Advice on Colchester and Surrounding Area

Terryofessex

Hi there myself and my wife are looking at Colchester to relocate next year. I've already started looking at the town and gathering what statistical information I can.

Essentially we want to live in a nice neighbourhood with minimal social and council housing. I also need to commute and need to be in London at times by around 6:30. This would mean traveling from Marks Tey or Colchester North.

I ideally want to move somewhere I can walk to the station from within 30 mins, so 2-2.5 miles max. What has limited our viewing options to date is that large swathes of Colchester seem to have alot of social and council housing.

At the moment we have been looking at the areas listed below. If anyone would like to comment on these choices (informed comments only please). Or add areas which they think may suit our needs I'd appreciate it. Our budget would be up to 300k though would prefer to spend slightly less. Looking for a decent size 3 bed house semi or detached.

Lexden - seems to go from very upmarket to very ordinary.
North Bergholt - Seems ideal but limited options due to village.
Mile End - slight concerns about proximity to social housing.
Marks Tey - Like the other village locations looks nice.
Copford - As above.
Stanway - I like Stanway but its the poorest placed with regard to access to the railway.

SalsaDanca

As you say, Marks Tey is a village location. Don't forget that not all trains stop at the smaller stations. If you need to get from Colchester to Liverpool Street for 6.30am, you can catch the 5.12am (arrives 6.16am) or the 5.35am (arrives 6.34am). If you start from Marks Tey, your only option is the 5.18am (arrives 6.16am). If you miss that train, there isn't another train for over half an hour.

Don't forget that season tickets on this line are very expensive - probably over £4,500 by next year if you pay annually, more if you have to pay monthly.

Terryofessex

Thanks for that, it would certainly be a consideration. I think ideally West Bergholt comes out on top as its out of town but still close to Colchester North. Just wish I knew more about the area!

nikki_angel

I live in Myland/Mile End and yes there is social housing nearby but it is a very good area to live in. A great community feel.

shambolics

Yes I am in Myland too. A very nice area which still has a community feel.

Moneybot

Hi

I live in Copford and my husband commutes to London from Marks Tey and has done for 18 years. One thing you haven't mentioned is schools, is this something which is likely to be an issue for you?

Lexden - you pay more because it is the posh part of town and in the past it was the catchment area for the "best" non selective secondary school - Phillip Morrant this is no longer such a sort after school. You would get more for your money elsewhere.
By North Bergholt I assume you mean West Bergholt as the other Bergholt is East Bergholt and it's in Suffolk. Nice village bit further out and the road into the station can get very busy in the mornings and evenings.
Marks Tey does have the A12 and the A120 running through it but some nice houses good catchment area for schools and very handy for the station.
Copford obviously I'm biased as I live there but does have nice houses, village pub and active village life.
Myland/Mile End must admit I'm not keen as they have been throwing up houses in that part of town like building is going out of fashion but you will have plenty of choice of property. Fair bit of social housing in the area.
Stanway - would really depend on which part; the secondary school has become one of the most sort after in recent years.
If you have any particular houses in mind I am more than happy to give feedback on the area they are in.

flea72

Terryofessex wrote: »

I ideally want to move somewhere I can walk to the station from within 30 mins, so 2-2.5 miles max. What has limited our viewing options to date is that large swathes of Colchester seem to have alot of social and council housing.

tbh there is very little social/council housing in colchester and what there is, is congregated in the areas you are not looking at (greenstead, highwoods, monkwick, shrub end)

At the moment we have been looking at the areas listed below. If anyone would like to comment on these choices (informed comments only please). Or add areas which they think may suit our needs I'd appreciate it. Our budget would be up to 300k though would prefer to spend slightly less. Looking for a decent size 3 bed house semi or detached.

£300k would get you a 3 bed-semi anywhere in colchester, so moneywise you are not stuck with looking in the less desirable areas

Lexden - seems to go from very upmarket to very ordinary

Lexden does vary alot. the nearer to town the higher the prices, but if you come out to the lexden/stanway border, then you will have more family orientated, commuter belt housing. Perhaps look at the Poets Corner area of lexden as this tends to be where the sahm/city working dads congretate.

North Bergholt - Seems ideal but limited options due to village

i think you mean West Bergholt. yes this is popular with commuters (although very few walk to the station from there lol, wifey usually does drop off). also for being commuter belt and close to the town/station it doesnt have very good public transport links and the traffic from this side of town is notoriously bad, you will be stuck in a jam at most times of the day

Mile End - slight concerns about proximity to social housing

this area varies alot and personally i find it too built-up. the new housing in this area just keeps increasing and obviously, new estates mean social housing has to be included. demand for services is already outstripping supply. schools are way oversubscribed (although thats happening all over colchester)

Marks Tey - Like the other village locations looks nice

being close the station/A12/A120 bonus. but the downside is the noise of trains/traffic and lack of shops within walking distance

Copford - As above

if you asked most local people where they would like to live, Copford and Layer de la Haye are top of the lists. fairly small villages, good schools and very few council/social housing and what there is, is privately owned, or is on the outskirts of the village, so segregated lol

Stanway - I like Stanway but its the poorest placed with regard to access to the railway

yes, stanway would be the most remote for walking to either station. prob slap bang between North Station and Marks Tey. but is has the best access links for public transport (on direct bus route for both marks tey and North Station) and you also dont get traffic jams like on the Northern side, as there are so many routes that head west out of the town. you also have all amenities in stanway, so 3 supermarkets within walking distance, library, favoured secondary school, etc.

Also the council housing is more or less all sold off, and the social housing is limited to about one road on the newer estates.

I have lived in most areas to the west and south and colchester and have finally settled in stanway. i just like having everything on my doorstep. direct bus links to just about anywhere in colchester (town/station/hospital), good schools, gym, play areas, diy shops, costa, takeaways, restaurants, etc. and the fact its just a big enough village that not everyone knows your business (unlike all the ones you mentioned above lol)

hth F

pinkteapot

I live in Mile End on the Turner Rise estate - the 1990s built houses - Peto Avenue and that area. Very handy for the station (I also commute) and superb bus service into town because it's on the road with the hospital. Other good thing about being on the road with the hospitals - pot holes get filled super-fast because the ambulance drivers complain about them.

I couldn't tell you where the social housing is around here and it's always peaceful (for an area this close to a town centre).

Having High Woods on your doorstep is lovely too.

Only concern I have with this area is the traffic congestion at the big junction around North Station/Asda. It is bad during rush hour and at peak times at the weekend (though no worse than some other bottlenecks in Colchester - the town has traffic issues). They're building more houses further out from town than us, but in this direction, so traffic will increase in the next few years.

If you look at the roads out from the station junction, I would hate to live up Bergholt Road because it has loads of parked cars up it and getting down the road towards the station is a real faff (compared to Turner Road / Northern Approach Road).

I would strongly recommend minimising the walk to the station and so wouldn't consider Stanway or even Copford personally. Parts of Marks Tey (the far end) are a real trek from that station too. Not sure what length of commute you're used to but doing it from Marks Tey/Colchester is long and really tiring. The husband and I both worked in London when we moved here. Now he works locally, I went down to 3 days a week in the city last year because the commute was getting to me, and I'm now leaving and looking for local work too.

Lexden is hugely expensive - it's near the grammar schools and has the town's top private schools. On a fixed budget you'd be looking at a far smaller house in Lexden than in this area. Depends on your budget.

moromir

Just a thought but if commuting is a must, would you not be better somewhere like Chelmsford or Ingatestone so that you're on the main train line? I could be wrong but isn't Colchester on a branch off line?

pinkteapot

Colchester North station is on the mainline. Colchester Town (shopper station) is a branchline. OP is looking at the right areas if he wants to live this far out.

pinkteapot

p.s. £300k will easily get you a 4-bed detached in the areas listed OP, except Lexden.