ProperCharlie

I'm toying with the idea of moving at the moment. Property prices in Ipswich seem quite reasonable, and it's not too far away from some of the places that I need to be. I have been there a few times, but some years ago - it seemed like a nice enough place back then.

Has anyone lived there? Would it be an ok place to go with a family and so forth? Are there good/bad areas?

As we currently live in East London, being a little rough around the edges doesn't bother us too much, but I don't want to be assaulted by tractor drivers in the local Waitrose.

tia.

elgordano

Try posting on the scoobycity forum. They are an East Anglian based club and will be able to give you a more local response.

cookwibble

where abouts in Ipswich? Rushmere, Kesgrave, nacton, foxhall and christchurch park areas are all v.nice. There are some problems with violence at night in the centre of town and its also filthy and covered with litter but thats just the middle. not much to do of an evening considering the size of the town.

3 big clubs
2 wetherspooons pubs
2 bowling alleys
lots of little bars and a few smaller clubs
2 cinemas
1 art cinema
2 theatres

er....yeah. PM me exactly what you want to know about wonderful IPswich

ProperCharlie

Thanks cookwibble.

I haven't thought of any particular area yet, I'm still trying to work out if it would all make sense. I guess the main factor is if I can sell my house in London without taking a big hit - if I can, and then buy somewhere in Ipswich for about about 60% of the price, it would make sense. I.e. have a 3 bed house in an ok area and a 50k or smaller mortagage, rather than the £200k mortgage I currently have.

We're not likely to be going out drinking in "city centre" type pubs. I guess it would be nice if we could go to a cinema and a restuarant occasionally, of an evening. A good local boozer is alwasy a plus in my book. Reasonable schools are aslo a consideration.

Robert Rosario

You may be better off living slightly out of town in the Suffolk countryside then, if they are your main considerations.

Some very attractive areas close to Ipswich itself, and if your personal needs are such, may be a more attractive bet. Some great rural pubs, and not too Royston Vasey either (well not all of them anyway!).

ProperCharlie

That's certainly an option. My main reason for thinking about living in town (or suburban type scenario) is it's what I'm used to, and I don't particularly want to end up having to drive everywhere, such as kids to school and so on.

carl

The green Pug knows the way already...

Personally, I didn't like the place, although some bits have a certain charm. Woodbridge is quite nice, but it's a long way from anywhere and if there's a queue on the Orwell bridge you can't go anywhere.

hades

If you live North of Woodbridge, there are numerous (rather entertaining) B road routes that can easily avoid the Orwell bridge and take you from A12 to A14. I often use the Needham Market - Wickham Market cut when I work over at Sizewell.

Other than that, Ipswich also has the "tractor boys" who are presently leading the championship. They're only one division behind the best football club in East Anglia!

ProperCharlie

Ahh, the Canaries. As an admired of Mrs Smith's recipe books, I couldn't discount the Budgerigars. I imagine Norwich is a bit more pricey, property wise?

what would scooby do

Both of those places will be under water if global warming continues

<puts more coal on fire, turns on all electrical goods, leaves car running, gets out CFC sprays>

hades

Charlie - Norwich isn't that pricey, unless you want to go near the centre. E.g. you can get 3 maybe 4 bedroom modern detached houses with garage in decent areas at the edge of the city for under £200k.

ProperCharlie

Just been checking out Norwich properties - prices seem pretty reasonable. I guess being that bit further away from London makes it a bit cheaper. Who's got a brand new combine harvester?

dsmith

Live In this sticks outside Ipswich.

Love the surrounding area - but Ipswich itself is nothing special. Shopping is poor in comparison to both Norwhich and cambridge. Has all the big name high streets - but not so much beyond that. Dont often go out in town - but the number of better nicer restaurants is growing slightly and there are some very nice ones.

Like all towns suffers from some ever-growing estates that personally I cant stand - hence we're in a village. In the town itself there are some nice areas with older townhouses etc. Christchurch is probably the best of these.

Travel wise Ipswich is just over the hour into Liverpool Street - perfectly commutable. I did it for 3 years. You can be on the A1 in just over the hour (via A14) and M25 (via A12) in 45 mins if the traffic isnt a big deal. - but the A12 can be very grim at the first sign of roadworks or the slightest accident.

"and I don't particularly want to end up having to drive everywhere"

To be honest though if the thought of driving to anything of interest etc is not your thing then Suffolk/Norfolk is not the place for you........

hades

Come on, that was the Wurzles, who are very much South Westerly lads (I should know as I almost live that way myself now). Equivalently "Norfolk" songs that spring to mind are "ave you got a light, boy", and "I've never seen a farmer on a bike"

IIRC, Norwich used to be relatively cheap, had a big price increase when the train line was electrified in late 1980s, dropping some journey times to ~1:40 to Liverpool St.

TonyFlow

Live about 10 miles out from Ipswich, and think that Suffolk is great. I'm not into clubbing or busy pubs etc, so the town centre does not bother me, as I never go into it. Few nice Restraunts as has alreadey been said (mortimers is a particular favourite of mine). Car theft in rural areas is probably one of the lowest in the country (I knwo of no-one who has had a car stolen).
Probably best to avoid areas like Whitehouse, Whitton, Gainsborough and Chantry (they all have an overwhelming population of Chav's).
Second what dsmith has said RE driving places to get anywhere, but we also (I believe) have some lovely driving roads coupled with excellent scenery, and also, Ipswich has no fixed speed cameras (how many towns can you say that about.
Also, I believe it will soon take off as a technology centre, due to the Ip-City and Cambridge Links.

The only other place I would rather live is somewhere in the New Forest.

Should also say, sSchooling is pretty good, with some excellent schools (both private and public) i.e. Northgate, Ipswich boys School, Ipswich Girls School, The Royal Hospital school etc.

ProperCharlie

Ah... thanks for this info. I will need to familiarise myself with the local dialect and customs. I previously thought that anywhere you can't get to on the underground was the countryside, and everywhere north of Watford was Scotland. I've got a lot to learn

Many thanks for the input, everyone.

carl

LOL! They were touting that line 5 years ago, in the dot-com boom. I believe that the IP-city project has now been officially canned, and TBH it's actually quite a way from Cambridge (~1 hour if you don't hit traffic, and as you come in past the Science Park side, traffic is virtually guaranteed during the rush hour).

Puff The Magic Wagon!

iTrader: (2)

We don't live near Ipswich but rather Bury St Edmunds. We are extremely rural & we have to drive everywhere but that is not a problem at all when you have the peace & quiet we do. I drive into the edge of the City every day & it takes 80-90 minutes, the A14 being not far away. The A14 (which is a fecking horrible/dangerous bit of road really) is really convenient as a route to go virtually anwhere in the country - A14 goes all the way to the M1/M6, crosses the A1, joins the M11 & A11 etc. Bluewater is under an hour away

Cambridge is 30 mins away (Park & Ride), Norwich about 45 & Ipswich about 45.

All quite sleepy but civilised. We moved out to Newmarket area 5 years ago, swapping 3 bed terraced house in Bow for a large 4 bed detached with large garden & garage in popular village, so gives an idea of buying potential. We've since downsized as we didn't really need/want the space/mortgage.

Traffic is low too. Other that the A14, you rarely have congestion. I just compare leafy Surrey/Sussex/Essex/Herts etc where the roads are busy all the time. You'll be amazed at how little traffic there really is.

Village/rural not for everyone but I can't think of a better located place with access to the rest of the country through dual/m-ways which is (so-far) relatively unspoilt and also not teeming with people. Suits us

In fact, I'd rather not boast about it, in case the hordes come in...

ProperCharlie

Puff - Somewhere around Bury would in fact be ideal for us (much closer to my work). The only problem might be prices. Could you maybe PM me some villages that would be worth checking out?

Cheers.

dsmith

"Bluewater is under an hour away" - From you Puff ?

Was the perhaps in PTMW...

Puff The Magic Wagon!

iTrader: (2)

No Deano - for wifey in her Mini Cooper...

OK - it might be just over an hour but its only 77 miles away from us & we're 5 mins off A14, so other than the Dartford Toll & the mile into Bluewater, its National Speed duals m-way limits all the way. Under an hour was Newmarket when it was only 65 miles away...