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We've sold our house here in France and a re looking at a move back to the UK. First choice would be Kent - close to Family & Friends but our budget is miniscule and I don't want to live in Dover! A second choice is somewhere like Gosport where the Euro's will go approximately one bedroom further, most of it seems to be a walk to the sea/Portsmouth Harbour, work opportunities for me (Marine Trades) and reasonable road links to the rest of the UK. So, anyone know about Gosport, why we should/shouldn't and what is QECP like for riding? Ta.
I grew up in Fareham, not too far from Gosport, and like most towns with Gosport, there are nice and not so nice parts of town. Not been there in a while (one or two years) but The town centre is OK, but with Portsmouth a short ferry trip away the main shops seem to be over that way. Lee on solent is down the road which is nice, Fareham is has a good shopping centre, but is a pain to get to and from by car as there is really only one road in and out from Gosport - also makes getting to the M27 a bit of a mare at rush hour. Not sure about schools.
Do your research on the areas of Gosport you can afford I would say. The crime rate was higher than Fareham, and all of the local bike thief's seemed to come from there..... Not sure if that still the case. There alot of marine trade stuff the other way towards s'ton, on the river Hamble.
As for QE Park, not been in ages, buy the riding is good, lots of xc stuff in the area. Chalky and slipper in the wet. There is a fair bit of flat riding around G'port but you'll need a guide.
Quite a few friends live in Gosport. It varies from shithole lite to ok.
and reasonable road links to the rest of the UK
Actually roads are one of the worst things about it - getting the last few miles to Gosport (or trying to get out of it) can be hell at the wrong time of day. It's not uncommon to spend 2hrs getting to Gosport from Fareham.
But it is good value in comparison to most of the rest of the area for the above reasons.
Given the choice I'd probably edge a little further west to Lee, Hillhead or Tichfield but it does get more expensive.
What convert said - it was about 10 years ago that I was commuting into the outskirts of Gosport and the traffic was terrible then. Can't see that it will have got any better. Houses are cheap down there for a reason.
[i]and what is QECP like for riding? Ta.[/i]
Great! I personally, never get bored of QECP. Been riding there since the 90s (and some other places, of course 🙂 )
Trouble is that if you venture West then there's a lot of housing due to be built, 3,000 in Whiteley plus over 1,000 in North Fareham. Lovely on the M27 already, not. Are you sure you want to return to the congested South?
Are you sure you want to return to the congested South?
Not really but needs must!
Considered Plymouth? Cheaper and better access to good riding. Also a marine industry (although not as big).
Considered Plymouth? Cheaper and better access to good riding. Also a marine industry (although not as big).
We have, we've lived in Devon previously - it's the distance to family that's a killer otherwise we'd be seriously considering a return!
it’s the distance to family that’s a killer
I live 300 miles away from family and that is about right, certainly wouldn't want them any closer.
Look, it depends on what you are after and your budget, but imo no no no no no. Avoid Portsmouth, Gosport, and Fareham. Try further north if you can afford or else something that can be built on for the extra room. But hey, I’m a a bit of a snob so ymmv
I think the traffic is broadly covered with the exception of commenting that if you work shifts/weird hours you might find it more tolerable. I'd say the same for Portsmouth too. The shame is there are really nice bits of Gosport.
There are no rail links down to Gosport and therefore your only non-car options are bike or bus (stuck in traffic except a couple of bus lanes). They have done a lot to improve the A32 but it's still polishing a turd (see also planned upgrades to the M27 to Smart Motorway), it's a never ending game of move the bottleneck.
In my humble opinion if budget/value for money is a major factor then you would be better off looking along the A27 corridor and lower A3/A3(M) area. If
From Fareham through to Havant there are some areas where prices dip without being unpleasant places to live.
The other advantage of the A27 corridor is that there's a railway that runs East/West that covers from Southampton through Havant to Chichester and plenty of connections into Portsmouth with plenty of village/small town stops.
When you say "marine trades" do you mean leisure or commercial or naval. If it's leisure then there's a fair bit of marine activity all the way along the A27 from Southampton going East, with obvious locations at Swanwick, Bursledon, Hamble, Gosport, Port Solent, Hayling Is.
Like previously stated, lots of new builds going up in hedge end and Whitley.
I've got a lot of friends live in both but hedge end pips it for me as it has a railway station with good access to most of the South coast. It's a bit suburbia though.
I know it budget dependant but plenty of nice villages north of the m27.
Used to live in Hamble but like gosport it's 1 road in 1 road out and is bloody expensive.
QECP has some really good official and unofficial trails. I'm there most weeks and can easily spend 3 or 4 hours exploring. Lordswood is easy access from the m27 for a pootle but the best bit about the area is the South downs NP. I never get bored of getting the OS map out and exploring.
I live right on the A3/A27 junction (well, a mile away).
Some nice pockets around Drayton, Bedhampton and into Havant that aren’t crazy money.
our work storage containers are in Gosport. It is a pain to get in/out at the same time as everyone else. Lee is nice but still has some of the traffic issues and is further away from the ferry to Portsmouth.
If you either work outside ‘normal’ commuting times or actually work in Gosport/Lee or just over the ferry in Portsea it’s not as much of a problem. Well, apart from Wed pm and Fri pm when the matelots from Sultan and Collingwood fill the roads up with cheap lease 3 door Vauxhalls...
hedge end pips it for me as it has a railway station with good access to most of the South coast
Just don't try to get to the motorway on the weekend!
That's true. I work a 10 day shift pattern so I can choose when I go that way!
Is there anywhere with reasonable access to jobs where the traffic isn't awful?
Even if there is now, the traffic will become far worse in a few years when they build all the houses by Fareham. The M27 will become a no-go.
The only choice for me is to work within a cycle commuting distance.
It's quicker to commute by bike from Gosport to North Portsmouth (Hilsea) than it is to drive and thats an 11 mile route that a colleague takes.