Moving to Stafford area suggestions please

Gramaisc said:

No - HS2 will not be stopping here..

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It won't even be starting

The steel was needed for the war effort

Outwoods sounds nice

Rubyandpearls said:

Currently in a detached converted barn, ideally something like that, but open to ideas,

Would like features/ fires log burners with a massive garden

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As Wormella has said you may need to a little further out of Stafford for barn conversions, cottages, village pubs, etc but there are lots of nice areas and villages around Stafford.

Make sure that you check how far away any properties are from the HS2 route. Also check any bus services you may want to use as these are being cut across the country very shortly.

There are ever increasing encroachments into Green Belt areas so pleasant rural idylls may soon overwhelmed with new developments if you don't check carefully before you buy.

Also as said Stone has a train service to Stafford, Stoke, London (eventually), Crewe and Manchester (changing at Stoke) and there is a bus service to Stafford and Stoke.

Good look in your search.

daz100 said:

Rowley Park would be a good choice depends on budget.

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They have converted barns on Rowley Park?

Thehooperman said:

I think The Hawk is assuming that there will be a service from Stafford joining HS2 at Handsacre Junction.

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That's the one. Stafford will be getting a high speed service. It will be what's called a classic compatible service, which means it can run over the existing lines and the new HS2 lines.

Expect a journey time of around 50 minutes from Stafford to London.

Rubyandpearls said:

Hi yes we can. What is the traffic like in the morning? Can anyone give me a rough estimate travelling from places like Stone and Eccleshall?

Thanks

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Ten to fifteen minutes from Eccleshall or Woodseaves via Seighford. Getting in from Stone can be problematical if there are problems on the M6.

No idea why anyone would choose Stafford as a base to commute to London apart from short train times to be honest. It's a really 'meh' kind of place and suffers all the ills of short sighted local governement. Rampant identikit dreadful modern housing estates are sprouting up in all directions eating up our green fields, poorly planned and poorly built boxes. The town centre is horrific, I'm not even sure it can be called such any more, as most decent stores have long since departed - take a walk around the guildhall if you wish to see evidence. Most of our best historic building, the Shire Hall, Library and others are either empty or derelict with total apathy from residents to do anything other than complain and hope someone else will fix the issue. Cycling and anything green are unknown things to the council who want to see every little bit of green space built on and roads are being built all over the place! The schools are average, at best, and traffic regularly grinds to a halt throughout the whole town whenever there is an incident on the motorway.

In positive news, the Chase is nice, but visit the Marshes before it disappears forever

Oh, and the local idiots keep voting bloody Conservative!!!

*Thought I should give the other side of the 'Stafford is a good commute to London with cheap houses story'. There is a reason housing is cheap! If you're looking for culture, forward thinking local government and a nice shopping environment with lots of thriving independant shops, may I suggest you look at other towns! Bookies and charity shops we do quite well though!

If you do decide Stafford is your kind of town then I hope you're very happy here and find your dream home . Please don;t move here and then moan about getting car parking at Stafford station or the cost of it or the traffic! It's expensive and we do traffic well, you have been warned!

*To be honest I'm baffled why anyone would chose to relocate to Stafford, I'm totally fascinated lol!

There are some lovely villages within 15 minutes of the station if you want something a little rural.

kyoto49 said:

No idea why anyone would chose Stafford as a base to commute to London apart from short train times to be honest. It's a really 'meh' kind of place and suffers all the ills of short sighted local governement. Rampant identikit dreadful modern housing estates are sprouting up in all directions eating up our green fields, poorly planned and poorly built boxes. The town centre is horrific, I'm not even sure it can be called such any more, as most decent stores have long since departed - take a walk around the guildhall if you wish to see evidence. Most of our best historic building, the Shire Hall, Library and others are either empty or derelict with total apathy from residents to do anything other than complain and hope someone else will fix the issue. Cycling and anything green are unknown things to the council who want to see every little bit of green space built on and roads are being built all over the place! The schools are average, at best, and traffic regularly grinds to a halt throughout the whole town whenever there is an incident on the motorway.

In positive news, the Chase is nice, but visit the Marshes before it disappears forever

Oh, and the local idiots keep voting bloody Conservative!!!

*Thought I should give the other side of the 'Stafford is a good commute to London with cheap houses story'. There is a reason housing is cheap! If you're looking for culture, forward thinking local government and a nice shopping environment with lots of thriving independant shops, may I suggest you look at other towns! Bookies and charity shops we do quite well though!

If you do decide Stafford is your kind of town then I hope you're very happy here and find your dream home . Please don;t move here and then moan about getting car parking at Stafford station or the cost of it or the traffic! It's expensive and we do traffic well, you have been warned!

*To be honest I'm baffled why anyone would chose to relocate to Stafford, I'm totally fascinated lol!

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As someone who chose to relocate to Stafford, albeit many years ago, I can honestly say I'm very happy I did. I travel around the country regularly and have visited virtually every town and city in the UK, and few would tempt me away from Stafford.

Picking up on your points:
"Short sighted Local Government" - I think you'll find that's an opinion held widely around the UK, fuelled, in part, by major cuts in central Government funding.

"Identikit housing estates" - Again something that's going on across the UK, as councils struggle to meet their housing targets.

"The town centre is horrific" - No its not. It has spread out too far, but there are plenty of shops. Yes, we could do with a big department store, but if you saw the state of some town centres I visit, you'd say it was doing very well. People often quote Telford, as having a better shopping centre. Well, yes, it may have, but there is a real identikit town, with hugely significant crime problems.

"Most of our best historic building, the Shire Hall, Library and others are either empty or derelict" - I will agree that the Shire Hall should not be closed and, hopefully, it will reopen soon. Its true that we don't have the plethora of ancient buildings that some towns do, but we do have the likes of the the Ancient High House and the castle, and, if you go just out of the town, the likes of Izaak Walton's cottage and Shugborough Hall.

"Traffic" - Yes, Stafford's road system is not the best, especially coming in from the south, but I've seen much worse elsewhere. However, this is definitely one of the town's weaker points. When everything is running smoothly, having the M6 close by is a great asset, if you drive. But when the M6 locks up, then the knock on effect, on the town centre, can result in complete gridlock. Fortunately, it doesn't happen, to that degree, too often.

"Car parking at the station" - Yes, this is extremely overpriced, compared to the town's other car parks, at £12 a day. Even at those prices it can get full, so its useful to know that you can check on spaces available, or even book a space in advance, through the station car park website. If you prefer to park elsewhere, then things have improved significantly in the last 6 months, with the reopening of the Kingsmead/North Walls car park, which when added to the relatively Riverside car parks, has greatly improved capacity. And a few of the car parks allow 2 hours free parking.

"visit the Marshes before it disappears forever" - Doxey Marshes is indeed one of the jewels in Stafford's crown, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), which is a haven for many birds, mammals and plants. The SSSI itself is protected and it is extremely unlikely that, in the forseeable future, it will disappear. It has, however, suffered a blow, in that an area of land at one end, that was outside the SSSI, was granted planning permission for a new rugby club and pitches. On the positive side, it has just had around £100,000 worth of improvement works spent on it, at the opposite end.

Its often easy to pick out other places good points and ignore the many bad points. Stafford has both but, in my opinion, the good far outweigh the bad.

Lucy said:

There are some lovely villages within 15 minutes of the station if you want something a little rural.

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Do you mean Baswich, Wildwood and Parkside?

They can take about 15 minutes (or longer) to reach from the station...

The High House was very nearly included in the devastations of the 1970s, its survival was rather against the 'better judgement' of our worthy leaders of the time.

If the station car park is often full, is it actually overpriced?

On the car parking front, it is necessary to know the actual rules for each one, to avoid getting locked in and to know that Bank Holidays are not free on Council car parks, except Christmas Day, etc...

Rubyandpearls said:

Wow,

Many thanks for everyone taking the time to reply, you really are a friendly bunch

Hubby and I are driving up this morning to take a look round the area.

Very excited indeed.

Any must see’s?

Xx

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Villages such as Haughton, Gnosall, Woodseaves would probably have the sort of place you're looking for.

Towns such as Stone, Penkridge and Eccleshall will have similar but offer a few more facilities.

Most of the estate agents are around Salter street so if you park in the car park by Aldi off Queensway you'll be able to have a walk around the town.

I would recommend having a walk around St Mary's church and the park if you have time and the weather's ok.

Think you need to listen to people who have relocated here! I am biased, was born here lived in Greater Manchester, Sheffield & Scarborough, but had no hesitation in coming back! Have raised 3 son's here. In my opinion, it's a comfortable, safe, place to raise a family. There is enough here to keep you interested, and the excellent traffic links, means you have easy access to big cities if you want more! Good luck!

Gramaisc said:

If the station car park is often full, is it actually overpriced?

On the car parking front, it is necessary to know the actual rules for each one, to avoid getting locked in and to know that Bank Holidays are not free on Council car parks, except Christmas Day, etc...

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A couple of good points.

I think the occupancy on the station car park is partly helped by those, on expenses, who don't care.

And yes, almost every car park seems to have different rules, times and prices. Oh, and one or two flood from time to time as well.

proactive said:

They have converted barns on Rowley Park?

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No but they have massive gardens, close to the station and a nice housing stock.

There's quite a few houses for sale in Church Eaton, I can get to the station in 12 minutes quite easily.

I stayed here after uni, settled down, bought a house, etc. And I'm an entitled millennial! Must be something going for the place.

The Hawk said:

And yes, almost every car park seems to have different rules, times and prices. Oh, and one or two flood from time to time as well.

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Don't use the scam car park by Iceland.