Where to live in Peterborough
Looking for a property in the East Midlands and considering where to live in Peterborough or where to live nearby to make the most of the excellent transport connections?
The East Midlands countryside is beautiful, the choice of schooling is excellent and there are some great market towns and villages in which to find a home if you’d prefer not to live in Peterborough itself.
However, for many, one of the more mundane but highly important reasons for deciding to move into the area around Peterborough is the fantastic commuter links. Indeed, there are on average 65 trains from Peterborough to London each weekday and with the fastest taking a mere 45 minutes to get to Kings Cross, buying a wonderful home in the area and daily commuting into the Capital is a genuine option – as long as the drive to the station is ideally restricted to say 15-20 minutes.
We often meet homebuyers who have decided to move here but are unsure where is best to look for a home to make regular travel to London a viable option. Of course, there are numerous reasons why one village or town may suit a family or couple better than another but here are some suggestions on where to live to have ready access to the train station for the Peterborough to London commute.
Where to live in Peterborough
Many buyers who move to the Peterborough area from the south often decide to take advantage of the attractive surrounding countryside and move to one of the nearby villages but if living in the city is a priority for you, then there are a number of areas which may be worth considering.
To the south of the city, Hampton is a growing modern housing estate which offers a variety of property types and sizes to suit every need and budget. Nearer the centre, the area around Thorpe Road and Longthorpe offers comfortable urban living in which some of the largest homes in the city are located, as does Orton Waterville. The latter is located near to Ferry Meadows with its acres of grassland, attractive river and extensive recreational facilities.
Best villages to live outside Peterborough
If you are keen to keep your commute time to an absolute minimum, the villages of Castor, Ailsworth and Alwalton are appealing and around 10 mins drive from the station. Some feel that they are little too close to Peterborough, but their convenience is unquestionable and there are some attractive housing options.
Further afield but still with very easy access to the station are Barnack, Bainton, Southorpe, Ashton, Sutton and Ufford, the latter being a particular favourite of mine with its Cotswold-look, popular pub and lively community.
Wansford’s proximity to the A1 deters some buyers but once in the village, the road is barely noticeable and the main street with its impressive stone bridge over the River Nene looks like a set from an episode of Pride and Prejudice. There are also a few shops, a doctor and dental surgery, the popular Haycock Hotel as well as some impressive houses, several with gardens reaching down to the river.
An under-appreciated advantage of these villages is that a late-night taxi from the station usually costs under £20 helping to make a night out in London a reasonable option.
Stamford as a commuter town
A few intrepid soles commute each day from Stamford (making the change at Peterborough). Whilst this clearly works for some, the choice of trains for the shorter leg is quite restricted and I have been told that on the few occasions that the connections have failed, the result is a most inconvenient -wait for an hour, persuade a loved one to pick you up or get a cab.
Stamford is a wonderful place to live and deemed to be worth the extra time commuting by many. Infrequent commuters might also find some of the Rutland villages and the villages near Stamford to be appealing.
The infrequent commuter to London
For those who don’t need to commute every day (or are hardier travellers!), the villages of Easton on the Hill, Empingham, Barrowden and Ketton are very popular Rutland villages, but the drive to the station approaches thirty minutes so are not ideal if you wish to be ‘door to door’ in under and an hour and a half.
In the same vein, Duddington, just south of Stamford is popular with young families and as is Greatford further north but growing in popularity. And whilst we are mentioning more northern villages high in demand, the beautiful village of Clipsham with its highly regarded ‘Olive Branch’ restaurant is very popular although you may decide to drive to Grantham station.
Where to choose?
Whilst drive time to Peterborough station is very important for the person doing the travelling, the truth of the matter is that it is only one of many factors homebuyers take into consideration when choosing where to live.
Deciding where to live is never an easy decision but it is made considerably harder if you are new to an area and have to weigh up a plethora of factors such as schooling, housing availability, local facilities, community spirit, future potential of an area to name but a few.
A local property finder who lives and works in this area can help you to prioritise what is important to you and advise which areas will match these most closely. We are not just about number of bedrooms nor how much you wish to spend. We look to understand how you plan to live in this area and then help you find and settle in the option available.
Professional property finders
It is very possible to work in London and live in the East Midlands, the Peterborough to London commute is one of the fastest and easiest options and there are some wonderful places to live nearby should you not want to live in the city itself. As professional property finders, we can assist with your search for a home and help with the process of deciding which area will work best for your commute, our services can prove especially useful when relocating to a new area.
If you would value some genuine local advice on where best to find your next commuter home, please do get in touch.
