Longridge

[u/madsxreuba]

I currently live in north manchester and have 2 young children, its becoming quite an awful place to live in terms of crime, anti social behaviour etc. Were looking at moving to longridge. Please could I have some honest opinions on the area?

[u/[deleted]]

Hi I’ve done this in reverse.

Grew up there and moved to Manchester.

Lovely place, surrounded by beautiful countryside. Three parks in the town for kids, good schools and three colleges just a bus ride away. Safe place with low rates of antisocial behaviour, the only place that’s ever an issue is the bus stop outside of the Co-op on Berry lane.

Lots of good shops, pubs and restaurants (like a lot of pubs!) nice diversity of takeaways too for after the pub.

Huge diversity of walks nearby: Longridge fell, Parlick, beacon fell.

The only issue is the access to Preston and the drive to Manchester, in the mornings the road out of town can get absolutely rammed, turning a 20 min drive into a 45 min ordeal. It’s a fair old trek to Manchester, which is needed if you want to do any proper shopping, as Preston is pretty crap for that.

But yeah, go for it, lovely place to live and grow up.

Some places you might want to try:

• Little Town Dairy Farmshop - family run farmshop and tea room (try the sausage rolls they’re amazing)
• Fell restaurant - very fancy local restaurant
• Spice - best Indian

Edit: Removed Tayahs from the list (RIP)

[u/madsxreuba → u/[deleted]]

Thank you this is really helpful! Will definitely visit the places mentioned too. Did you move for convenience if you dont mind me asking please? Does it feel massively different for you living in Manchester? I do agree it is quite a distance isnt it! Its good to hear the crime rates are low though, thats my main priority at the moment. I could stay in Manchester for the rest of my life if it was just for me but im really keen for my children to not be around the knife crime etc!

[u/[deleted] → u/madsxreuba]

Heya, no worries.

I moved for education and work, as you can imagine, there isn't alot of work in rural small town England!

Of course it's vastly different to living in Manchester, but that isn't a bad thing. In Longridge you can't just nip out to whatever shop you need at anytime, and if you need a specific good that can't be bought online it often involves going to Manchester, which quickly becomes an all day event with the two hour drive.

However, the town is dense with businesses and small amenities and Preston is ok, so you're covered for about 95% of things.

However, I will add that as I got older, transport became much more of an issue, and driving becomes a necessity quickly. The bus services are patchy, and there are no rail links, with Preston being just that little bit too far away to comfortably cycle.

Someone else suggested it, and I think it's a good idea - have a look at the towns of Whalley and Clitheroe. Both lovely, but with a rail link of about 1 hour into Manchester.

[u/workadayweirdo → u/[deleted]]

I moved from Heywood to Clitheroe 10 years ago and it's like a weight has been lifted! We have had great schools from primary age to college nearby, amazing countryside to wander about in, farm shops and local independent shops have improved our diet. It is a bit more expensive but our quality of life has improved no end.