If you are considering moving to Cheltenham then you are likely to ask the question, is Cheltenham a good place to live?

Cheltenham prides herself in having very good schools, great transport links and being the Centre of the Cotswold. These factors make Cheltenham popular with families and a good place to live.

As well, Cheltenham is the most complete Regency Town in Britain.

When you are thinking about moving to a new area, it is often wise to check with people that have experience living in the area you will like to move to.

For more than 3 years we’ve been living about 8 miles away from Cheltenham. I work in Cheltenham and so also does my wife. Our boys attend school in Cheltenham.

Also, we regularly attend the Sunday celebration at Trinity Church in Cheltenham.

The reason why we don’t live in Cheltenham is just that the house prices are too pricey.

We do have friends in Cheltenham who we visit regularly so we really know our way around Cheltenham.

As we regularly go to Cheltenham and are in constant communication with people who live in Cheltenham, I can give you my thoughts and experience of Cheltenham.

 

Family Living

Cheltenham is a very family-friendly town. There are a lot of play areas and green spaces where kids can play. The most popular one is the Pitville Park play area.

Pitville Park play area is very big with a variety of activities to do. They have a little cafe where a cold and hot drink can be bought, as well as snacks.

Cheltenham crime rate is low compared to a lot of towns of its size in the UK.

The average crime rate recorded in Cheltenham was 62.37. This figure is lower than the UK average which is 67.81.

The figure above might not be telling the true story. I think Cheltenham is much safer than the data suggest. There are some rough areas in Cheltenham but there are more good areas than the bad ones.

Just like any town or city you go, there will always be the nice and the not too nice areas.

As well, the crime rate in Cheltenham is lower than that of Gloucester.

With the low crime rate compared to the UK average, Cheltenham is a good place to raise children.

I shot some photos at Montpellier Park with my two boys, in one of the photos below you will see a black camera bag on the park chair. We forgot to take the bag with us. We left the park and was close to where we park our car when I suddenly realised we left the bag at the pack. On our return to the park, the bag was still there on the chair we left it.

This is a good example of how safe Cheltenham is.

Parks, Gardens and Open spaces

Transportation

Cheltenham is not different from a lot of other British towns in terms have transportation.

Just like most British towns, Cheltenham Royal Well Bus and Coach Station is located in the centre of the town.

It offers good local bus connections around town, to the railway station and beyond Cheltenham.

If you are someone like me that don’t like driving, you will be fine because the bus service is easily accessible in Cheltenham and run regularly.

The Cheltenham railway station is also located close to the town centre, it is about 1 mile to the town centre.

The train station is on Bristol-to-Birmingham Main Line, it runs regularl

y moving people to various location throughout the UK.

Its an hour and a half to Cardiff in the west, and two hours and ten minutes to London Paddington to the east.

The train station is about 10min walk from the Cheltenham main shopping and leisure area. From the Racecourse, its a 40-minute bus journey away.

The M5 motorway is located close to Cheltenham which makes commuting easy for people working outside Cheltenham. The M5 motorway is also very useful for easily moving in and out of Cheltenham.

Through Junction 10 and 11 you can get into Cheltenham and you can be out through Junction 11.

From Cheltenham, you can easily visit many of the quintessentially English Cotswold villages. As someone who lives in the area, I do enjoy travelling with our boys to the Cotswolds villages because of easy access from Cheltenham whenever we are around Cheltenham.

 

Festivals

Cheltenham is the home of festivals. The biggest of all the festival is the one that takes place at the Cheltenham Racecourse in March of every year.

I remember attending the festival a few years ago and it was a very great experience for me. I definitely enjoyed the atmosphere.

There are other festivals in Cheltenham which will depend on your interest.

I love the science festival and the literature festival. As a family man, I take our boys to these festivals and it’s very great to participate in some of the science activities at the science festival.

Schools around the area also take their pupils to the science and literature festivals.

There are other festivals like the Jazz festival which people that love music will enjoy. For food lovers, you will feel delighted about the Food Festivals which include the Chili festival.

 

Leisure and Shopping

My first impression of Cheltenham shopping centre was a very positive one. Cheltenham is the centre of the Cotswold which host people from all around the Cotswold.

You will fall in love with the Promenade. It was listed by Google as one of the best shopping streets in the UK.

Montpellier Arcade is one of the oldest purpose-built shopping arcades in England.

There are a lot of other shopping areas within the Cheltenham Town Centre. If you move to Cheltenham or on a visit, you could consider The Promenade, Montpellier, The Suffolks and Bath Road.

There are high-quality local shops which sell quality products. And if you are looking for the well known established brands, you will find them in Cheltenham shopping area.

 

The Architecture

There is no doubt that Cheltenham is the most complete Regency Town in Britain.

The wrought-iron veranda and balcony and the facades are just some of the evidence of the Regency era architecture that can still be seen in Cheltenham today.

Some of the evidence of the Regency Architecture in Cheltenham is the Georgian style of the townhouse on Royal Crescent, St Georges House Bayshill Road, Cheltenham municipal offices and a lot of other buildings.

The amazing architecture and the historic buildings in Cheltenham makes it popular with affluent people. Ordinary people like myself are also welcome in Cheltenham so if you are thinking about living in Cheltenham you will love the Regency Architecture in Cheltenham.

Healthcare

The National Health Authority (NHS) is the primary provider of healthcare in the UK. There is an NHS Hospital in Cheltenham which is close to the centre of the town on Sandford Road.

Cheltenham General Hospital mainly serves people of Cheltenham and surroundings. There is also Gloucestershire General Hospital which is about 8miles from Cheltenham. Gloucestershire Royal Hospital is bigger than Cheltenham General Hospital.

There are also other private healthcare providers who have a hospital or clinic in Cheltenham. Among them are Nuffield Health and Spire Healthcare.

Restaurant

In my household, we do a lot of cooking at home so we do not eat out that much. However, we do treat to other delicacies by sometimes eating out.

There are a variety of restaurants in Cheltenham depending on your budget.

If you are looking for fine restaurants you could try one of the following Lumiere, Prithvi (upmarket Indian restaurant), Grill 49.

If you are on a low budget, the majority of the big supermarket also have good food. We have tried the one at Waitrose at Honeybourne Way, which as at the time of writing this blog post has just been refurbished and it is very neat and beautiful.

You could also try the one at Morrisons at Up Heatley.

 

Pub

As an immigrant in the UK, one of the first things I noticed is the British love for pubs. Actually, I first found out about the word pub on a scrabble board back in my home country. On my arrival in the UK, one of the things I was looking forward to is seeing what a pub look like.

You might be looking for nice pubs if you visit Cheltenham or thinking about living in Cheltenham. Few of the most charming pubs in Cheltenham are The Beehive, Montpellier Villas, The Vine, High Street, Wild Beer at Jessop House, Cambray Place.

You might want to consider looking at the list of 12 of the most charming Pubs in Cheltenham here.

Place of Worship

If religion is your thing and you’re interested in where to worship in Cheltenham. You might want to consider the Trinity, Cheltenham which is at the heart of Cheltenham.

Perhaps I am biased because I attend Trinity myself. Seriously, Trinity is a great church which you will love. The band is great and I do enjoy the celebration every Sunday at Cheltenham.

One of the things I love at Trinity is the kid’s church where children are divided into various school years. This help kids to learn age-appropriate values. They also have times when all the children regardless of age have big worship together.

Trinity is a very family-friendly church and there is something for everyone regardless of marital status or age. And there is a youth group for young adults.

Trinity isn’t the only church in Cheltenham. There are a lot of other churches you might want to consider.

 

Many people wonder what makes Bibury famous. Perhaps Bibury is famous because its “the most beautiful village in England” according to the 19th-century artist and craftsman William Morris.

Bibury is one of the prominent Cotswold villages in England.

Another reason why Bibury is famous is that its located in the Cotswold.

The thought of visiting Bibury was initiated by a work colleague who her husband and son are fishing enthusiast. It wasn’t until 2 years after my colleague told me about Bibury before I visited with our boys.

We visited in the summer in August.

As we have already visited one of the Cotswold villages Bourton on the Water before I was not entirely surprised to see the Cotswold Stone Houses.

After our visit, I read a bit about Bibury because I love the uniqueness of the village and the history.

The most notable of all the houses in Bibury is the honey-coloured 17th-century stone cottages with steeply pitched roofs.

The history of the cottages dates back to 1380 when it was built as a monastic wool store. It once housed weavers who supplied cloth for fulling at nearby Arlington Mill.

In 1883, George Witts wrote about the discovery of the Bibury Roman villa. Below is extracted from his write up.

“In the year 1880 a Roman villa was accidentally discovered in the parish of Bibury, about six miles northeast of Cirencester. In the discovery were some coins, Roman pottery, remnants of tessellated pavements, etc., were found, but since there hasn’t been an examination, no description of the building can be given.”

Attractions

We were only able to visit the Bibury Trout Farm and Arlington Row. We later found out there are other attractions in Bibury which include the Saxon Church, the Church of St Mary.

I have to say that the village is very small and the above-mentioned attractions are the major places to see in Bibury. After all, its a village.

Bibury Trout Farm

The Bibury Trout Farm have Fresh Trout available for purchase throughout the year. They also supply whole, filleted or smoked brown or rainbow trout.

The Bibury Trout Farm was founded in 1902 and is one of England’s oldest working trout farms set in the historic village of Bibury, in the heart of the beautiful Cotswolds.

It was founded by the famous naturalist Arthur Severn to stock the local rivers and streams with the native Brown Trout.

It covers 15 acres in one of the most beautiful valleys in the Cotswolds. The hatchery which spawns up to 6 million trout ova every year.

Our boys enjoyed the visit and we took part in the ‘Catch Your Own’. These usually take place between March and October.

It was really fun to catch fish fresh from the water. It was our first time catching fish from the water. They provided us with all the basic equipment to catch fish. One of the staffs did a demo of our to use the fishing equipment for us

They also helped us when we needed help while fishing. It was fun and I would recommend it as a family day out.

The Trout Farm has a cafe where you can seat and have a cold or hot drink and snack. They also have ice cream.

As well, they have a small shop where you can buy memorabilia.

READ MORE

• Best Places To Visit In The Cotswold

Arlington Row Bibury

When you arrive at Arlington Row, you will not be surprised why it’s one of England’s most iconic and photographed places.

You will literarily see a lot of people taking photos around it especially from the elevated part.

Personally, I think the major reason why it’s very popular with tourists is because of its history.

The postcard worthy Arlington Row cottages were constructed in 1380 as a monastic wool store. It has a strong link with Arlington Mill because the cloth produced there was sent to Arlington Mill on the other side of Rack Isle.

The original structures were converted into a row of weavers’ cottages in the 17th century.

The stone construction and the steeply pitched roofs make the cottages unique and famous.

The question of ‘Why is Cheltenham so expensive?’ is a valid question to ask and most people ask this question. Some people also ask ‘Why is Cheltenham posh?’

There are many factors responsible for this. Some of the factors are Regency-era factor, festival factor, affluent factor, good school factor and Cotswold Factor.

In this article, I want to look at each one of these factors. Stay with me and I will go into details of each of these factors.

Let’s have a little bit of background before going further to each of the factors responsible for the reason why Cheltenham is so expensive.

I live about 8 miles to the historic town of Cheltenham.

I have been living in this area since December of 2016 when we moved from the incredible Great Malvern town in Worcestershire that is known for the picturesque Malvern Hills.

It is obvious that it is expensive to live in Cheltenham.

When we talk about Cheltenham being expensive, I like to focus on houses because an expensive town or city always starts from the price of houses.

Housing cost is usually the bulk of anyone’s monthly expenses especially if you do not own your house outright.

As at the time of writing this article according to Zoopla, the average House prices in Cheltenham stand at £366,948. UK average stands at £316,131.

It is not a surprise to me that House price in Cheltenham is £50,817 more than the UK average. Gloucester House prices in Gloucester stand at £245,297.

You can see you are likely to pay up to £100,000 more for the house if you decided to live in Cheltenham instead of Gloucester.

In the real sense, Cheltenham and Gloucester are just about 8 miles apart.

It is obvious that Cheltenham houses are more pricy than those in Gloucester.

REGENCY ERA AND SPA

The regency era was the period in British history when there were a lot of achievements in art and music, literature, science and architecture.

The effect of the Regency era can still be felt in Cheltenham today and this is a big factor in the reason why it is expensive to live in Cheltenham.

If you look around Cheltenham you will see that it is the difference from a lot of towns and cities in the UK in terms of the character and the feel of the town.

I have been to Bath, which is another Regency spa city.

The fact remains that Cheltenham is the ‘most complete regency town in Britain’. The regency architecture is very obvious to see in Cheltenham.

The facades and ironwork balconies are all examples of the regency architecture.

Those rows of terraces are pricey because of their history and character.

If you have expensive houses in an area, you can bet that the houses close to it will also be expensive.

Even if new homes will be constructed, the price of the houses nearby will affect the price of the new ones.

This is why I am not surprised that the new homes been build in Prestbury, Leckampton and other areas of Cheltenham are also expensive.

As well, Cheltenham has a history of being a spa town.

The discovery of the mineral spring in 1716 made Cheltenham popular. People used to come as far as London to come and relax in Cheltenham.

The visit of King George III with royal princes and princess established the reputation of Cheltenham as a Spa town for relaxation and recreation.

Cheltenham is still a great spa town.

This guide will help you find the best place to live in the Cotswold.

The DoubleTree hotel is one of the best spa hotels in the area.

So, the effect of the Regency era and spa still have an impact on the lure of living in Cheltenham. This means house prices will be high because of the law of supply and demand.

THE FESTIVALS

When people talk about Cheltenham, the first thing people talk about is the Cheltenham Races.

The Cheltenham Horse Race Festival is actually not the only festival that usually takes place annually.

There are other festivals like the Jazz Festival, Science Festival and The Literature Festival.

There is no doubt the Cheltenham Race Festival is the most popular of all the festivals. However, it depends on your interest because the other festivals also do pull the crowd.

When you have all these festivals that people come from near and far to attend, there is no way it will not have an effect on the price of houses and cost of living.

The Cheltenham Festival at the Cheltenham Racecourse takes place annually in March.

The Gold cup is usually the climax of the races in Cheltenham. The attendance in March on Gold Cup came to 71,816, a new record for the last day of The Festival, as against 70,684 in 2018.

GOOD SCHOOLS AND GRAMMAR SCHOOL

One of the things Cheltenham is known for is good schools. Every parent wants their children to go to good schools where they can be trained to become a responsible adult that will make a meaningful contribution to society.

Cheltenham is full of these outstanding schools. The notable one is Pate’s Grammar School that is not just one of the top schools in Cheltenham but one of the best schools in England.

Pate’s OFSTED rating is not outstanding but ‘Beyond Outstanding’ which not a lot of school in England have that rating.

It worth mention that Pate’s Grammar School is a selective school.

Children need to pass an exam and meet selection criteria to be able to gain admission to Pate’s.

Its not just Pate’s, there is also Balcarras School that is also a highly rated school in the area.

A lot of the primary schools are also very good school where children are thought in a very good environment.

As families moving to Cheltenham to get their children to these good schools this will put the price of properties up because of high demand.

COTSWOLD FACTOR AND GREEN BELT

Cotswold area is one of the affluent areas in the UK. It boasts as one of the areas in the UK that are rated highly as a good place to live. Cheltenham pride herself as the centre of the Cotswolds.

The Cotswold traditional consists of a lot of villages that are traditional British villages.

These villages have not had a lot of changes to them for many years because of planning law that discourages newly built homes in those areas.

As well, Cotswold villages are mainly within the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. (AONB).

Find out about the prettiest Cotswold villages here.

Basically AONB is a preserved area because of their landscape and wildlife quality.

It means it will take you to jump a lot of hoops to get approval to build a new house. Another thing to consider is the Green Belt.

This one relates to the British Planning Law.

The main aim of the green belt in the UK is to control urban growth.

Local Authority Planning Departments usually resist developments within the green belt to protect the countryside.

Government use green belt policy to preserve agriculture lands, forestry and outdoor leisure areas.

Literarily Cheltenham is surrounded by Green Belt and Cotswold AONB which makes it difficult to find land to build new homes for the ever-growing population.

The Cotswold AONB and the green belt are a big factor in the prices of houses in Cheltenham.

As well, Cheltenham is close to the traditional Cotswolds villages that are very expensive to live in, this also affects the prices of houses in Cheltenham.

AFFLUENT FACTOR

Cheltenham is known for being an affluent town.

To be honest there is a feeling of opulence in Cheltenham when you consider the fact that there are a lot of shops that you will not normally find in every town.

You can find the best places to visit in the Cotswolds here.

There is the new John Lewis that just opened on the High Street.

John Lewis is usually a symbol of status.

Perhaps not everyone will agree with this assumption.

The fact remains that you can see Argos or Primark in every town and city but you will not usually see John Lewis in every town or city.

You won’t find auto dealer showroom where you can buy Ferrari and other specialist supercars in every town and city.

There are autodialers selling supercars in Cheltenham.

For me, I think these are signs of affluent town. Of course, you can argue that people will be travelling from all over the Cotswold area to shop in Cheltenham.

This is because of Cheltenham more or less the centre of Cotswold. Actually I first heard about Cheltenham when I was living in Worcester years ago.

First, somebody told me he was going to Cheltenham for shopping from Worcester and another friend made me aware of the Cheltenham Festival.

My first visit to Cheltenham was to see the Races in March of 2008.

The point is making is that people travelling to Cheltenham for various leisure purposes are surely contributing to the economy and prosperity of Cheltenham.

If Cheltenham is an affluent town, you can expect house price to be high and always on the rise.

It is worth mentioning that you won’t find a lot of well-paid jobs in Cheltenham. I know people that travel to London to work from Cheltenham.

If they get the same time of job with close enough salary in the Cheltenham area, I am sure they will make the switch.

Part of the issues with high housing prices in Cheltenham area might be people coming from more expensive areas.

An example will be people that sell their house in London and move to Cheltenham.

Surely people like that will price local people out of the market.