[Closed] Recommend me a place to live on the outskirts of Manchester

Ramsbottom is nice. Prestwich/Simister are worth a look if you want to be a bit nearer town.

Birmingham. It's bloody marvelous. 😉

Currently living in Cheetham Hill, so anywhere will be an improvement really. Probably like to be a bit further that Prestwich.

[b]petergee[/b], my Mrs was born in Brum

I couldn't help it. I'm sorry. All the best with your quest.

bolton obviously 🙂

Liverpool

Calderdale. Hebden Bridge 40 mins on direct trains. Half of Hebden moved out here from Chorlton.

Ramsbottom is ace! We've been there a few years now and I absolutely love the place. We were out riding last night. You just head straight out of your front door onto fantastic trails, then go for a pint afterwards in one of the many great boozers.

There may be other considerations when deciding on a place to live, but I can't think of any 😉

If you do a search, there were several recent threads about this. People tend to recommend where they live and slag off other places which they've driven through once on a dull day in November. Stuff on the Glossop/Hayfield side of the Peak is great for riding, but not for road commuting, okay by rail. New Mills gets mentioned favourably for riding, Whaley Bridge ditto. Marple with its inhabitants' delusional village thing, Stockport, which is apparently not as bad as it's painted, though I rode through it yesterday and it seemed unlovely 😉 Marsden's always looked okay to me and has a nice caff, which is a boon. Mossley seems okay.

I guess it all depends on your lifestyle and priorities. I live on the Glossop side of stuff and like it here, the riding and access to the hills is awesome, but then the roads are pleasingly awful into Manchester and lots of people who don't live here can't seem to see beyond the traffic. Train is 30 minutes odd into Piccadilly. But people's ideas of what's a nice place to live are really personal, so who knows.

Defo not bacup!!!!! Littleborough is nice

[b]BadlyWiredDog[/b], I get what you're saying, just after ideas for places to research at the moment. It'd be nice to have walks and rides nearby and be able to have a decent local boozer. The A6 is annoying but I wouldn't let it put me off as I'd probably get the train anyway. Cheers for the suggestions so far.

Saddleworth.
25 mins by train to Manchester, 1 hour by bus. 45-55 minutes by car.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/dec/09/lets-move-to-saddleworth-greater-manchester

BWD's right. Hebden's far from perfect and it's not for everyone. I (mostly) really like it, and the quality of the riding is beyond question. That's what brought me here. Great cinema and a very friendly bike shop, too. Appalling weather though, but then you're from Manchester, so that's hardly relevant.

Another shout for Saddleworth here, although I'd visit extensively to get the vibe of the place first. There's quite a bit of obnoxiousness from some locals but if you can put that aside it's decent. Pricey, mind.

South Manchester is more trouble for getting into town than it's worth IME but getting out towards Stockport etc. puts you within striking distance of the Peak.

If you don't mind nipping over the border then Holmfirth is pretty nice and Marsden too.

After living in Didsbury for a few years, we moved to Bollington. I commuted by car+train every day for 4 years and it was great.
Really settled here now.
Riding is superb.

Downside is proximity to Macclesfield, but then at least there are shops there.

I would also consider Whaley Bridge, Hayfield and Disley, but the A6 is a horrible commute.

Whether rail commute works or not is largely due to where your work location is in Manchester. If right in the centre, it's a no-brainer.

I can wholeheartedly NOT recommend Stockport. I quite like Grizzly Disley.

Horwich, or blackrod is nice

People tend to recommend where they live and slag off other places which they've driven through once on a dull day in November.

I do have some good reasons for bolton apart from being born there. Getting into manchester (for work or play) is a decent cycling distance and an absolute piece of piss on the train. Big town with loads of civic and commercial amenities (assuming the former don't all get closed due to cuts) and short distances from some decent riding (rivi darwen and rammy all close by)

Rammy sounds decent
hebden/todmorden ditto
new mills, hayfield etc brilliant riding nearby
Would consider moving to any of them but all of those just seem a bit out of the way and trickier for none bike commuting* and shopping and stuff. What are house prices like on the edge of the peak district? expect them to be silly high, but no idea tbh.

*Ride as much as I can but there are days when it's not feasible/possible, car is an absolute last resort.

I'm over at Sandiway, next to Delamere.

Really like it.

Bit flat mind, but nice enough.

I used to live in Diggle (dad is still there). IMO & IME Diggle and most of Saddleworth are lovely but pricey. As buck53 said, there are pockets of what dad lovingly calls 'fur coat and no knickers' brigade - up themselves, in other words but, there are plenty of good folk about as well.
Diggle is a lot quieter than it once was, used to have a great community vibe but, that's long gone. Apparently The Diggle Hotel is not a bad pub. The Hanging Gate, my local for 17 years or so is, i believe struggling? 5 mins or so drive to Greenfield railway station for the 25 min trip into town or, as said above buses / drive.

Marsden - i've long waxed lyrical about my home village so, I'll bore you with nothing more than the basics... 😉
Housing - cheap, compared to Saddleworth.
Several great eating and drinking holes (one a micro-brewery).
Riding from the door.
Direct train to M'cr - only potential snag with it is cost - IIRC a return Greenfield to M'cr (same line) is <£4. Same thing from Marsden is around £10.
Good community vibe.
Perfect - no but where is?

edit - just seen this bit

It'd be nice to have walks and rides nearby and be able to have a decent local boozer.

Sheffield - its less than an hour on the train and you have the Peak District on your doorstep and its the right side of the Pennines 🙂

Cheers

Danny B

What are house prices like on the edge of the peak district? expect them to be silly high, but no idea tbh.

It depends. The upside of Glossop's special relationship with congestion is that prices are reasonable unless you want to live in Old Glossop, which attracts a special price premium. Hayfield is relatively expensive, because it's small, picturesque and generally pleasant.

Then again it doesn't have many shops. Or a station. And it's small, so people seem to tend to know each other, which you'll either like or not. It also has a really good outdoor community - climbing club, fell-running club and a regular mid-week night ride. Several okay pubs too and a chippy.

I like Hayfield in theory, but I also like being able to do a weekly shop without driving and having the option of hopping into town on the train.

You also need to factor in housing - round here a lot of houses are traditional two-up, two-down, stone-built terraces (cottages if you're an estate agent) which is fine for singletons or couples, if you want bigger, there are relatively few traditional houses, so you tend to be looking at more modern stuff. That's a factor for some people, not for others.

Ramsbottom absolutely

Theres another place but its so nice I dont want it over run with riff raff by the time I retire there

I live in S Manchester, a requirement by law if you work at the university, but if I didn't then the Tame valley up to Saddleworth is where I would look. Seems nice, decent variation in price to work with between areas, excellent bevvying, great riding, easy bike commute but the train is there if you want it etc.

Quite like the idea of riding in quieter areas of the Peak, I would guess that you basically have free rein up in that North end. Hayfield, Edale are great n all, but there's barely room to swing a cat on the trails at the weekend.

Hebden's far from perfect and it's not for everyone. I (mostly) really like it, and the quality of the riding is beyond question. That's what brought me here. Great cinema and a very friendly bike shop, too. Appalling weather though, but then you're from Manchester, so that's hardly relevant.

Planning to move there soon - any reason I shouldn't? I read the Guardian so should fit in quite well. 🙂

Planning to move there soon - any reason I shouldn't?

You're a bloke, aren't you?

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I like Hayfield in theory,

Whitewell Bottom, only because my house should be going up for sale next week 🙂 The MTL is the other side of the road, Lee Quarry is a 3 mile pootle away. I'll even leave the Dog Eggs in the garden for you 😉

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😆

😀

You're a bloke, aren't you?

Yeah but I'm totally metro.

TBH if I did get off my arse and look to more rural places with excellent riding I reckon I'd be heading lakes direction rather than peak, as nice as peak is lakes kicks it's arse in my opinion.

+1, but are you planning on a massive lottery win?

+1, but are you planning on a massive lottery win?

it does seem a nice place but TBH if I did get off my arse and look to more rural places with excellent riding I reckon I'd be heading lakes direction rather than peak, as nice as peak is lakes kicks it's arse in my opinion.

Whilst the lakes is truly awesome it is not known for it's proximity to Manchester.

Marple with its inhabitants' delusional village thing, Stockport, which is apparently not as bad as it's painted, though I rode through it yesterday and it seemed unlovely

Anyway I do live in Marple and moved here because we liked the independant shops, small cinema, theatre, 3 good sized local parks, canals, friendly folk, gym, swimming pool, chippys, but best of all the mtbing is brilliant.

I could go on but it's all been said before.

Edit: forgot to mention 2 railway stations. several tearooms, cafes and proper pubs.

Grum - Hebden's a great spot with loads going for it, especially the instant access to some of the best riding in the UK. Great cinema, loads of pubs, low crime, vibrant arts scene and bags of community spirit. Also well connected to big cities and some interesting towns. Lakes 2 hours away. Fairly mixed and interesting population, too, although it's a bit white and chattering class. On the downside, lots of rain, high flood risk (even well above the river), can be a bit cliquey, self-conscious and up its own arse, house prices are higher than surrounding area, gardens almost non-existent unless you're reasonably well off. Also - and this is the most interesting one - it can be slightly oppressively lefty. I'm no Tory by a long way - I even read the Guardian - but there's a tendency for certain chunks of the population to assume you'll always tow a particular line on any vaguely political/social issue. Can be a bit 'worthier than thou' and judgemental, and occasionally intolerant or narrow-minded. Overall though, it's ace here.

Guildford.

Thanks for that wl - pretty much as I thought really. I have mates who live there and really like it and I've spent a fair bit of time there recently and can see why. Done a few lovely bike rides and walks round there and I like the general 'vibe' of the place.

At the stage in life where I'd like to move to the countryside but not somewhere where there's nowt going on and nowhere to work. Even though Hebden is expensive it's cheaper than the countryside where I grew up (Lune Valley).

I get what you mean about the lefty judgementalism - get a bit of that here too amongst certain circles. I guess you can mostly just ignore it though.

We are not planning to move to central Hebden as we really want a garden/outdoor space - might yet end up in Mytholmroyd.

Mytholmroyd would be good - defo get more for your money and Hebden amenities are still on your doorstep.
This neck of the woods certainly offers that elusive mix of countryside and stuff going on. If you want showing some new trails once you're here, drop me a line. I ride midweek as well as weekends. Blazing Saddles can point you in my direction - just ask for Will who rides Oranges. No worries if you're sorted tho.

Thanks that would be ace. Will definitely give you a shout. Seems like the kind of place where local knowledge would be very handy as there are trails/paths bloody everywhere!

Walsden! It's on the Manchester side of Todmorden with its own station which is 28 minutes to Manchester Vic. It's also 15 mins to get onto the M62 if you drive. And 22 miles to Manchester if you're an uber commuter on the bike.

Prettier than Littleborough. House prices better value than Hebden. Trails just as good out of the door. Not cliquey or oppressive. And if you really want the Hebden experience you can go there for a latte. And leave.

Pop round if you want to go out for a spin on our trails.

*and whatever you do, don't go for Bacup*

Highest concentration of trails (bridleways and footpaths) of anywhere in England, I once read somewhere. Been here 13 years now and I can believe it. Local knowledge defo helps. Just give us a shout when you're here.

I've been riding those Hebden trails for the best part of 25 years, and I reckon it's been a bit, not a lot, but certainly a bit over-rated.

There's so much more to explore in the whole east of Manchester semi-circle, and anywhere that starts naming trails/descents is getting a bit too well known for my liking.

Not wanting to wee on anyone's supper, but Hebden has a lot of problems:
Very high rates of suicide, depression, alcoholism & drug addiction being the most obvious.
Stupidly high property prices, oppressive geography and a very high opinion of itself being the others.
If I had to live in the Calder Valley again, I'd live in Mytholmroyd - it's friendlier, the property is nicer and you see a bit more sky.

I lived in Walsden for 20 years, working in Todmorden & Hebden and have just moved to the Cliviger end of Burnley.
Have to say I find the geography a lot nicer here (didn't see daylight in Walsden for 20 years 😀 ) and the people are much, much more friendly - not something I was expecting but there you are. 😐
(Apart from Clover of course - she's lovely. 🙂 )

Rawtenstall is a nice little town.

Parts of Bacup are very nice but I just wouldn't. It's already dead, it just doesn't know it yet.

Ramsbottom is very nice, as Binners says, but not as 'naice' as some of the locals think it is.

Littleborough is Rochdale with a traffic problem and delusions of grandeur and I don't like anywhere south of Deansgate as it tends to be overpriced and congested.

If you want to commute into Manchester I think Bolton or Bury are your best options.
There are some really pleasant areas, very reasonably priced, good transport links, great access to trails and the people are very, very friendly.
Or, if you fancy a bit more of a commute, Burnley/Cliviger/Worsthorne is cracking, but not half as convenient for Manchester.

That was looking like a well thought out objective post rusty right up until you plugged your new gaff, snatch defeat from jaws etc 😉

Richpips I'd gone OT and into realms of fantasy by that point, I'd teleport into work 🙂

Horrible isn't it? 😀

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And the neighbours?
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Admittedly, they've not asked us round for tea.
Probably having a bit of a tidy up before, eh?

I live on the outskirts of Macclesfield, near the forest. It's got great links to Manchester and is nowhere near as bad as people make out. Been living here since last June and it's a friendly town with a good local music scene. Good rides on the doorstep and climbing, if you are in to that sort of thing.

Then again I originally come from Dewsbury, which means everywhere else seems amazing!

Not wanting to wee on anyone's supper, but Hebden has a lot of problems:
Very high rates of suicide, depression, alcoholism & drug addiction being the most obvious.
Stupidly high property prices, oppressive geography and a very high opinion of itself being the others.
If I had to live in the Calder Valley again, I'd live in Mytholmroyd - it's friendlier, the property is nicer and you see a bit more sky.

Yup have heard that but friends who live there seem to think it's been a bit overblown. Definitely don't plan to end up right down in the town in Hebden, apart from anything else as mentioned it's dark, flood-prone and there's very few gardens.

Still though, I suspect that I am the type of person that everyone moans about Hebden being full of. I work in the creative arts and have socialist pretensions despite being firmly middle class.

Going to look at a place in Mytholmroyd tomorrow though. 🙂

My friend is selling a place in Mytholmroyd, 60 Burnley Road. No garden and Burnley Road resembles an end game of Frogger at the best of times.

Nowt wrong with Bacup as long as you're not in the valley bottom, actually that applies to most of Rossendale and Calderdale. Got a new Morrisons going in and should be getting a brand new trailhead for Lee Quarry next year.

Seriously where do you, a long frustrating commute can wreck your quality of life. Rossendale is ok for north and east Manchester, 45 mibs from Bacup to Droylesdon for example. Avoid commuting on the M60 north of Manchester, it's really not good.

Cliviger is bloody lovely Rusty you lucky sod. There's just something about it. Great for geologists as well. Fancied moving there myself. 🙂

We're up Red Lees Road way, past the Kettledrum.

I'm really surprised with Burnley - obviously it's not the thriving, vibrant, architectural & cultural paradise that is post IRA Manchester, but it's a lot nicer than we'd been lead to believe.

Guy called Keith Wilson is the local Countryside Officer & he's brilliant - the same bloke who put the initial work into Philips Park in Prestwich some years ago.

And let's not forget, it's very, very cheap. 🙂

Riding around Hebden isn't perfect, but it's pretty much as good as it gets in the UK without either having to drive to it or live in the middle of nowhere. Still plenty of anonymous or barely-ridden gems to ride too, if you know where to look.
Grum - loads of interesting stuff going on for those in the creative arts, and two big, culturally rich cities just down the road/train track. Sounds to me like you'd enjoy Mytholmroyd.

Grum, wl:

I think [url= http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/the-northerner/2011/jun/20/hebden-bridge-halifax-calderdale-hebweb-jez-lewis-jill-robinson ]this [/url]article by Jill Robinson pretty much nails Hebden.

As I said, I lived close by for 20 years, have worked all over the valley and have a lot of affection for the place.
But her comments about many of the local youngsters being raised without any discipline or boundaries is absolutely spot on and I think is at the core of many of the areas problems.
That said, the trails are great, it's got a friendly bike shop, the cinema is nice and there's always something going on.
Join the Trades Club grum, it's ace.

Just MTFU and come to Crumpsall.

Preswitch. I wont say owt about Bury incase the angry' brow beat me.

Tuppence-lickers. Love it! 😆

looks like i'm very close to rusty spanner and when i'm feeling less fat ride over to hebden but i have to disagree,burnley is a toilet and i've lived here 43 years - it's on it's arse.the town centre is a dump full of crappy teen pubs and all the shops are rubbish unless you just happen to have a pound to spend
but the riding round here is fantastic,i'm off out now for my first ride in ages,it's going to kill me but i'll have a big grin on my fat, sweaty face as i huff and puff past rusty's countryside idyll 😀

ps - cliviger is not burnley - it's far too nice

Is this some viral thing where people are on commission from their local estate agents? 🙂

Here's a template for you:

I'd totally recommend [insert name of non-descript northern industrial town here], there's amazing riding on the doorstep, pretty much the best in the known universe, it has incredible pubs selling beer, independent (not state-owned) shops the organic, stone-built, cottages have roofs and there's a chippy as well, which is sometimes even open. And if you want culture, there's a library and an Oxfam shop where they sell pre-loved books. I used to live in [insert name of inner city hell-hole here: Beirut/Kabul/Bogata] and it's much better here, bar the odd shooting and you can generally bunny-hop the junkies lying around the war memorial.

It's much nicer than [insert name of near neighbour which gets a bad press here] and that whole thing with the serial killer GP was much exaggerated. I used to live in [list the other towns mentioned in this thread already] and they're not a patch on where I live now. Hell, the locals are some of the most beautiful and liberal [conservative if you have rightwing leanings] people I've ever met and it's so safe and friendly that people leave their front doors open and you can pop in and make yourself a cuppa anywhere in town.

I know that people tend to big up the place they live in, but honestly [insert town name here] is far better than anywhere else on earth. Finally, while house prices are expensive, they're not a patch on [insert name of improbably expensive area Knightsbridge/the Dales/Paris etc] where I grew up.

😉

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Rossendale..............nothing to see here, move along

Like I said, various drawbacks to Hebden. Precocious, under-parented, usually middle class kids is one I forgot to mention, but it's not a big deal for me, just a minor annoyance.

I don't really care who moves here and who doesn't, just giving a few subjective pros and cons that might be useful for some folk.

sausagefingers - Member
burnley is a toilet and i've lived here 43 years - it's on it's arse.the town centre is a dump full of crappy teen pubs and all the shops are rubbish unless you just happen to have a pound to spend

ps - cliviger is not burnley - it's far too nice

We're just on the border between Cliviger and Burnley - crappy 70's retirement estate.

I actually LIKE Burnley Town Centre, apart from the dogshit on the canal.
Less litter than Radcliffe, fewer smackheads than Moston or Crumpsall, friendler and more sunshine than Walsden.
Nowt wrong with the shops - needs a good hifi place & a decent guitar shop, but it has a couple of nice art galleries and you're never more than two minutes from a Greggs 😀

You're right, the pubs are a bit crap, but I've only been in two or three so there must be a nice one out there - Crooked Billet in Worsthorne looks nice, Kettledrum's ok, if a bit small, Thornton Arms?

wl - Member

Like I said, various drawbacks to Hebden. Precocious, under-parented, usually middle class kids is one I forgot to mention, but it's not a big deal for me, just a minor annoyance.

I don't really care who moves here and who doesn't, just giving a few subjective pros and cons that might be useful for some folk.

wl, I completely agree with you - I'm not trying to run the place down, just to give an honest portrait of my experiences there.
And you're right about the riding, the whole of the valley is excellent.

BWD, hope this complies with 'The Rules'. 🙂

Oh, sausagefingers, drop us a line if you fancy a ride.
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No pressure.

Ramsbottom. It's at the foot of the Raike and has easy road access to Mcr, as well as the West Pennines and all of Rossendale then northwards towards Calderdale and the Pennines. Got good pubs, takeaways, great scenery and if you live anywhere within the smell of the paper mill you get free bog paper and kitchen towel as a bung to stop you moaning.

I would recommend Summerseat village but the road access to the A56 and M66 is a nightmare.

Oh, sausagefingers, drop us a line if you fancy a ride.

rusty,if you'd seen me coughing and spluttering my way up gorple this morning i think you'd be offering to take me to the hospital instead 😆