Relocating suggestion- midlands

kerrieberry2

kerrieberry2

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Hey guys

Having what i can only describe as a midlife crisis

Currently living in south of England and have a great job, nice house etc but the cost of living is beyond ridiculous

Im seriously considering giving it all up and moving more towards the midlands

So I wondered if anyone had any suggestions on areas that have good hacking, access to bridleways.
Yards that still offer diy.

I have family in Telford and Leominster, so have been thinking west midlands but know nothing about these areas for horses
 
kerrieberry2 said:
Hey guys

Having what i can only describe as a midlife crisis

Currently living in south of England and have a great job, nice house etc but the cost of living is beyond ridiculous

Im seriously considering giving it all up and moving more towards the midlands

So I wondered if anyone had any suggestions on areas that have good hacking, access to bridleways.
Yards that still offer diy.

I have family in Telford and Leominster, so have been thinking west midlands but know nothing about these areas for horses
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Leominster isn’t great for bridlepaths or yards!! Very few livery yards at all, I live near here and am struggling to find something! The majority of horse owners here have their own places so it’s almost impossible to find decent livery.

There are some forestry places you can ride round but bridlepaths are non existent! Such a shame in such a rural area. I would explore Telford area more
 
I moved to Warwickshire (Warwick/Solihull) from the south east. Hacking is lanes and mainly bridlepaths that largely lead to main roads - not the best. I was gutted having left some amazing hacking on the South Downs!
 
Areas of south Shropshire have amazing hacking such as Mortimer Forest or the Long Mynd. Bridleway coverage is patchy, although there is the Jack Mytton way. There's a woman locally who is doing a guide to all the bridleways in Shropshire- a definite labour of love!
Riding clubs are pretty active, some more competitive than others. Livery yard coverage is patchy - there's a market for more if any one wanted to set one up!
Well supplied with good vets, farriers and other support services.

Not a huge supply of affiliated competition without travel but reasonably good supply of u/a.

Telford area more accessible to the outside world (some may see that as a positive!) Ground can be sandier in the surrounding countryside so better chance of all year turnout. Some decent/basic livery yards - no idea about the hacking but I'd expect faster traffic, being closer to the M54 etc.
Edited for typos

Exciting times!
 
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As SEL. If you can find somewhere with access to Cannock Chase then the hacking is fantastic.

Combine a scouting trip with booking a 2 hour ride at Cannock Chase trekking centre who have direct access to the Chase and you’ll get an idea. They have fabulous horses too, to suit all abilities. They don’t do livery, but it’ll show you the area.
 
spacefaer said:
Areas of south Shropshire have amazing hacking such as Mortimer Forest or the Long Mynd. Bridleway coverage is patchy, although there is the Jack Mytton way. There's a woman locally who is doing a guide to all the bridleways in Shropshire- a definite labour of love!
Riding clubs are pretty active, some more competitive than others. Livery yard coverage is patchy - there's a market for more if any one wanted to set one up!
Well supplied with good vets, farriers and other support services.

Not a huge supply of affiliated competition without travel but reasonably good supply of u/a.

Telford area more accessible to the putsoe world (some may see that as a positive!) Ground can be handier in the surrounding countryside so better chance of all year turnout. Some decent/basic livery yards - noidwa about the hacking but I'd expect faster traffic, being closer to the M54 etc.

Exciting times!
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You’ve summed the area up perfectly!! Yes riding clubs are very active in the area and yes there is a good drive to the bigger competition venues.

Wish we’d known before we moved here, had a break from horses and that wasn’t really in my mind when we moved here but have gotten back into it since Covid and wish we’d picked a better area!
 
thanks guys will so a bit of research on these areas and have a look on right move.

where I am, we have only road hacking, if I want to get to a byway I have to hack 40 mins, crossing the A30, and over the M3 motorway bridge! by the time we get to the off road riding, we have one canter then come back, otherwise we'd be out for 3-4 hours! so we don't do that much!

lots to think about :)
 
kerrieberry2 said:
where I am, we have only road hacking, if I want to get to a byway I have to hack 40 mins, crossing the A30, and over the M3 motorway bridge! by the time we get to the off road riding, we have one canter then come back, otherwise we'd be out for 3-4 hours! so we don't do that much!
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That's a pretty low baseline isn't it! I'm sure there'll be plenty of places where you can do better than that. Best of luck making a viable plan
:)
 
Are you looking to buy a house with land or would you be looking for livery? Hereford and Worcestershire are quite cheap for houses with land, Staffordshire even cheaper.

We live South West/Midlands and we ended up compromising for a great location, half an hour from lots of towns/cities but totally rural, horses are kept in a field next to the house and stables in the garden. Next move we will hopefully get our own land and I can start horse collecting with abandon...
 
the dream would be to buy a house with land but realistically I probably can't afford that on my own! I have seen a yard for sale near my grandad which I could afford, then I could buy a small house near by but doesn't sound like the hacking would be that good in that area!
so probably looking at getting a house and staying on livery. that way I could eventually look at moving to work in Birmingham or somewhere similar
 
SEL said:
Cannock Chase. I rode around there for years before we moved south & it has great riding. Lots of livery yards on the edge of it too. Cannock itself isn't great but there are nice villages around.
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I worked in Cannock for a number of years. I always felt safe there and the people are welcoming. Cannock Wood, Gentleshaw, Little Hayward and Brockton are lovely villages with excellent access to the chase.
 
Bobthecob15 said:
You’ve summed the area up perfectly!! Yes riding clubs are very active in the area and yes there is a good drive to the bigger competition venues.

Wish we’d known before we moved here, had a break from horses and that wasn’t really in my mind when we moved here but have gotten back into it since Covid and wish we’d picked a better area!
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We were lucky in that we had family in the area when we moved here. So we didn't have a choice but landed on our feet, so to speak.
 
Worcestershire is not cheap for houses, it is expensive and desirable due to the motorway system. West of the river Severn you get more for your money. Worcestershire has surprisingly good bridlepath networks in places, but you are always having to cross main roads, and as in other places, the lanes are becoming busier, thanks to Amazon man. There is the Wyre Forest in the north, which is close to Kidderminster.

I have always heard that Herefordshire isn't great for bridlepaths, and as far as I know there isn't even a bridlepath association.
 
spotty_pony2 said:
Another vote for Leicestershire or Rutland. Miles of off road riding and plenty of competition venues on your doorstep. I'm in Lincolnshire now which is also not bad for riding but more arable/field margins with a few bridleways.
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Yep did a ' bridle rides' holiday around Rutland, took in Oakham, Uppingham, Normanton, Egerton and Whitwell, lots of bridlepaths and national cycle paths.
 
Worcestershire-wise, I have just moved from the Wyre Forest having lived there about 10 years. As others say above, it is a very good horsey area - lots of livery yards, plenty of services/helpful farmers etc, competition venues and multiple xc courses within easy reach and good hacking on the forest (as long as you/horse are forest side of the A456).

If your goal is to be commutable to Birmingham eventually it is probably also the furthest west you would want to be. The trains from Kidderminster to Birmingham are good.

However, it is a lot busier traffic-wise now than it was 5-6 years ago. There has been a lot of house building around there since covid, with Bewdley, Stourport and Kidderminster having only about one field left separating one from the other. I should think Bewdley and Kidderminster will be fully connected and just a single urban sprawl within the next 5 years. Out on the other side of Bewdley (forest side), areas that felt rural 6 years ago now feel like suburbia, with some villages doubling in size with the house building. Plus, property prices have got quite a bit more expensive.

That's why we moved out from that area. Sold the smallholding to city money, just like all the others around us had been in recent years. Still a very good horsey area though. Plus house prices in town (either of the three) are still pretty reasonable, and the busyness is no worse than most areas of the south east.
 
If you did go for the Cannock Chase area, I’d suggest looking at Penkridge. One of my riding buddies moved there about three years ago (partly to be closer to the trekking centre where we both ride), and she and her husband love it.

Oh, and there’s also good access to the M6 for getting to Birmingham.
 
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