Post Reply
Talkback Home

family life and schools - Becky (26th Jun 2018  19:43:29) Hello Liphook I'm very interested in whats its like to live in Liphook and surrounding areas. The schools seem to be fabulous therefore very interested in an objective view of Secondary experiences Crime and safety? Traffic and speeding? I've grown up in South London North Kent and want more of a relaxed way of life for me and my husband (who commutes to London) and children. All feedback very welcome and thanks for letting me post here x

Re: family life and schools - Ian (26th Jun 2018  19:55:37) Great place to bring up a family! You will however need to filter/interpret the responses here carefully as likely to get a real mix of replies. Village is/has changed a lot and certain users of this forum are very hostile to change. Compared to many places life is good here

Re: family life and schools - Free For All (26th Jun 2018  21:49:55) I would take whatever responses you see on here with a pinch of salt. This forum has many deluded users who do not have a clue about everyday life.

Re: family life and schools - jack (26th Jun 2018  22:20:29) I lived in London for many years and now live in Liphook, comparatively things like Crime & Safety are massively better, you don't need to look over your shoulder in any part of Liphook at any time of the day, its village like life. Sure stuff happens but on a per 100 inhabitants scale its nothing like the levels of London or any other big city. Traffic via the center of the village can be poor at school times given the number of mini roundabouts and zebra crossings but again its barely London rush hour like and limited to the center of the village. Culture and variety it what it does not have over London (Guaranteed Liphook keyboard warrior provocation this is) but I mean the level of things to do and see that you only get in big cities, music art etc. If you like food its Chinese, Fish & Chips, 1 Decent Thai, Chinese, Microwave pub food in town, Chinese, Chinese and a few decent tea rooms and oh did I mention Chinese and one excellent Greek nearby. If your into Lebanese or indeed anything else then forget it. That said its not far to upmarket country locations or guildford for the hustle and bustle and you have lots of decent outdoors to roam around in. As the other poster says, anything hostile or negative on his forum you can safely ignore, its just some bed wetting rant from something that can type that you will never see, identify by name or hear from day to day in the real world of Liphook. Typically the online ranters appear to not like newer people but to be honest, I know many people face to face whom grew up in Liphook now and they are all very nice people, relaxed, friendly and helpful. I once told a group of kids to keep the noise down at 11pm in a nearby park, unlike London where they might have stabbed me and took selfies next to my body the kids here are generally polite, they said ok, sorry and made off. If you like Chinese, bad Chinese your sorted

Re: family life and schools - Karen (27th Jun 2018  09:12:12) I've lived here for 24 years now and my children went through all of the 3 local school which are very good. Village life ... I just love it .

Re: family life and schools - Paulette (27th Jun 2018  10:14:26) Where is the Greek restaurant?

Re: family life and schools - P Weyland (27th Jun 2018  10:22:32) Great place to live and have a family. You're not going to get everything in one package, be expected to drive out for cinemas, eating out etc.

Re: family life and schools - Steve (27th Jun 2018  10:25:04) We moved here three years ago with our two boys. We integrated really quickly - the boys play cricket, go to Cubs and feel part of the community. The pubs are great, lots of countryside and London is only little over an hour away when required. The schools are excellent. On the downside, yes - the traffic in the centre of the village is congested at school drop off and pick up but this is simply the way it is. On balance, we find Liphook to be an excellent balance between rural and urban living with genuinely nice people.

Re: family life and schools - liz (27th Jun 2018  10:50:48) Take no notice of Free for All - most people have a sense of humour! I grew up in the Liphook area and lived here for more years than I care to admit and people are generally very friendly and welcoming. I love it here (obviously). Liphook has very good schools which is a key attraction for families but I would say one of the main reasons for wanting to live here would be the beautiful surrounding countryside. We are very lucky to have everything from heath land to woodlands and the nearby South Downs (part of Liphook is within the South Downs National Park). You will find facilities very limited after London but there are decent swimming pools at Haslemere and Petersfield - and we are not very far from the coast. There are few restaurants but several takeaways (see above!) and some decent local pubs serving excellent food. Plenty of clubs and organisations for kids to join as mentioned but to be honest there is not much for teenagers. Fortunately the crime rate is very low and it quite safe to walk around at night. On the negative side the commute to London is not bad but the proposed timetable changes may mean having to change trains at Haslemere in the mornings to get a fast train to London so be aware. Traffic congestion is a real issue at peak school times and will no doubt continue to be a problem/get worse. Hope this helps!

Re: family life and schools - P please Bob (27th Jun 2018  14:17:23) I suspect, Liz, that the traffic congestion you mention in Liphook at school runs and peak times is an order of magnitude less than the poster currently experiences in South London. The analogy I use is that here, generally speaking, you can travel 60 miles in an hour whereas in London you're looking at more like 6 miles in an hour.

Re: family life and schools - Nic (27th Jun 2018  14:56:05) Hello! I moved here from South East London 18 months ago (probably the same Borough from your description - Bromley?!). It's been a culture shock, both good and sometimes not so good. Not so good first: 1) access to doctors and hospitals is not as easy. That's not a criticism of the medical services here, it's simply the number of them compared to those in London. 2) generally you do need to drive everywhere! Public transport is sparse and depending where you live there may not be a bus route within walking distance. 3) shopping is limited unless, again, you're willing to drive to lots of places (but Amazon delivers so ...!!). There's a Sainsbury's here and one newsagent, and all sorts of useful smaller shops. 4) internet is slower depending on which area you live in 5) there are (infrequent) power cuts! The good now: 1) you can see stars at night time! There's no orange glow in the sky - it actually gets dark! Really, really dark!! 2) the people are amazing - genuinely helpful and friendly. We needed lots of local trades people, and they are cheap (honestly!), reliable and so helpful. People aren't as stressed here and it shows. 3) I used to teach in Croydon and the schools here compared to there are worlds apart. The undercurrent of stress, fear for personal safety and dislike of authority just doesn't exist here (to clarify: individual young people will experience these issues here, but there are far fewer people experiencing them as a whole). Kids are allowed to be kids and are more "childlike" than they are in London. 4) rush hour! Oh it did make me chuckle when I was warned about the traffic and then experienced it. It's not great, but it's really not an issue. It lasts maybe 40 mins (not the 2 - 3 hours in London!). 5) space to breathe. It's just calmer all round! 6) Owls! You can hear owls at night time. And strangely the foxes are nowhere to be seen (and I think I've only ever heard a couple of foxes here, compared to the nightly chorus in London). All round, there's more wildlife and birdsong. Odd things: I didn't do my research in the area properly before I moved so had not appreciated that the military have ranges near Liphook. I've heard more gunshots here than I've ever heard in my life, but at least they're controlled. It's disconcerting for me! Also disconcerting for me personally, is the lack of diversity. I'll say no more because I don't want to open a can of worms!! Liphook is changing at the moment because of housing development and the apparent lack of development of infrastructure to support the people living in those homes. I suspect that that's not unique to Liphook, but it's an issue that is discussed a lot. This forum can (sometimes) make Liphook look like a bunch of NIMBYs , always whinging about change being bad, but real-life Liphook isn't like that at all. In summary - there are fewer people, it's less stressful and quieter!

Re: family life and schools - liz (27th Jun 2018  15:55:27) Amazon delivers but not groceries in our area. There is a Tesco in Bordon and one in Haslemere, M&S foodstores in Haslemere and Petersfield, Lidls in Bordon and Petersfield, Waitrose in Haslemere and Petersfield. Tesco, Sainsburys and Waitrose deliver of course. No Deliveroo, v. limited Uber and if you want a taxi at busy times you need to book. Very good fish on Saturdays and Wednesdays at Durleighmarsh Farm and of course loads of Pick Your Own veg and fruit in the area or veg box deliveries. We have excellent golf courses (I'm told) if that is your thing, a Champneys and even a Tesla supercharger!

Post Reply
Talkback Home