Relocating to Somerset

[Jade]

Hi all,

We think we've decided on Somerset for relocation in the next few years and wanted to ask for any experiences / advice. We live in a small rural village in the south east currently so we're not new to slower living and the issues that can come with rural life. We're from London originally so partly what I'm saying is, that I don't think we'll have too much culture shock (hopefully)!

We think we'd currently get somewhere between £210-240k for our house (mortgage free) and are hoping to get a modern 1 or 2 bed house in Somerset, I think it looks possible to get something in a good area between £150-180k. What we've learnt from where we are currently is that we want to have better walking access to amenities as we age, so I think a large market town / village would be good. Not too rural / not too city but not too rough ideally too. A big thing for us is good access to hospitals, health care etc too. We are looking for community and access to amenities with nature, coast and ability to explore the surrounding areas.

Realistically we think we'll sell our current house and get to Somerset and rent first too if there's any recommendations on where would be a good launching pad. I'm aware this part of the UK can have flooding risk too if there's any info anyone has on this too...

Any thoughts appreciated.

Criteria:

House in very good condition, low maintenance. 

Safe, quiet, low crime area. 

Good local GP and Dentist services.

Walking distance to local amenities.

Quick access to (ideal 30mins or less):
-Major hospital(s)
-A large town/city(s)
-The coast
-Countryside/nature.

[LightTripper]

If you don't have any joy here you might try dropping a line to the Ermine:

https://simplelivingsomerset.wordpress.com/

I'm also batsignalling @PhilB as I know he is somewhere rural and West of me, but I have an idea he may be north of Somerset.  Still he knows a lot of things and may have some ideas!

[Jade]

If you don't have any joy here you might try dropping a line to the Ermine:

https://simplelivingsomerset.wordpress.com/

I'm also batsignalling @PhilB as I know he is somewhere rural and West of me, but I have an idea he may be north of Somerset.  Still he knows a lot of things and may have some ideas!

Thank you for the recommendation and bat signal!

[PhilB]

I will ask MrsB.  Her mother lived in Chard until recently.

[Jade]

Thanks @PhilB !

[PhilB]

Instant response from MrsB:
Somerset is much more sparsely populated that Kent.  Things are farther apart and roads are slower.  When her mother was in Chard the nearest proper hospital was 45 minutes away in Taunton and for anything really serious you had to get to Bristol. Chard was lovely, close to a nature reserve with cycling routes and an active U3A, but has no train station.  If you're staying long term an accessible train station is probably advisable.
Suggest you check for U3A branches wherever you are looking. Great indicator of social activity.

Somerset has a mixture of very pretty posh places - which might be too expensive - and some quite run down small towns, eg Glastonbury - definitely avoid.

Wells, Crewkerne, Ilminster, Stoke sub Hamdon are lovely but some distance from the sea. The latter is close to Ham Hill a popular walking and beauty spot.

Axminster, just over the border in Devon, and Bridport, just over the border in Dorset, are lovely and close to the sea.
Sherborne, also in Dorset, might also be worth a look although it's further from the sea.

PS You might want to avoid the Somerset Levels because of flooding.

[Jade]

Instant response from MrsB:
Somerset is much more sparsely populated that Kent.  Things are farther apart and roads are slower.  When her mother was in Chard the nearest proper hospital was 45 minutes away in Taunton and for anything really serious you had to get to Bristol. Chard was lovely, close to a nature reserve with cycling routes and an active U3A, but has no train station.  If you're staying long term an accessible train station is probably advisable.
Suggest you check for U3A branches wherever you are looking. Great indicator of social activity.

Somerset has a mixture of very pretty posh places - which might be too expensive - and some quite run down small towns, eg Glastonbury - definitely avoid.

Wells, Crewkerne, Ilminster, Stoke sub Hamdon are lovely but some distance from the sea. The latter is close to Ham Hill a popular walking and beauty spot.

Axminster, just over the border in Devon, and Bridport, just over the border in Dorset, are lovely and close to the sea.
Sherborne, also in Dorset, might also be worth a look although it's further from the sea.

PS You might want to avoid the Somerset Levels because of flooding.

Thanks MrsB and @PhilB ! Appreciate the intel.

More sparsely populated than Kent sounds good lol! I think the slower pace will be good too but good to know about hospital proximity as that's something we want to tick off. Yes, a station is a good idea and also U3A. We've actually been quite cut off where we are now, with needing a car for most things as there's only a pub in our village so though it's had some benefits, we definitely want more connection rather than less going forward.

I'm a bit of a closet hippy but yup, I hear you on Glastonbury.. not somewhere I'd want to actually live. Renting beforehand to get a real feel for the places will be good I think. I think we'd be ok not being too close to the sea if there's other nature on our doorstep and we can still drive to it fairly easily. I'll save this advice and places mentioned inn Dorset and Devon for when the time comes. Yup, def want to try and stay clear of flooding if possible.

[LightTripper]

Thank you for responding to the bat-signal @PhilB and MrsB!

[Jade]

Thank you for responding to the bat-signal @PhilB and MrsB!

@LightTripper the advice from ermine's blog and MrsB and @PhilB is really helpful, we have a much clearer idea now of what to think about next - thanks again.

[Shelfside27]

Not Somerset but have you looked at Totnes in Devon? Lots of hippies there! And quite a cool area. Not sure on house prices though

[Jade]

Not Somerset but have you looked at Totnes in Devon? Lots of hippies there! And quite a cool area. Not sure on house prices though

Thanks @Shelfside27 I think we're set on Somerset.. I like a slight hippy vibe but I think Totnes might be too much for me!