Originally Posted by DrivingToyota

Hello everyone! This is my first post here. I am planning to move to the UK and have been researching for decent places to reside for some time. Currently, I prefer living in somewhere between Sheffield and Nottingham (i.e. I think that's mostly the area of Derbyshire) as I may be looking for a job in these two cities. I will be renting a house and my budget is around £1200 PCM.

I have shortlisted the following towns:

1. Chesterfield
2. Dronfield
3. Ripley
4. Belper
5. Duffield
These towns should be pretty safe and the rent is within my budget.

I have got two questions:

1. According to crime stats I found online, the town centre of Chesterfield is subpar. The crime rate was around 250 per 1000 people in 2022. Is Chesterfield really dangerous overall?

2. What are the other good places to live in Derbyshire?

Any input is much appreciated! Thank you!

Originally Posted by DrivingToyota

Hello everyone! This is my first post here. I am planning to move to the UK and have been researching for decent places to reside for some time. Currently, I prefer living in somewhere between Sheffield and Nottingham (i.e. I think that's mostly the area of Derbyshire) as I may be looking for a job in these two cities. I will be renting a house and my budget is around £1200 PCM.

I have shortlisted the following towns:

1. Chesterfield
2. Dronfield
3. Ripley
4. Belper
5. Duffield
These towns should be pretty safe and the rent is within my budget.

I have got two questions:

1. According to crime stats I found online, the town centre of Chesterfield is subpar. The crime rate was around 250 per 1000 people in 2022. Is Chesterfield really dangerous overall?

2. What are the other good places to live in Derbyshire?

Any input is much appreciated! Thank you![/QUOTE)

Hi, it’s all depends really on your budget as parts of Derbyshire ie the Peak District can be more expensive. Matlock and Matlock Bath are nice areas as is Ashbourne, Melbourne and Repton, Bakewell are very nice Chesterfield is okay ish there are lots of lovely villages but you have to be careful as Derbyshire only has the M1 which skirts on the fridges of Derbyshire so in some places traffic can get a little busy. It’s what you really want out of your move or market town, village being in the fridges of a city, for me Nottingham is nicer than Sheffield the M1 is an excellent link to that part of the world you drive past Derby, Nottingham,
Sheffield, Leeds then it becomes the gateway to North Yorkshire, further down you are heading towards London and drive through Leicestershire Northamptonshire, all these counties have very good bit and some “bad bits” but you are driving away from the industrial buildings of the North and into what I think are the “England before the Industrial Revolution” which for me being a very proud Northerner just love the various architecture we usually do not have especially in the North West.

Originally Posted by Pulaski

Road access can be a double-edged sword - major roads can bring traffic into an area that congests small towns with roads not designed for heavy traffic loads.

And on a related note, how do you feel about tourist traffic? Villages in the Peak District, and of course other areas of outstanding natural beauty, can attract a lot of traffic in the summer and weekends in spring and autumn.

Maybe somewhere like Dronfield would suit you better as an area to live, with the Peak District and Sheffield on your doorstep, but without the drawbacks of either.

Originally Posted by Chocolate eclair

I can second Repton and Melbourne, love the latter and I have a few friends who live there. There are lots of lovely places around Belper and the Amber Valley. Ashbourne area is one we are looking at to live when we return.
Ripley used to have a bit of a reputation when I used to work at Derby City General Hospital, now the Derby Royal. That's 17 years ago now.
All the best.

Originally Posted by SanDiegogirl

Originally Posted by brits1

Thank you and I will have a look at those towns. It seems I have overlooked the importance of highway connection.

Originally Posted by DrivingToyota

You could also look at Staffordshire as part of the county is also in the Peak District and is usually cheaper than the Derbyshire side of the district, you are not far from good links to the M6 which connects you to some of the cities in the west side of the country. I live in the Peak District (Derbyshire) and I can tell you that traffic can be bad as we have to cope with smaller roads but with more house building the population is rising hence so is the traffic ..a dual carriage way or bypass would help (never thought I would say that) sorry I forgot but do you need to commute for work? If not then you will not have that problem.

Originally Posted by Chocolate eclair

.... I'd avoid Matlock Bath, lots of tourists, bikers and less savoury stuff sadly.

Originally Posted by DrivingToyota

You could also look at Staffordshire as part of the county is also in the Peak District and is usually cheaper than the Derbyshire side of the district, you are not far from good links to the M6 which connects you to some of the cities in the west side of the country. I live in the Peak District (Derbyshire) and I can tell you that traffic can be bad as we have to cope with smaller roads but with more house building the population is rising hence so is the traffic ..a dual carriage way or bypass would help (never thought I would say that) sorry I forgot but do you need to commute for work? If not then you will not have that problem.

Originally Posted by brits1

I think the OP is wanting to go more to the north-east of where you and I are suggesting Brits1. We used to live in Stapenhill, Burton-upon-Trent which was a great place to be. Used to go the back way through Bretby, Repton and Willington to Derby. Took the A50 from the Toyota roundabout to head to Nottingham. Used to go for lectures at either the QMC (nightmare to get to and park) or Nottingham City Hospital.
To the OP, consider areas around Alfreton, Tibshelf, Ridding, Somercotes. I'd avoid Matlock Bath, lots of tourists, bikers and less savoury stuff sadly.

Originally Posted by Pulaski

I'm not sure how it happened, but somehow Matlock Bath became the "Blackpool of spa towns". But whatever caused it, it happened a long time ago - it was already trashy when I lived in Sheffield as a child.