Is Doncaster the answer?

I currently live in Scotland, but for reasons, might need to move closer to London – I’m thinking within two hours of London on a fast train, so that if I have to go the office 2x per week, it’s just about manageable.

And because this will be a fairly temporary arrangement, I’d prefer to spend less on a place to live – ideally circa £250k or less for 3 bedrooms. Doesn’t need to be a des-res.

My geography of middle England is not brilliant, so I’m hoping the hivemind might have some inspiration, please. Because on a first glance at the map and RightMove, Doncaster became an option…

Whatever the question Doncaster is not the answer.

Whatever the question Doncaster is not the answer.

Unless its I have a spare nuke I need to test.

God no. I’d go for as nice a suburb of Derby as budget permits, or Belper if that works with the train connection.

I’ve commuted from Sheffield to London and that’s a bit far tbh.

I predict a lot of alternative questions which might have Donny as an answer. 🙂

Sheffield is 2 hours from London on the train, better for access to riding – don’t know how far your budget will stretch relative to Doncaster, I’m guessing not quite as far.

York?

If it’s a fairly temporary arrangement then can you not just rent a smaller place?

I mean Donny would be a kind of home from home for you op…

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20211019-the-scottish-town-stranded-in-england

Have you checked the train fares?

The east coast mainline has fast connections into Kings Cross but they can be eye watering expensive.

You are looking at around £200 return from Doncaster.

£400 per week, that’s a lot of mortgage money.

Doncaster is not very hilly but has some nice countryside close by and attractive villages, it also has some massive nature reserves where Bitterns reside. Access to different motorways and railways. Don’t come to North East Derbyshire as we’ve got enough housing being built to accommodate you London commuters! Seriously though, there’s huge amounts of new housing being built all round the Chesterfield area and £250,000 should get you something decent, if you want any more local info direct message me.

Somewhere on the west coast mainline would be my suggestion. Macclesfield , stoke, Stafford?

 if I have to go the office 2x per week

Who is paying for the train?

ideally circa £250k or less for 3 bedrooms. Doesn’t need to be a des-res.

There are plenty of spots further south where this is feasible. Depends if you wanted to be in the North for other reasons?

I grew up near Doncaster and came here to suggest Macclesfield.

My carbon footprint hates me for this, but depending where in London you need to be have you checked out flying?

£60 return Bristol to Newcastle this week (booked last minute). Depends on travel both ends- Newcastle is on the metro so easier, Bristol is way out of the city.

I mean Donny would be a kind of home from home for you op…

Corby surely

Anywhere inside the area bordered by the M18 to the south, the A1(M) to the east, the M62 to the north and the M1 t the west will serve for what you need. All the towns (roughly) inside/bordering that space have what you’re looking for. Places like Wakefield, Barnsley, Rotherham, Donny, they all get a bad rep – mostly from folks who think they know what those towns are like, but in reality have never been to any of them, all of them are really OK if what you’re looking for is cheap(er) housing and access to London in 2 or 3 hours.

Retford – innocuous Nottinghamshire town, reasonable cost to live, reasonable everything, bang on the mainline and easy to London. My in-laws and wider family live there, and while not somewhere I would choose freely, in a situation like yours might work.

Somewhere on the west coast mainline would be my suggestion. Macclesfield , stoke, Stafford?

Macc is a good call. Direct is 1hr 50.

Crewe has loads of train choices because all the branches off the West Coast mainline run through it and there’s some nice towns/villages within striking distance of the station. Crewe itself, not so much. Fastest trains are 1hr 40.

Here’s maybe the correct answer though. Rugeley, or Litchfield in Staffordshire. Pleasant towns, 1hr 36 and the fares look cheap. Near Cannock Chase for cycling.

Aside from other features it’s the flatest place on earth.

Lincoln wouldn’t be a terrible option either.

Cheaper and more reliable to fly as above?

I’d get a different job and stay in Scotland

What are your priorities?

If you just want somewhere temporary (short to medium term?) for a commute into London and can sacrifice things like decent mountain biking for a while, then how about….erm……dare I mention it……Peterborough?

It’s basically 1hr20 into the centre of London. House prices are very reasonable and it’s close to the A1 for going North & South.

It’s not a great city, but it’s not as bad as people make out.
However, there’s no getting away from the fact that for mountain biking it is distinctly shit.

Out of everywhere mentioned above, I would go for Macclesfield, if mountain biking is something you want to do at that location.

Stafford. Nice place to live.
Plenty of nice 3 bed semis under £250k within walking distance of the station. A couple of trains an hour direct to Euston in 1hr 20 and some lovely biking on Cannock Chase just a short off road bike ride away. 2 or 3 really good bike shops too.

RustyNissanPrairie
Full Member
I’d get a different job and stay in Scotland

So would I!

I had a cursory look at Leamington Spa / Warwick properties as an option for my daughter instead of renting (she’s at UoW)

Not the best areas but actually pretty safe, mainly because there’s a lot of student HOMO’s there, and Leam itself seems to be quite a nice town.

90 odd mins from Marylebone.

If  your short-term is less than 2 years is buying even a sensible option? The legal and estate agents fees alone will be thousands.

 there’s a lot of student HOMO’s there

Mate :O

Doncaster is underrated and overrated.  I live here, and enjoy it. I could tell you of all the cultural delights and how nice the town centre is to wander and hang out, but those would be outright lies. The big thing that left Doncaster behind is the lack of a student population and it’s a bit too close to Sheffield and Leeds, so loads of things you find in similar size cities aren’t here, retail, restaurants etc. If you’re a homebod who doesn’t go out much or like me have a good local group of mates you socialise with mostly in each other’s houses, that might not be a big deal.

The train service is good, you spotted that, but parking around the station less so, the Frenchgate car park is your best reliable bet. If your gaff is within a couple of miles and you can bike in to the station, there is a secure locked bike park you pay a tenner for an annual fob. They have only had one theft in about four years of operation, google Doncaster Active Travel Hub.

Property wise, the stuff nearest town is cheap for a reason, especially Hexthorpe(want <2 hrs to Kings Cross and <£80k, by rights it should be gentrified by now). Next outer ring is very liveable, Sprotbrough road, Bennetthorpe, Town Fields, Lots of Wheatley, Lots of Balby, . Beyond that are a mix of always nice villages, former pit villages which have recovered and those that haven’t. Traffic and travel wise, Donny is actually a small town in the middle with close villages amalgamated all around, but with the river and a lot of railway close in, there are pinch points where you get longer queues than the population and economic activity levels might suggest, but not bad traffic by most city measures.

Am I selling this well? Alternative stops on the ECML would be Retford, Newark, Grantham and Peterboghorror. Retford is pretty nice! Further south your budget won’t go far. Ask me anything!

My partner commutes to London 2 days a week and even with a 30 minute train ride from our station to the London terminus it’s more than enough for her. How much time would it take you to get to wherever you need to be from wherever the mainline station is?

From someone who actually lives nearby and occasionally visits, I don’t think Donny is actually that bad. As above, a lot of it seems to be preconceptions based on Jeremy Kyle episodes etc.

Centre seems to be ok – usual stuff. Loads of Greggs etc. There was/is a thing they’re doing on a Saturday night where its something like £20 for a night of drinks and pizza across 4 or 5 pubs. Sounded good fun/a nightmare at the same time. From an outsider looking in, the areas near the race course don’t seem too bad and are within a short bike of the station. A positive on the train front is that the Grand Centrals stop there between Bradford and KX and then run non-stop between KX and Donny (and I think are cheaper than LNER).

May I recommend somewhere else though – York. Its 20 minutes further up the ECML but £250k will get you a half decent little terrace on South Bank next to the race course (walking distance of the station) or any number of apartments within a stones throw of the station. Like many places, you’ll get a bit more for your money the further out you go but York is a great place to live + if riding is a major consideration, then you’ve got the Moors, Howardian Hills, LUBP, Calderdale, the Dales and the Peaks within an hour.

Somewhere on the west coast mainline would be my suggestion. Macclesfield , stoke, Stafford?

I assume this is some kind of sick joke?

i dont think Doncaster is any worse than any other northern town.   they are all shyte holes………. sorry.

i am from Wakefield,but live in South Leeds, both are horrible.

me and the wife did a xmas bike tour, rode through Dewsbury and Huddersfield, both of which are also Horrible.

i would be looking somewhere in the Peaks maybe, south of Sheffield, north of Derby.

sorry if this is no help.

I came here to say Donny is serviced by Grand Central franchise – basic no frills off-peak travel to London but fast enough (but DBW beat me to it)

Wakefield is similar to Donny. The centre has some highlights and some lowlights but living outside it in a nice village gives you the a nice place to live not too far from the amenities

Wherever you decide to go to make sure you get a proper assessment of the flood risk at the property. An awful lot of the east side of England between Leeds and London floods now never mind  the future

but living outside it in a nice village

Streethouse ?……………..  :O)

Wherever you decide to go to make sure you get a proper assessment of the flood risk at the property. An awful lot of the east side of England between Leeds and London country floods now never mind  the future

Retford is pretty nice!

A quick glance just now – there are a few nice 3 bed semis to the west of the railway, which is a nice part of town, all within 5 mins walk of the station. My in-laws life in that part of town, albeit in some ‘larger’ houses around the next street…

Stoke is the Monkey Dust capital. I kind of like the place, and could live there at a push as I have low standards being from Wolves, but you wouldn’t. Stafford is… a bit dull. Macclesfield is nice enough, and close to some decent rides and walks out. Crewe is cheap, and £250k would get a decent house. Friend just bought a livable three bed semi for £140k. None of this helps in the Doncaster quest though.

I’m thinking within two hours of London on a fast train, so that if I have to go the office 2x per week, it’s just about manageable.

Assuming you mean into London on a Monday morning and back on Tuesday night? Not 2x return trips?

TBH I’d probably fly and spend the ~£200 a week + the moving costs on buying up land and planting trees to offset my conscience.  For ~£10k a year you’d save you could have a decent sized Webwonk Forest.

Alternatively, there are still pockets of the South East where you could get a 3bed house and enough change left over for a stab proof vest, have loads of decent MTBing on the doorstep and would actually be commutable.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/154493612#/?channel=RES_BUY

n.b. be careful to actually consider the London leg of any commute, unless your office is right next to whichever station the train comes into then London is a big place.  “within 2 hours of London” but the office is in Chelsea is like saying “within 2 hours of Scotland” but the train terminates in Edinburgh and you need to be in Stirling.

I’m assuming that accommodation up in that area is mainly for being able to get back up to Scotland just as easily as London on a fairly regular basis? If returning to Scotland isn’t on that regular a timescale, there’s always the SW of England, the mainline GWR is an hour from Chippenham, about an hour thirty from Bristol, and from Reading the Elizabeth Line takes you all the way across London, with lots of areas of decent riding accessible.
Just a thought.