[Closed] Where to live in the North West????

Bits of leyland are nice.. but bits. Its a touch near Preston for me but great motorway access

You've plenty of choice in that area.

I've lived in horwich for 15yrs, I'm moving now but only because I'm moving to Scotland. The northwest a real underrated area.

I'm from Kirkby Lonsdale in S Cumbria and have lived in Hebden Bridge, don't really know Leyland and know Clitheroe a little.

Our of your list I'd say Skipton would be the nicest option. Hebden Bridge has some great riding/countryside and 'quirky' locals with some good interesting stuff going on but it's pretty dark and wet.

Check out Settle also, I think I'd prefer it to Skipton but it's a bit smaller and off the main road, depends what you like. Skipton and Settle might be both over 45 mins though, not sure. Ramsbottom would be a good option too I would have thought, and much closer, although binners does live there.

Be prepared that some bits of E Lancs are pretty rough, but lots of nice bits too.

A vote here for Todmorden (or even Walsden as it's the right side for Haslingden over the tops...) I don't know about the schools, but it's got a good vibe going. And great bike riding!

Skipton and Clitheroe are lovely, the Music Bar is/was a unique Sunday treat.

I know the area very well

I'd be looking at Ramsbottom (Binners Kingdom)

Summerseat

Parts of Bury around hunstanton drive

Clitheroe is lovely but eouldnt want to drive that far every day
Hebden Bridge i over hype hippy town though great riding
Skipton gone down massivley in the last 10 years
Leyland that a no from me

There is another place that I will be retiring to - email me if you lie but I dont want to broadcast it here

Cheers

Plum

Barnoldswick might be worth a look.

@Plumber (*waves) was probably going to recommend Barnoldswick too ! Doubt he'll admit it though 😉

Clitheroe is a slightly easier commute than Barnoldswick but house prices are a good chunk higher. Skipton High St not what it was, the pedestrianisation on Market days makes it nicer although it increases traffic on surrounding roads.

Skipton's biggest plus is trains to Leeds. Try and avoid having to commute through Colne as traffic there is horrific morning and evening.

Whats your budget?

North West? Tongue is a nice spot.

Some of the places being suggested on here would still give you over an hour's commute to Haslingden.

I'd 2nd the Ramsbottom suggestion.

And i'd stop hanging around with whoever told you Leyland was nice, they are clearly deranged.

You don't need to look far away to find somewhere to live there. Skipton/Clitheroe etc are nice enough, but they are unnecessarily far away. This is a chance to get a nice compact lifestyle in a great environment. The detail depends on what you want - urban, rural, what you mean by good schools etc. I suggest: start with Rammy, work outwards according to your preferences.

If you need to commute to Haslingden, Rawtenstall has been "up and coming" for years.

Try and avoid having to commute through Colne as traffic there is horrific morning and evening.

Vivary Way is horrific almost permanently. It's a massive bottleneck and pretty much unavoidable, anywhere East of that end of the M65 would be a non-starter for me.

This thread from last week might be relevant to you:

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/opinions-please-bury-and-its-environs/

A 45-minute commute should be broadly doable from anywhere with ready access to the M65 or M66.

The world capital of identity politics is indeed very nice but it floods and the lack of light will make your kids bow-legged.

Ullapool.

Arivurichardich?

South Derbyshire to Haslingden is going to be a hellish commute.

I'd have a look at Rammy or Helmshore.

I'd also look closer to the work location, I'd probably prefer to live a bit over that way than in Hebden or Clitheroe.

And while Leyland's pleasant enough, it's also quite unremarkable and in-between places.

Arivurichardich?

That's easy for you to say.

I work in Leyland and wouldn't live there. Some nice bits but plenty of grot and nothing special countryside wise if you like hills. Also a LOT of new house building in that area so congestion trying to get to the motorways is only going to get worse (current state of traffic does not reflect what it was like pre-covid).

The usual answer is Brinscall / Withnell area. On the edge of the moors so MTB / running / biking straight from your door. 5 minutes with no congestion to the M65 junction and then a short hop to Haslingden. Decent local primary schools and direct school buses for good secondary schools in Chorley.

Ramsbottom you are paying a big premium for being within commuting distance from Manchester.

East Lancs is a lottery - quite a wonderful mixture of beautiful / rich / impoverished places - there are some gems but you need to research carefully.

Clitheroe, very nice, max 30 min commute, very expensive.
Skipton etc., nice but the commute isn't worth it.
Barrowford is nice, bit more expensive, 25 min commute. Actually anywhere north of the M65 and west of Colne is nice.
Rossendale as a whole isn't bad, just stay out of the valley bottoms, e.g. Stacksteads, Bacup etc. cheap and easy commute, Rawtenstall definitely on the way up and next door to Haslingden.
Rammy, nice bit more expensive as it's well within the Manchester commuter belt.
Todmorden is nice, good commute, not to expensive but the secondary is not good, lots of bullying, I know a lot of last years intake has moved to other schools already.
East Rossendale is also not great for schools, one secondary has been in special measures for years and the next option is Tod.
Western Rossendale is better for schools including Haslingden. Good grammar school in Rossendale though if you can get in.
Clitheroe has a really good grammar, not sure what the other schools are like though if you don't get in.
Anywhere steep though check for flooding, Calderdale floods on the way down as well as the valley bottom.

Somewhere near Chester would give you good motorway and train links, you could even consider somewhere close to the A55 in North Wales up to around Abergele and still in theory shorten that commute.

As an example, Dyserth, just south of Prestatyn is a lovely village. At the very least, great road and gravel rides (and walks) right on your doorstep.

you could even consider somewhere close to the A55 in North Wales up to around Abergele

Well that's a creative suggestion.

Do you know where Haslingden is though?

Well that’s a creative suggestion.

Do you know where Haslingden is though?

I googled it before my reply, just south-east of Blackburn?

~81 miles from Dyserth, 6 miles up A5151 before you join the A55 expressway just south of Lloc, then M56/M6/M62.

My mum moved to just outside Prestatyn ~12 months ago and it's a lovely area, I'd love to live somewhere like that, just outside surburbia with proper nature right on my doorstep... I have to ride 6+ miles for that from SO18.

There's very little "Englishman in New York" feel too around there, very rare to hear Welsh being spoken and rare to hear much of a Welsh accent when people are speaking English, unlike say Dolgellau when we lived there in the 80s.

Must confess I missed the sub 45min commute requirement, but I was surprised the Google map time estimate was that low from North Wales.

160 mile commute.

I'm out.....

I live in a village just north of clitheroe and love the town, never short of places to ride MtB or road. At the risk of angering the rammy massive, I lived there for a bit and was never that impressed with the riding. Maybe I didn't know the area well enough. Having said that, if you're tied to haslingden then rammy, rossendale valley, helmshore are your first port of call

The commute from clitheroe to haslingden is fairly quick and effortless, sub 40 mins at peak. But obvs rammy area is a lot quicker and shorter

Clitheroe and surrounding area is pretty blighted by new build estates, particularly near whalley, billington and barrow. But everywheres the same these days (and due to get worse)

We moved up to clitheroe for the most part cos of the schools.

Skipton gone down massivley in the last 10 years

I moved in about 15 years ago, so I can see why that might be the case. 🙂

Aside from that, I wouldn't want that commute. Set your sights a bit closer - life's too short to spend it in a queue in Colne.

I live in Crawshawbooth and can happily recommend it. It is a village about 10 minutes from Haslingden, just North of Rawtenstall. We moved here when I worked in Stockport and my better half in Skipton. The Skipton commute is doable, but tedious if it is every day. I now work in Hebden Bridge which is a 35-40 minute commute by car and around an hour by bike - add on 5 to 10 minutes to get to Haslingden. We have a good primary school in the village, one of our kids went on to the grammar school and the other to the local secondary. Both thrived. We have great walking & riding on the doorstep and easy access to all the other areas you are considering. Well worth adding to your shortlist I'd say. For a slightly more rural option, look at Cliviger. It's half way to Todmorden with good commuting access in lots of directions

Edgworth /thread

Thank you to everyone for your local knowledge it is much appreciated and has given me loads of places to look at and also knock of the list:)

I'd seriously forget Skipton / Todmorden / Hebden / anywhere in that direction. They're a chore to get in and out of from East Lancs on a good day let alone at commuting time, and it's not like you don't have other options.

Incidentally,

What sort of place are you looking for? Do you want / can you afford "really nice" or will "nice" do? Property prices vary wildly based on area.

life’s too short to spend it in a queue in Colne.

That needs to go on the spine of a popular mountain biking magazine 👍🤣

You could always live in Haslingden. My kids went to Haslingden Primary (great school, kids loved it). Our son went to Haslingden High, enjoyed it and did well. Daughter has just finished her GCSE year at BRGS, really likes it. The only issue with that school is kids from miles away apply so you can be doing a two hour round trip to drop them off at their friends house 🙂
I lived in Whitewell Bottom for 10 years, apart from your house there's nothing else there. Kids and Ex live in Haslingden and seem to like it.
House price wise you can go from a £60k 3 bedroom back to back, up to multi-million pound homes within walking distance of a Greggs!

I’d seriously forget Skipton / Todmorden / Hebden / anywhere in that direction. They’re a chore to get in and out of from East Lancs on a good day let alone at commuting time, and it’s not like you don’t have other options.

+1 The road from Rawtenstall to Tod is wild.

I grew up in Bromley Cross and worked summer jobs in Haslingden (builders merchant and bar work in the cricket club). Edgworth is a lovely village with better access to Haslingden over the moor - not as wild as Bacup to Tod though.

Clitheroe has a really good grammar, not sure what the other schools are like though if you don’t get in.

There are 3 high schools, 2 Ofsted outstanding, 1 good.

My step son goes to Bowland high and it's a lovely small high school in the middle of rolling countryside, (so no bunking off). It's catchment is largely the Ribble valley villages north of the Ribble and the town itself if you're lucky

I think they re now oversubscribed as no new schools , or any infrastructure, has been built since the last 5 years of constant house building

Skipton gone down massivley in the last 10 years

LOL, I'd enjoy hearing your reason for saying that since it's won numerous national 'best place in the world ever' awards in that time!

Lived in and around Skipton pretty much all my life and think it's ace. Providing your partner is not travelling bang in rush hour the commute shold be sub 1hr.

Saying that I'd probably live closer with Clitheroe being a decent shout and there are plenty of nice villages between there and Gisburn. Barnoldswick is okay but you may as well just live in Skipton if you have the funds.

BTW Barnoldswick is pronounced bar-lick!

Hoping around the 300k mark if we can get what we want for ours. In an ideal world detached house or bungalow with 2+ bedrooms with a nice driveway and garage. We are lucky enough at the moment to look out over the national forest at the front so ideally would like country views if possible. We like the quiet life so don't need to be in the hustle and bustle of it all. Prices up north seem to be similar to round here but yep have noticed that some areas are a lot more pricey!

Good thing about living in Skipton is Keelham farm shop AND Burger King. What more could you want.

If youd consider bl6 my house may suit...

Shameless plug sorry

There's plenty of nice places for your budget in rossendale.

Helmshore is great, good schools, pleasantly rural and good motorway access.

Ramsbottom has more going on, but is pricier and traffic is worse.

Both are a short bike commute from haslingden.

Rawtenstall, crawshawbooth or edenfield all good too.

Clitheroe is good market town with loads going on, and commute wouldn't be too bad to Haslingden.

For a slightly more rural option, look at Cliviger. It’s half way to Todmorden with good commuting access in lots of directions

It's lovely.

Pennine Bridleway on your doorstep, miles and miles of trails, very friendly, nice pubs.
Burnley is actually a lovely place to live.
Clean, a positive feeling about the place and decent shopping.

Are we talking about the same Burnley Rusty Spanner!?

Are we talking about the same Burnley Rusty Spanner!?

+1 Although some folk like the Rossendale valley too 😳