Where To Live In The Uk?

[DonaldDuck92]

My mother is looking to relocate to a new area.

She currently lives in Weston Super Mare and absolutely hates it.

She wants to live somewhere (town not city) which has something going on, where there are things to do if you are recently retired with new phase of her life, new people to meet and nice cafes etc

Weston is tired, run down and has very little going for it these days.

Any ideas for suitable places in the south of the UK?

[webbo3]

Bristol, its fine where I live, W-S-M is full of druggies.

[hellywelly4]

I don’t know her age, but can I suggest she moves to within a reasonable distance of you. Presumably she’s ‘getting on’ and probably won’t want to uproot again. Just a thought. Sorry if she’s a youngster!

[tiggerblue10]

Where do you feel would be near enough for you to visit her?

[Buenchico]

What's your/her definition of 'south'? Do you mean the southern half of the country (south of Yorkshire, say) or do you mean 'south of London'? If it's the former, Bury St Edmunds (here in Suffolk) is a delight:
https://www.visit-burystedmunds.co.uk/

Saffron Walden, in Essex, is very pleasant too:
https://www.visitsaffronwalden.gov.uk/
as is Maldon:
https://www.visitmaldon.co.uk/

At one time I wouldn't even have considered suggesting Ipswich (where I was born and brought up, and which is now the nearest major town to where I live) but these days it's been revitalised and has a great deal going for it:
https://allaboutipswich.com/

If your mother wants to stay close to the coast, Felixstowe is worth considering (and a great deal more affordable than Suffolk's 'prime' resorts, such as Southwold, which is an absolute delight but where a 2-bedroom terraced house can set you back over a million pounds):
https://www.visitfelixstowe.org.uk/

South of London (just!), Whitstable is very pleasant and, because it's just down the road from Canterbury and within easy reach of London by rail, within range of lots of places to visit and things to do:
https://www.canterbury.co.uk/info/37/whitstable
(Houses aren't cheap there though!)

[surreyman]

My neck of the woods is Richmond-upon-Thames (quite a way from WSM) . Plenty of good points . Lots of clubs & societies for older people to make new friends, lots of very good independent shops, cafes, restaurants. Richmond Park & the Thames on your doorstep, only 30 mins away from London if your mum fancied a trip into the city. I think Richmond still has something of a community feel about it.
On the downside it's very expensive, property wise you wont get much under £500k near the town centre.

[New Judge]

Never, ever, consider living near the sea in the UK and in particular do not live in a popular resort. I have two relatives who do. They both say the same: the weather can be ferocious in the winter such that it keeps you inside for days on end; the place is overrun with Grockles in the summer to the extent that going out is unpleasant and getting into a local pub or restaurant is a near impossibility for two to three months.

Keep well away from the coast.

[Buenchico]

To put some of the above suggestions in context, here are the average house prices in each of the areas suggested (from RightMove). Rental prices are likely to mirror the costs of buying.

Weston-Super-Mare: £251k

Bristol: £343k
Bury St Edmunds: £325k
Saffron Walden: £443k
Maldon: £345k
Ipswich: £251k
Felixstowe: £292k
Whitstable: £429k
Richmond-upon-Thames: £903k

[LeonBlank1995]

Come to Taunton. Just down the road and we are the best people in the world!!!

[Canary42]

Chichester. From my visits I've found two theatres with own cafe and restaurant, two art galleries, museum, cathedral, planetarium, canal with boat trips, hospital, local shops and supermarkets, several cafes and restaurants (local and chain), two small sports centres, parks and gardens, bus station, railway station (Southern unfortunately), and a relatively small pedestrianised city centre.

I'm told there's not a lot of "nightlife" apparently.

[Togo]

If moving south under no circumstances go anywhere near Taunton or Paignton to live. Or indeed to holiday. We were thankfully passing through a couple of years ago and both places are shy toles now. Used to be lovely towns but now so far down market that the illegal immigrants keep away. Teignmouth, Dawlish, and Shaldon(where we stayed) are lovely places.

[Patsy33]

Yeovil?

[LeonBlank1995]

Well Togo, I suppose it's subjective. London is one of the most expensive places to live in the world and one of the highest tourist cities since records begun.

Yet there seems to be a stabbing everyday, a rape in a park, a terrorist training camp and drugs galore.

Taunton is a beautiful place. It has its rough spots (what place doesn't?). I am looking at my window now and all I see is green fields (if it was light) and hills. No traffic. And even as a very old man, I feel safe walking around on my own.

And thank God the illegal immigrants keep away, one could argue.

[gness]

Yeovil is wonderful, Patsy...but Honiton is just a little better. :-)

[LeonBlank1995]

Honiton............best ice cream in the world!!!!!

[fcc]

Tup north's nice,try Malton it's a food lovers paradise.

[Hopkirk]

The Canary Islands