Dolly no mates - making friends in a new city

One of the things that worried me about leaving London was that I'd have to start being nice, friendly and approachable to strangers. Nobody wants to make new friends at forty. All that effort! I'd rather go back to school. Luckily for me I had the advantage of a ready-made network of pals in Brighton, including my best friend of 20 years, so I didn't come across as too desperate to join the in-crowd, however, saying that I did want to make new friends, if only to exert my new Brighton smugness with people who understood.

While there are plenty of places to meet people in Brighton (the Waltzer being a favourite hangout of mine), the benefit of having primary school-aged kids is that you are forced into a social scene every day and there's no room for grumpy new mums in our school playground.
Thankfully, in the twins class (year 1) all the parents were immediately lovely, despite yet another DFL coming to town. Perhaps it was the novelty of having rowdy twins come into the class, but they made friends quickly, which meant I did too. It took less than a week to be invited on our first playdate and little more than two to be invited on the first mums pub crawl. All in all a good start.

The thing is with Brighton *smug klaxon* is that everyone is friendly. People feel very lucky to live in such as special place (sorry, I know how pukey that sounds) and that rubs off on everyone. There are fewer reasons to be miserable here and that makes the world of difference to a town's residents. Brighton is a really friendly place and I promise you, you will have no problem in finding like-minded folk to take to the pub. Me for instance, see you on the pier! 

Where to live in Brighton...

When we first decided to move to Brighton I thought we'd pretty much be able to buy the Royal Pavillion for the price of a two bed flat in East Dulwich. I had big plans to sell our little two-up two-down terrace in a ropey part of south London and buy a gorgeous four bed Victorian villa overlooking Queens Park. Sadly, that was not quite the case. Not unless I sold a kidney. And a child. However, there are still bargains to buy in good areas. You just have to be patient and more importantly, open-minded.

So here's my take on some of the good areas to live in Brighton...

Hanover: 10-15 minute walk to the station. A cluster of roads bursting with cool, affordable but quite small houses with virtually no gardens. This is generally the next step up the ladder from a flat in Kemp Town. Lots of young families and arty types live around here which means it has a great community spirit. Plus it has loads (and I mean literally one on every corner) of good, family-friendly pubs.

Just back from Hanover is the Elm Grove area (where I live). There's a bloody great big hill leading up to the race course and off it is a series of nice roads including Brading, Bernard and Bonchurch filled with 3-4 bed houses and a smattering of flats. The gardens are still small, but The Patch, a small park nestled behind these roads is a handy addition to the area.  Elm Grove primary school is pretty good and there are a couple of decent pubs, namely my local, The Hartington (which has San Miguel on draft and a does a cracking Sunday roast).

The town and seafront are easily walkable in about 15-20mins, which with Brighton parking is a definite plus to this area. 

Beyond Elm Grove is the Hartington Road area. A great road which stretches from the Lewes Road up to the top of Elm Grove. This road is blessed with even bigger houses than Elm Grove with the gorgeous cream & red brick Victorian ones being the most desirable. The gardens are a decent size and back on to the cemetery.

Head the other side of Hartington and you're moving into studentsville. Bear Road and Coombe Road are the big boys here and the prices and facilities certainly reflect that. Also, the catchment area for Dorothy Stringer and Varndean gets a little hazy.

The other side of the Lewes Road is Hollingdean, which is cheaper and you get more for your money plus it's close to the des res area of Fiveways. If you're looking for secondary schools you need to check out the catchment area as it starts to waiver around this postcode. Hollingdean has some nice streets, Hollingbury Park and Hollingbury Road are probably the nicest, but Stanmer Park Road and Stanmer Villas have some reasonably priced 3/4 bed houses with a half decent garden. This area is certainly improving as it neighbours Fiveways, which has always been very desirable (and incidently quite pricey).

Queens Park is a lovely area. Good schools, great views down to the sea and a rash of fancy pants houses (check out the West Drive piles). The park itself is great and very popular with families. It's also a swift 10 minute walk to the beach from here, although it is a little further to the station. Still there are some great properties to be had if you made the bucks in London. The schools are good. I can vouch for St Luke's Primary, it has an outstanding OFSTED report and a no-school uniform policy (which is very popular in my house). Further down the hill is Queens Park school, which is also very good.

From here we're heading into Kemp Town territory. Great facilities, nice little flats and the odd decent sized house. A hop and a skip from the seafront, it has tonnes of good pubs, restaurants and some lovely little independent shops. To the left (away from town) is Kemp Town village, with quirky antique shops and delis not to mention the fabulous Ginger Dog pub. To the right is the busier hub of KT. From here you are moments from the centre of town  and a swift 10-15 minute march to the station. And you can be on the pier eating candy floss before you can say 'race you to the dodgems'.

Other property hot spots are Seven Dials with gorgeous properties, lots of regency and Georgian flats and is very close to both the station and the centre of town. Preston Park is another popular hotspot for DFLs and has bigger houses, gardens and of course, the gorgeous park. However, it's not as walkable to the centre (in my lazy ass opinion) Withdean and Westdene are well thought of, with a good spread of reasonably priced houses and decent primary schools.

If you want more bricks for your bucks you need to head out to Patcham, Portslade or Hollingbury. However, if funds are really strapped and you're happy with an ex-local authority pad, try the areas of Moulsecoomb, Bevendean and Whitehawk for a real bargain.

 

To be honest, I don't know a great deal about the Hove areas but I will check them out and report back.

Our half-year Brighton anniversary - any regrets?

Six months? I can't believe we've been here six months already. On one hand, Brighton living is so comfortable it feels like we've lived here forever. Yet on the other, it feels like we only left our London lives last week. But six months living anywhere is a realistic time to decide whether you've made a mistake or not. I think the only mistake we've made is not doing it sooner. I love living by the sea it feels so much simpler than London. Less pressure. Less congestion (bar the weekend crowd) and the kids just love it. They've all settled in to school remarkably well and although they miss their London pals they too seem to have no regrets about moving to the seaside. Especially when I bribe them with fish and chips on the beach on a school day.
So actually, bar missing friends, there's been only minor pangs of regret about leaving the big smoke.

But in order to not be too smug, I've compiled a short list of things I do miss about London:

1) Saying I live in the capital. I was a very proud Londoner and seeing pictures and TV footage littered with red buses, black cabs and iconic London sights sends tiny pangs of regret that I'm not there in  Jubilee and Olympic year.
 
2) Shopping. I miss the markets, especially Borough (despite having to regularly remortgage to buy an organic artichoke) and of course, I really miss Selfridges and the House of Fraser. This is not to say that Brighton shopping is not wholly enjoyable, however I do miss a rummage around the big boys on payday.

3) The diversity. One of the absolute best things about London is that it really is a multicultural city. I used to love all the different areas from the very Jamaican Brixton to the Jewish quarters of Stamford Hill and Golders Green. I think kids learn such a lot about different cultures living in one city and really benefit from it. Unsurprisingly, there's not so much diversity in Brighton and after living in London for so long that does take a little getting used to.

4) The tube. I know it's a pain in the jacksy when you have to commute everyday, but as a leisurely freelancer I loved going on the tube in to town. You can get anywhere, it's brilliant. I'm hoping that Boris will eventually extend the Northern Line down to Brighton. You know it's only a matter of time!

5) Uniqlo. Okay, so this should come under shopping, but COME ON BRIGHTON, I need some new jeans!

But, all in all no, je ne regrette rien. (see how boho am I since I've moved? I'll be wearing a patchwork turban next!)

House-hunting seaside style

 Photo credit: www.Brighton-Net.com

It's Tuesday and after a ridiculously glorious weekend Brighton is STILL as balmy and beautiful as ever. After what seemed like decades of murky weather, the sun has finally come out and along with it brought the daytripper-turned-househunting brigade. They are easily to recognise, all wistful looks and fat deposits, noses pressed against estate agent windows all with the hope of living the dream. And it's no wonder, who wouldn't want to move down here in the summer, streets crammed with stunning Georgian architecture, a cool and surprisingly clean ocean and everyone, literally everyone has a smile on their face. Okay, okay, I know I'm banging on again. I will stop soon, honest. After this last strawberry Mivvi...
While statistically the stretch between June and October is the prime time for making the big move to the coast, it's not always the right move. Prices often increase, they certainly hold their value and there is much more competition often resulting in bidding wars during the summer months. So the happiest people you'll see in Brighton on a sunny day are estate agents, rubbing their hands with glee at all that lovely London commission.

This recent report in the Independent showed that Brighton is the most expensive place to buy in Britain, followed by Oxford and then Guildford. But probably even more surprisingly, London came 7th after Chelmsford of all places. So there really is no accounting for taste (sorry Chelmsford).
My husband, a London estate agent, was insistent that we must not fall into the trap of buying a house in the summer when even the ropiest looking dog-pit looks attractive. So my advice is to buy in winter when the grey skies and cruel winds will put even the hardiest of buyers off.

If you're serious about moving down, meet and make friends with ALL the estate agents, call them every week without fail, read Latest Homes, the Brighton property pages religiously and remember that good properties do not hang around for long. Be prepared to view at the drop of a hat, I used to drop the kids off at school and bomb down the M23 to look at places within a couple of hours of being notified. Although not everyone has this privilege, it's often is a case of you snooze, you lose when it comes to good Brighton properties.
Anyway, the beach beckons so I'll put up a few good agents who specialise in the different areas of Brighton in my next post.

If this doesn't spur you to move here, nothing will. A beautiful slo-mo video shot by 14 year old Brighton boy, Caleb Yule

This is Brighton from Caleb Yule on Vimeo.

Where's Cliff? I'm on a perma-summer holiday

I've gotta say the absolute best thing about living in Brighton has to be the proximity to the beach. It's all I can do to not spend my days on the carousel, eating hot doughnuts and having 'Mam' tattooed on my bosom. Even though the weather has not been kind these past few weeks, a quick hour dahn the arcades and a stick of candy floss is never wasted, in my view.
When you move to the seaside, there's one thing you can expect and that's lots of visitors. If I'd known how popular it would make us I'd have moved years ago. At first leaving my beloved London felt like a massive wrench. For fifteen years it felt like the centre of the universe and I worried that if I stepped out of zone 4 I'd fall to my death into a big smoking crack in the earth. But apparently not. Brighton is the first stop on the seaside train and at the first sign of sun is heaving with be-Croc'd Londoners.
Within weeks of arriving we've already had a steady stream of visitors. Which is brilliant, however, come the summer months I worry that this could get out of hand, like when a cheeky weekend visit turns into two weeks full board in August. If this is the case, I shall be putting my best landlady grimace, hoiking up my formidible bust and insisting on a maximum two night rule.

Things to consider before moving to Brighton

Work – Are you commutable? Luckily, I work from home so my office can be (and often is) on the beach, in the park, in the pub (although granted, it's not the most productive environment - hic). But for those of you who have proper jobs, you might be surprised at the difference in salary if you want to fully relocate to the coast. One way to get over this is to do the daily commute into the big smoke. Thousands do it everyday and because of this the train services are getting better and better with many making the schlep in under an hour. Of course, you have to think of the added price of a season ticket too. But despite all this, coming home on a Friday evening knowing you can kick back on a sunny beach for two days is well worth the daily slog.

You might want to consider your proximity to Brighton station if you plan to do the daily commute, although unlike London, the majority of residential areas of Brighton & Hove proper (as in not your Patcham/Portslade/Hangleton etc. outskirts) are within a 20 minute walk. Either that or get a bike.

Primary schools

We have moved to the Elm Grove area. A brisk 20 minute walk into to town and to the beach. There's Queen's Park nearby and a whole host of good primary schools available.

St Luke's Primary School – With its no school uniform (unless you count Boden) policy and an outstanding OFSTED.

Elm Grove Primary School - equally good

Queen's Park School - again, very good

St Martin's C of E Primary School - above average

Secondary schools

One of the main reasons we moved to Brighton was because we have kids. While I love living in London, I wasn't quite so happy to have my ten year old son roaming the streets in search of entertainment. Luckily for us, I had a man on the ground (and an ex-school teacher at that) to check out the schools down here. With a strict catchment area in mind, we were able to narrow down the best roads to buy in. Brighton has a lottery system for secondary schools, however, this does still fall within the catchment areas. For instance: we live in the catchment for Dorothy Stringer and Varndean schools, both are very good and the lottery will mean we will 'probably' (I say that as I don't want to tempt fate) will get one of these. I'll touch on these again later as we go through the application process and eternal nail-biting that comes with the territory.