Raising kids outside London

Sutent · March 2014

A friend is leaving Stoke Newington to bring her daughter up in the South Coast where she grew up. Her decision was based on the lack of affordability of London and lack of social support as she is alone. I know other people who have left to go to give their kids a better life outside London. I loved it as a kid seeing the different communities in London, learning about their lives and eating all their yummy food. The orthodox Jews of Stamford Hill, the Pakistanis of Forest gate, the Bengali of brick lane, the Greek cypriots of palmers green and southgate, the east end cockneys of docklands, The Caribbean and Africans of Edmonton, Tottenham and Brixton, the Gujarati in Wembley and Harrow, the sheikh in Southall. The somalis, kosovans and turks who came in the 90s. And now the eastern Europeans who are settling in London.. The music, art, museums, mosques synagogues etc etc. It was a wonderful place to grow up. Does bringing up children outside London bring other benefits apart from being cheaper?

odd stewart · March 2014

Many people return to what they had when young at some point. I suppose having a child can magnify that pull. My daughter will be growing up in Stroud Green, although I'm from Cambridge originally. I think having much of the world represented in one place is a very strong starting place for your journey into life experience.<br>

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

ChangN4N6 · March 2014

Brighton has all of those ethnics and is dearer than !ondon. Hastings similar. And believe me not all there food is 'yummy'. Cockney eels and most Jewish food is at the bottom of the list for most people - very salty and often contaminated. And I once eat a dog curry in Vietnam (without knowing until I was on to the after eights). Still it is nicer for kds specially girls at the seaside than say Tottenham. Chang

Idoru · March 2014

I grew up in Cambridge, which is pretty cosmopolitan (although not to the same degree as London) and has music venues, galleries, theatres, museums etc. But I wouldn't want to move back to raise children. I'd much rather raise them here. Cambridge is beautiful but was so boring as a kid. I do think there's more going on in London and much more for children to do. <div><br></div><div>I can understand wanting to move closer to family, especially as a single parent, but for me Cambridge is short train journey away and actually if we had children we'd probably get a car. I think the shear breadth of life and experience available in London outweighs any other perceived benefits of moving out. Also, you probably wouldn't move to Cambridge for cheapness. It almost rivals London for costliness. </div>

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

NorthNineteen · March 2014

One of the biggest advantages of bringing up children outside of London is spending more time with them. The commute and working hours are longer in London.<br>

vetski · March 2014

I spent a chunk of my growing-up years in coastal Kent - and if I had kids, I wouldn't subject them to that! It was OK when I was very little and parent-dependent, but from the age of about 10, it was tedious beyond belief. There was quite genuinely nothing to do unless you were linked into the church (e.g. youth groups), so we all just mooched around bored. Moving to London when I was 15 felt like coming home! But the world has changed, so I concede the possibility that it might be less like that now.

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

vetski · March 2014

Trouble wasn't hard to find when we were REALLY bored!!

NorthNineteen · March 2014

I loved where I grew up. On the edge of the countryside, £20 taxi from Bournemouth for nights out and cycleable/short car journey to the beach.<br>

Sutent · March 2014

I used to dream of driving the 29 bus. In the 80s it used to go from Enfield Town to Trafalgar square

Sutent · March 2014

@misscara. Good points. I think running around space important. Being couped up in a flat when every time you somersault causing vibrations and complaints is not good

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

TheMimsy · March 2014

I suppose every place has its pros and cons...<div><br><div>One of the things that I appreciate about London is that everything, for good and bad, seems more "diluted". I lived in York for a year and I witnessed a lot of violence at night in pubs/clubs and in the city centre, which to be fair, I have never seen over here to the same extent. </div><div>Likewise, London is expensive, but choices are unlimited (for example, you can choose to go to Fortnum and Mason if money is no object, or to get a 1 pound fruit bowl on Seven Sister Road). The same applies to restaurants: in a smaller place your bog standard Upper Street type of bistro may be the one of the few places to eat , at inflated prices.</div><div>I know of people who have left London because of schools and all in all some of them were disappointed (eg the school turned out to be less resourced for say, SEN). </div><div>My favourite city after London is Manchester: manageable size, great cultural life, good choice of restaurants and at some point I thought about moving there but in the end it did not materialize.</div></div><div>I am lucky I do not have to commute and this is a definite plus!</div><div><br></div>

Detritus · March 2014

I grew up in the middle of nowhere, it was a half hour walk to the closest road. My son is growing up in Amman Jordan, I think one city is as good as the next when you are 6 but when you're 16 it might be a different matter. I hope he comes back to London before its to late for him to experience christmas in London as a child rather than a cynical teenager. Leeds was the closest big city to me and as much as I think it is the centre of the universe I admit the lack of any kind of nightlife I enjoy, the general feeling of unease (I did drink in some proper shitholes) and a complete lack of public transport after midnight has taken some of the gloss away. Or you could go for a day trip and a night out in Bradford and lets face it who the hell wants to do that? I have its awful.

Detritus · March 2014

I mean really awful.

yagamuffin · March 2014

Teenage kids get bored everywhere. Yes, there is so much to do here in London but how many kids do you see hanging around the streets, messing around, doing nothing - exactly the same things I used to do as a kid growing up in rural Devon. Answer? All of them, all of the time. Location doesn't matter, parents having the time and spare cash to do things with their kids is what is important.

Sutent · March 2014

Thanks for sharing that Detritus. It must be hard for you not being able to see him

Detritus · March 2014

There is Skype but yes. It's what is best for him I matter but not as much as he does, I am glad that it's Jordan and not the Lebanon he lives in as it was 50/50 as to where they would settle. I think we take London for granted and forget that people come from around the world to visit and live in this city, you don't need money to do things in London, yes it helps but a large majority of things to do are free.

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

JoeV · March 2014

I don't have kids, but I have had this discussion with people back home and I've always maintained that I'd rather be 'poor' in New York (or London) than elsewhere because at Detrius mentioned, all the free things on offer plus it's relatively inexpensive to get around, at least on the tube, compared to having to maintain a car.<div><br></div><div>But as to raising a family it all comes down to the schools doesn't it? Everyone I know that has lived in London and has had children have moved out and the deciding factor as to where they've moved to was their child's/children's school. It was never on cost of living alone.</div><div><br></div><div>It's the same back in New York. It's difficult to buy in the city in an area that has good schools so parents move out to the suburbs, to towns that are all essentially organised around the school system. Really, you wouldn't believe what's on offer, academics, sports, social events, etc. everything in one place - all you have to do is get into your car and drive there I think it simply makes life easier for parents to not have to sort the school and sort the activities, which is more often the case in the city. Are schools in the UK similar?</div><div><br></div><div>The only drawback in NY is that this life is not cheap. The money saved on the price of a house, goes out through property taxes. A house with $5K a year in property taxes in the city could have anywhere from $15-20K (or more) in the suburbs.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div> </div>

NorthNineteen · March 2014

London now has the best schools in the country (from ~15 years ago having the worse)<br>

andy · March 2014

@northnineteen - really? would love to see the analysis that shows that. And is it just due to investment, or something else?

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

N4Matt · March 2014

We moved out of Stroud Green when my wife fell pregnant. The main reason was to get close too good schools and to live in a house and not a flat. We now live 25 minutes on the train from St Pancras, in an area surrounded by countryside. Our house is in actual fact, not much bigger than a 2 bedroom London flat but we have a garden, space, we know all our neighbours and speak to them daily and the schools are fantastic. that siad, I still miss living in London but life changes hugely when you have children so...<br>

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

JoeV · March 2014

@Misscara - you're right,many families in London have cars but there's a difference in having one and needing one. In areas with public transport I would think a car is more of a necessity.

vetski · March 2014

@Misscara, it amuses me when anyone uses it - what, they tripped?! I exercise extreme caution on uneven pavements, just in case...

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

[Deleted User] · March 2014

The user and all related content has been deleted.

Howdy, Stranger!

Categories

In this Discussion

Top Posters

Raising kids outside London

Comments