent study on everything from facilities/house prices/schools/employment & wages etc to measure quality of living.
The winner was Hart; which comprises of Hartley Witney/Fleet/Yateley.
I like living in Hart
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-2078334/Low-crime-high-pay-sun--Hampshire-district-best-place-live-Britain.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/dec/24/north-hampshire-quality-life-survey
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/a-wealthy-little-corner-of-england-where-the-quality-of-life-comes-first-795009.html
The winner was Hart; which comprises of Hartley Witney/Fleet/Yateley.
I like living in Hart
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-2078334/Low-crime-high-pay-sun--Hampshire-district-best-place-live-Britain.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/dec/24/north-hampshire-quality-life-survey
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/a-wealthy-little-corner-of-england-where-the-quality-of-life-comes-first-795009.html
Hart looks like the place i'd run a million miles from if i had money - awful /bland in almost every sense of the word
Without having been there I think that's a rather crass statement to make.
An area where the parks are big and undamaged, where there are green fields, nice countryside, good schools, good job opportunities, low crime, good council facilities and thriving businesses.
...as opposed to having experienced a tough upbringing in a tough council estate where the parks where vandalised and stank of urine, where the filthy pubs were full of parents spending the families little money, where hope had caved in to lethargy, where our house was broken into whilst I slept in my bed and where you were having to fight/run to avoid daily kickings and there was nothing but run down concrete jungles as opposed to lush grass......
Yup, I know which I prefer.
An area where the parks are big and undamaged, where there are green fields, nice countryside, good schools, good job opportunities, low crime, good council facilities and thriving businesses.
...as opposed to having experienced a tough upbringing in a tough council estate where the parks where vandalised and stank of urine, where the filthy pubs were full of parents spending the families little money, where hope had caved in to lethargy, where our house was broken into whilst I slept in my bed and where you were having to fight/run to avoid daily kickings and there was nothing but run down concrete jungles as opposed to lush grass......
Yup, I know which I prefer.
...as opposed to having experienced a tough upbringing in a tough council estate where the parks where vandalised and stank of urine, where the filthy pubs were full of parents spending the families little money, where hope had caved in to lethargy, where our house was broken into whilst I slept in my bed and where you were having to fight/run to avoid daily kickings and there was nothing but run down concrete jungles as opposed to lush grass......
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i would say that in Hart decency levels and standards generally are very high ,but it's also a wealthy area so you would expect a high level of self preservation -but it's still balnd and lacking character , most people (even on council estates)are quite decent and law abiding folk - unfortunately you get a minority that spoils it for everyone , i don't know the area you were brought up -but it sounds like you did the right thing to move away - i've never known anywhere as bad as that in the UK
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i would say that in Hart decency levels and standards generally are very high ,but it's also a wealthy area so you would expect a high level of self preservation -but it's still balnd and lacking character , most people (even on council estates)are quite decent and law abiding folk - unfortunately you get a minority that spoils it for everyone , i don't know the area you were brought up -but it sounds like you did the right thing to move away - i've never known anywhere as bad as that in the UK
Been mentioned i know but Harrogate is a fine town,though i suspect rather expensive,other North York towns mentioned above also quite pleasing in their own way eg Skipton,Knaresborough,York etc.Always seem to be rather "darkie" free those towns and in fairness i guess have a middle class "white flight" element to them which makes them so bloody expensive.
York always feels like a village in a city as well and is v genteel even in full tourist season,nowhere near as uncoucth as say Bath which though pleasant seems to be full of cockneys on a day out
York always feels like a village in a city as well and is v genteel even in full tourist season,nowhere near as uncoucth as say Bath which though pleasant seems to be full of cockneys on a day out
s'pose the point i'm trying to make charwell is that people who are THAT wealthy generally aren't nice people on the whole - some might be very nice of course,but a lot of them tread on a lot of toes to get where they are ,very few people become wealthy by 'doing the right thing' in life .
i'd sooner live somewhere with real down to earth folk (with values)
i'd sooner live somewhere with real down to earth folk (with values)
I'd add Ilkley to that list as well which is basically a smaller version of Harrogate,great countryside as well.Though for living i'd find North Yorks a bit far from sporting action,as Weatherby aside the tracks tend to be flatties.
Cant be Rochdale sound smore like inner city,Manchester or Liverpool suburbs? to be fair,Rochdale is a horrible depraved shoithole but doesnt have gangs or a particularly violent crime ridden sub culture
I haven't been to Hartley Witney, but I have been to Fleet and Yately. They might be 'good places to live' but they are dull as sin, and not especially attractive.
Neither has that intangible something, 'soul' maybe, that quantitative analysis can't take into account.
Haven't been to either in about 10 years though, so they may have changed.
Neither has that intangible something, 'soul' maybe, that quantitative analysis can't take into account.
Haven't been to either in about 10 years though, so they may have changed.
A few years ago Alnwick in Northumberland was voted the best place in UK for quality of life.
alnwick isnt what its cracked up to be. are some rough areas.
corbridge in the tyne valley is a very nice place. rothbury ( raoul moat apart ) is quite decent too .
corbridge in the tyne valley is a very nice place. rothbury ( raoul moat apart ) is quite decent too .
s'pose the point i'm trying to make charwell is that people who are THAT wealthy generally aren't nice people on the whole - some might be very nice of course,but a lot of them tread on a lot of toes to get where they are ,very few people become wealthy by 'doing the right thing' in life .
Bit of a sweeping statement, Coachbuster.
My brothers and I were brought up in a rough council estate in london. Luckily we had grammar schools then and my brother and I passed our 11 plus. He studied for years to become a chartered surveyor, studying in our living room whilst all his mates were out enjoying themselves. He now resides in one of the most expensive roads in the country, but he has worked damn hard to get there and has not 'tread on any toes' to do so. He is also one of the nicest people you could meet.
Bit of a sweeping statement, Coachbuster.
My brothers and I were brought up in a rough council estate in london. Luckily we had grammar schools then and my brother and I passed our 11 plus. He studied for years to become a chartered surveyor, studying in our living room whilst all his mates were out enjoying themselves. He now resides in one of the most expensive roads in the country, but he has worked damn hard to get there and has not 'tread on any toes' to do so. He is also one of the nicest people you could meet.
Reeth is v.nice in middle of the yorkshire dales. absolutely lovely, if it counts as a town, pretty remote mind.
very few people become wealthy by 'doing the right thing' in life .
I don't think that that's true at all. Unless you think most white collar workers are automatically 'doing the wrong thing'.
I don't think that that's true at all. Unless you think most white collar workers are automatically 'doing the wrong thing'.
Reading. Give me your fecking money! Who wouldn't want that.
I might add that my brother went to night school and studied at home after doing a full week's work, and this went on for years, while still remaining on our council estate. He could only afford to move when he got married and qualified as well.
My brothers and I were brought up in a rough council estate in london. Luckily we had grammar schools then and my brother and I passed our 11 plus. He studied for years to become a chartered surveyor, studying in our living room whilst all his mates were out enjoying themselves. He now resides in one of the most expensive roads in the country, but he has worked damn hard to get there and has not 'tread on any toes' to do so. He is also one of the nicest people you could meet.
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Chartered surveyors should never become rich in the first place,same as solicitors and other such bloodsuckers in society - just because they study for a few hours (for their own ends) many people study for long hours but don't become wealthy because of it - besides they're exactly not performing life saving operations - hth
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Chartered surveyors should never become rich in the first place,same as solicitors and other such bloodsuckers in society - just because they study for a few hours (for their own ends) many people study for long hours but don't become wealthy because of it - besides they're exactly not performing life saving operations - hth
History Maker 21 Feb 12 22:20
very few people become wealthy by 'doing the right thing' in life .
I don't think that that's true at all. Unless you think most white collar workers are automatically 'doing the wrong thing'.
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What the hell is a 'white colour worker' ? this isn't 1955 lol
very few people become wealthy by 'doing the right thing' in life .
I don't think that that's true at all. Unless you think most white collar workers are automatically 'doing the wrong thing'.
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What the hell is a 'white colour worker' ? this isn't 1955 lol
"I might add that my brother went to night school and studied at home after doing a full week's work, and this went on for years, while still remaining on our council estate. He could only afford to move when he got married and qualified as well".
It's called 'bettering yourself'. Well done to both of you.
It's called 'bettering yourself'. Well done to both of you.
Chartered surveyors should never become rich in the first place,same as solicitors and other such bloodsuckers in society
Bitter much?
Bitter much?
He now resides in one of the most expensive roads in the country,
____________
Good luck to HM the Queen as well ,she seems to be 'bettering herself' every year
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Good luck to HM the Queen as well ,she seems to be 'bettering herself' every year
History Maker 21 Feb 12 22:56
Chartered surveyors should never become rich in the first place,same as solicitors and other such bloodsuckers in society
Bitter much?
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no, because i earn a nice living for doing pretty much nothing .
Chartered surveyors should never become rich in the first place,same as solicitors and other such bloodsuckers in society
Bitter much?
_____________
no, because i earn a nice living for doing pretty much nothing .
Going to Barrow for the Rugby we always stop in Ulverston a little town about 20 mins from Barrow that always seems to be a really nice place...its usually raining though.
Hart is not a particularly 'wealthy area' compared to the likes of Wokingham, Kennsington etc.
The community spirit where I live is great. My neighbours are a plasterer/plumber/hairdresser and a retired couple. It's more about things such as pubs being traditional and tasteful, the children have loads of things to do and a good education to back it up without having to pay for it, council services run smoothly etc. The golf course where I am a member is the friendliest set of members I have ever seen - whereas in Ascot and Guildford they were nowhere near as friendly or down to earth!
You seem to have missed the point in that it's the best place to live bacuse of the community and opportunity etc and not in spite of it or by any stretch beacuse people have stepped on others!! It's a hard working, family orientated area surrounded by natural beauty and 'normal' people. For every Merc there is a Golf and a Fiesta, i.e a broad cross section. And low crime areas tend to signify a sense of community.
I lived in Epsom for a while and other parts of Surrey which would arguably be wealthier and I never liked them.
One can only descirbe the asthetics of a place they have only ever visited and not the community spirit as that is gleaned from living there.
FWIW I was brought up in an overspill of Liverpool called Skelmersdale. A dreadful place. But Old Skelmersdale where we latter moved is quite nice and I still have family there. And I love going home frequently, watching my beloved Liverpool and enjoying the City of Liverpool as well which is a fantastic place as well as friendly. I also liked Huddersfield as a student etc so by no means am I any way snobby.
The community spirit where I live is great. My neighbours are a plasterer/plumber/hairdresser and a retired couple. It's more about things such as pubs being traditional and tasteful, the children have loads of things to do and a good education to back it up without having to pay for it, council services run smoothly etc. The golf course where I am a member is the friendliest set of members I have ever seen - whereas in Ascot and Guildford they were nowhere near as friendly or down to earth!
You seem to have missed the point in that it's the best place to live bacuse of the community and opportunity etc and not in spite of it or by any stretch beacuse people have stepped on others!! It's a hard working, family orientated area surrounded by natural beauty and 'normal' people. For every Merc there is a Golf and a Fiesta, i.e a broad cross section. And low crime areas tend to signify a sense of community.
I lived in Epsom for a while and other parts of Surrey which would arguably be wealthier and I never liked them.
One can only descirbe the asthetics of a place they have only ever visited and not the community spirit as that is gleaned from living there.
FWIW I was brought up in an overspill of Liverpool called Skelmersdale. A dreadful place. But Old Skelmersdale where we latter moved is quite nice and I still have family there. And I love going home frequently, watching my beloved Liverpool and enjoying the City of Liverpool as well which is a fantastic place as well as friendly. I also liked Huddersfield as a student etc so by no means am I any way snobby.
RLP
Ulverston is a nice little town kinda one of the few normal functioning day to day towns in the lakes that aren't big tourist places(it does of course have it's share though)as for Barrow,it literally has been left behind by time huge old ship yards good as dormant,a town built on industry now good as gone.
Ulverston is a nice little town kinda one of the few normal functioning day to day towns in the lakes that aren't big tourist places(it does of course have it's share though)as for Barrow,it literally has been left behind by time huge old ship yards good as dormant,a town built on industry now good as gone.
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