Anyone know North/West LEICESTER? Need some advice on areas ...

goggle

Hi
A friend needs to relocate to Leicester for work. She wants to live West or North of the city, possibly in one of the surrounding suburbs/villages but needs advice on good/bad areas to live.

She has found out that New Parks, Braunstone and Beaumont Leys are areas to avoid - but does anyone know anything about:
Leicester Forest East; Thorpe Astley (looks like a new build estate); Anstey; Birstall; Groby; Glenfield; Ratby; Thurcaston; Thurmaston;

Is Anstey Heights really Beaumont Leys in fancy dress? What about Western Park (Park rise etc) - is that really New Parks?

Thanks for your help
Goggle

goggle

also Syston area?

aaroncaz

Blaby is ok.

Whoops, other side of city!

HugoSP

goggle wrote: »

She has found out that New Parks, Braunstone and Beaumont Leys are areas to avoid - but does anyone know anything about:
Leicester Forest East; Thorpe Astley (looks like a new build estate); Anstey; Birstall; Groby; Glenfield; Ratby; Thurcaston; Thurmaston;

Is Anstey Heights really Beaumont Leys in fancy dress? What about Western Park (Park rise etc) - is that really New Parks?

Thanks for your help
Goggle

I lived in Leicester until about 94, so i may be a little out of date.

I would agree with all the above, yes Anstey Heights is Beaumont Leys rebranded IIRC.

Leicester Forest East is OK, I would favour Anstey, Glenfield Thurcaston, Thurmaston. I can't remember much about the other areas you mention, which is probably a good thing.

Syston was quite a nice village from what I can remember. Don't confuse it with Sileby. It always amased me that Sileby and Cossington were right next to each other yet were worlds apart. If it weren't for the fact that Sileby was right next door I would recommend Cossington.

Also, I remember driving through Mountsorrel and Quorn (I think I spelled that right) on my way to Loughborough where I worked for a while and then to Loughborough Uni. That was before they build the Leicester to Loughborough bypass. Either of those villages would be worth a look IMO, they weren't bad with the traffic going through them, so they're probably better now.

If Loughborough is not too far out, that's worth a look. Like anywhere else there are good and bad areas. It's got a great town centre IIRC. It does get swelled by students in the term time, so maybe take this on board, especially if she's looking to buy in a terrace or similar property that students frequent.

petebeale

Goggle! Here's my scores on the doors

Leicester Forest East
Quiet close to the M1, Near the park and ride for Leicester city. Mostly 1980's housing stock

Thorpe Astley (looks like a new build estate); Is a new estate from the 1990s-2000s. Little in the way of amenities IMHO. But driving distance to Fosse Park out of town shopping centre. Close to the motorways

Anstey: Mixed area some LA Housing and some quality private housing. Getting close to some very 'big ticket' areas in charnwood

Birstall: Edge of city quite nice in places. Just about to get its own park and ride. IIRC post war and 1970-80s housing. AMenities OK

Groby: Dont know much about it. Close to the big ticket areas in charnwood. I imagine its quite nice.

Glenfield; Some nice quality housing, from post war up to modern day. On the outskirts of Leicester. Amenities are ok.

Ratby: Despite its name its OK! Some modern estates tagged onto the original village. Near the M1 at Leicester forest east. I think there are a few shops, its quite a smallish place.

Thurcaston Its quite a small place with a new build estate on the edge. Got a pub and a shop. Yet again, on the edge of prime leicestershire in charnwood.

Is Anstey Heights really Beaumont Leys in fancy dress? Yep.

What about Western Park (Park rise etc) - is that really New Parks? Nice quality housing in some parts of western park, and close to the city centre. Schools arent all that!

Cheers Petebeale

snaffs

I would also check with her if she needs to get easy access to the M1 northbound or southbound as junction 21A you can only get off M1 northbound and onto southbound and some of those places listed don't have easy access to the motorway.

I agree about Anstey Heights - my ex use to live there and I refused to move there!

There's not much happening in Thurcaston but might be ok if she likes somewhere quiet

Thorpe Astley is known locally as either 'Legoland' or 'Thorpe Ghastly' and there's not much there apart from new build houses. Also very close to Braunstone.

If she's looking as far south as Thorpe Astley I would also consider Narborough and Whetstone as generally considered nice areas but still easy access to both the M1 and the Ring Road and shopping at Fosse Park.

If you can give some more details of what factors she considers important in a location that would help in giving some guidance in which areas would be best suited.

Hope that helps

Alibat

Totally agree about Anstey Heights/Beaumont Leys and I live there! :rotfl: It makes me laugh every time - if you are in private housing it's Anstey Heights and if you're in social housing it's Beaumont Leys, even though the two houses might be right next door to one another. :rolleyes: We've lived here since 1982 and love it but it isn't for everyone. I don't drive so the good bus services and excellent local shopping centre, library, leisure centre, easy access to the countryside etc are great for me but the schools aren't the best. Still, that said one of our daughters is in her third year at uni and the other is planning on going next year so they're not totally hopeless.

Thorpe Astley always seems so soulless to me, tightly wedged in between the M1 and the outer ring road with few amenities.

I like Anstey, it has a lovely village feel about it, but trying to get into it at rush hour is a nightmare. It was enough to put us off buying when we were looking nearly thirty years ago and it's still as bad today.

Locally Birstall seems to be the aspirational place to move to, but then we are talking about people who live in Beaumont Leys so that might not be a ringing endorsement for it. Never quite seen the attraction myself but each to their own. It's a total snarl up of long term road works at the moment, and of course there's the huge housing development along the A6 which, once finished, is bound to have an impact on the place so it might be one to be wary of.

There's recently been talk of the Ashton Green development again between Beaumont Leys, Birstall and Thurcaston so if they look at anything round there tell them to pay very close attention to the long term plans for the area. It looks to me like Thurcaston is on the verge of being swallowed up by the Birstall development and Ashton Green - well within a field or so anyway.

The villages between Leicester and Loughborough have been transformed since the opening of the bypass and could well be worth a look. I'm in total agreement with HugoSP about Loughborough - a great place but there are a lot of students. It doesn't feel as dominated by the university as other university towns I've been to though.

Glenfield is very nice - but the further away from its border with New Parks the better. My father-in-law lives there and it always seems very nice and quiet.

I don't know Syston that well but it always strikes me as a reasonable place. It has a good amenities but is perhaps on the busy side. Well worth a closer look I would have thought. I can recommend a vet there!

Hope that helps.

goggle

Thanks everyone - great to hear from people actually living in this area!

All I know at the moment is that location needs to be no more than 15 mins (ideally 10) drive to work which is apparently "near Glenfield hospital" and must be able to get to the M1 easily at I think J22 - she will travel north & south - also she will need to go to Colville and Ashby(?) once or twice a week which again made her look at those areas of Leicester and not the other side. I think she feels Narborough and Whetstone are too far south for her. Mountsorrel & Quorn & Loughborough look as though they may be too far out for her but I'll pass the message on. Can anybody help with whether the ring road gets very busy at rush hour if she was to live in say Thurmaston? How long would it take her to get to work from here?

She's not looking for night life etc & doesn't have children, though obviously a good school is usually in a good area! A local shop, post office etc would be good - I think if there are things like a butchers or village shop or library that are open when she's not at work she will def use them - she'd rather be in a village or suburby type villagey feel than in the studenty city type areas - a "decent" area is important & preferably an area with older people than predominantly young families.

If there is good public transport that would be a benefit but I think she'll mostly be using her car. There didn't seem to be a train station in that area at all ...

Alibat

Tell her to give Glenfield a closer look then as it has everything on her list. Groby and Ratby too.

Add Markfield to the list too. It's close to J22 but not close enough for the M1 to be a problem.

Giraffeseeker

goggle wrote: »

Thanks everyone - great to hear from people actually living in this area!

All I know at the moment is that location needs to be no more than 15 mins (ideally 10) drive to work which is apparently "near Glenfield hospital" and must be able to get to the M1 easily at I think J22 - she will travel north & south - also she will need to go to Colville and Ashby(?) once or twice a week which again made her look at those areas of Leicester and not the other side. I think she feels Narborough and Whetstone are too far south for her. Mountsorrel & Quorn & Loughborough look as though they may be too far out for her but I'll pass the message on. Can anybody help with whether the ring road gets very busy at rush hour if she was to live in say Thurmaston? How long would it take her to get to work from here?

She's not looking for night life etc & doesn't have children, though obviously a good school is usually in a good area! A local shop, post office etc would be good - I think if there are things like a butchers or village shop or library that are open when she's not at work she will def use them - she'd rather be in a village or suburby type villagey feel than in the studenty city type areas - a "decent" area is important & preferably an area with older people than predominantly young families.

If there is good public transport that would be a benefit but I think she'll mostly be using her car. There didn't seem to be a train station in that area at all ...

I'd avoid Thurmaston. Try Western Park - as in the area off Hinckley Road between Eco House and the junction with Wyngate Drive (as opposed to Park Rise area). There's a nice-ish parade of shops, a local gym, close to Meridian for the cinema etc, and not far from Braunstone Gate for bars and restaurants. Good access to Glenfield Hostpital and the M1 too. On the western park side there is a mixture of housing from 1900 - around 1930's, and the Ainsdale Road side is more 1930's housing and a bit more affordable.

mjburton

Markfield or Newtown Linford would be ideal locations for her. Both are nice - Newtown Linford is a little more upmarket as it is nextdoor to Woodhouse and Bradgate (v posh). Both are close to M1 j22 and Glenfield hospital which is 5-10 mins down the A50.

There are some very nice villages on the outskirts of Ashby / Coalville. Have a look on google earth etc to get an ideal of how rural/villagey places are. We have just moved from between Coalville and Markfield to a little village by Ashby. The extra 15 mins to work is so worth it!!!