Looking for info on these smaller UK comunities

amother

Mon, Aug 14 2023, 2:49 pm

Oxford
Welwyn Garden City
Staines
Luton
Peterborough
St Albans

I'm looking for any kind of information but especially what the area is like to live in and the availability of affordable housing.

Oxford is the only place I have previously visited and I know the area where the shul is located is extremely expensive but I don't know if there is any more affordable housing within a reasonable distance.

amother

Leaf

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 12:26 am

amother OP wrote:

Of those places, the one that jumps out at me that I would not want to live in is Luton. It’s not the nicest area at all, but maybe there are parts of it that are more pleasant. The housing is probably pretty affordable though.

Are you from the Uk and relocating or coming in from abroad?

amother

Milk

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 2:04 am

This is not the place to look for this information. People on this site are not going to be living in these places. They may have US shuls or Chabad but there are no Jewish communities apart from Oxford which is a university town so is very busy during term and pretty dead in the holidays.

amother

Papayawhip

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 2:08 am

In terms of commute and schools WGC is the best option. Meant to be up and coming. And most of those options are more affordable than hendon/gg/edgware. The new thameslink could even go from there and then schools in Brent like Torah temimah or Menorah high would be very commutable.
However we don't know if OP even has children of school age so all this could be irrelevant

amother

RosePink

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 2:41 am

I would really suggest talking to the frum people who live in those places. For example the Chabad in Oxford could probably help you with those questions.

They aare all tiny communities so people here are unlikely to know much about them.

I have been to Oxford a few times, its not just students, there are Jewish academics and postgrads as well. But still pretty small and the shul is a really interesting setup of Orthodox and non Orthodox and not everyone is happy with the mechitza. Regarding housing, maybe the area where the shluchim live (Cowley Road) is a bit cheaper?

s c

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 2:50 am

As mentioned above, I don't think anyone on this site will really know anything about these communities. Why don't you contact the rabbonim of the United synagogues or chabad shuls in these areas and they'll be dealing with all these issues themselves like food, schools, mikvahs, social situation for their kids etc. I'm sure they would be helpful if they know that a frum person is looking to relocate .

amother

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 3:30 am

amother Leaf wrote:

I'm originally from the UK but have lived abroad for many years.

I also have pre-conceived ideas about Luton not being very nice but never having spent time there other than at the airport, that is perhaps unfair. Sometimes, places with bad reputations are actually up and coming. Other times they're on a downward trend.

Similarly, St Albans is reputed to be very nice but also expensive. I'm wondering if there are areas there that are more affordable that are also within reasonable distance of the shul.

I do have some familiarity with Oxford. The community would be OK for us, there is actually quite a lot going on there but wondering about affordable housing. I also have a couple of contacts there but am not ready to announce our possible relocation.

I realise that there are not likely to many if anyone on this site from those places but thought it was worth asking in case anyone had relocated to larger communities from there (I have friends in London who relocated from Leicester for example), had relatives there or had ever visited for any reason. It is not inconceivable that someone here might know something, at least about the city, but I will also look for other places to ask.

Interesting to read the comment about WGC.

amother

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 5:58 am

amother Mintgreen wrote:

Have you thought about Borehamwood/Elstree? I think they have affordable housing and they have a frum community. It's also not very far from Edgware.

It's on our radar but I think a smaller community would suit us better.

Do you know what the community is like there?

amother

Leaf

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 6:45 am

amother OP wrote:

It's on our radar but I think a smaller community would suit us better.

Do you know what the community is like there?

The communities you have mentioned, as far as the frum aspect would be miniscule. The modern orthodox aspect might be larger but not massive in any of them I don’t think. Don’t forget that modern orthodox here is very different to in the US.

None of these places have kosher shops as far as I am aware other than the small supplies the shuls may sell. The supermarkets wouldn’t necessarily have kosher sections either so you would be limited to what is on the klbd list for supplies locally.

Call the shuls- they will give you the best information.

Borehamwood is a large Jewish community, mostly United Synagogue. Elstree is smaller but both are not places I would think of having affordable housing. Edgware is a very large frum community and housing is cheaper but not Luton cheap!

Take a look on rightmove or zoopla to get a feel for house prices.

amother

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 1:16 pm

amother Leaf wrote:

I've never been to the US so I'm not sure what MO means there but I'm OK with what it means in the UK Wink

amother Leaf wrote:

None of these places have kosher shops as far as I am aware other than the small supplies the shuls may sell. The supermarkets wouldn’t necessarily have kosher sections either so you would be limited to what is on the klbd list for supplies locally.

I think we'd be OK with that. I'm sure there are delivery services in all the places so for meat for example we'd make a large order once a month and freeze it. We do the same where we live now even though we're right next to a kosher butcher and there are several kosher stores close by.

amother Leaf wrote:

Call the shuls- they will give you the best information.

I may do that further down the line when we've narrowed the search down.

amother Leaf wrote:

Borehamwood is a large Jewish community, mostly United Synagogue. Elstree is smaller but both are not places I would think of having affordable housing. Edgware is a very large frum community and housing is cheaper but not Luton cheap!

I'm familiar with Edgware. It's more expensive than Borehamwood and Elstree though isn't it?

amother Leaf wrote:

Take a look on rightmove or zoopla to get a feel for house prices.

I was originally looking at Richmond and Kingston until those websites informed me that the only thing we could afford is a boat LOL

amother

Leaf

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 1:28 pm

amother OP wrote:

I was originally looking at Richmond and Kingston until those websites informed me that the only thing we could afford is a boat LOL

Lol! House boats along the canal are nice though!!

I would have thought Edgware is cheaper than elstree but I don’t know- Elstree is nicer though I find.

Sounds like you have thought about all aspects of living away from large communities! Choose the quietest nicest place you can afford and it should be with good Mazal!

amother

Dahlia

Tue, Aug 15 2023, 1:40 pm

amother Leaf wrote:

Edgware is closer to central London and has better access via tube where as Elstree doesn't have the tube.

amother

Wed, Aug 16 2023, 8:59 am

I have to say I had thought about Edgware and Borehamwood but not Elstree so I'll look into that further.

I thought that people went to Edgware as a cheaper alternative to GG and Hendon but when that got more expensive, people moved even further out to Borehamwood. That's why I thought Borehamwood was cheaper than Edgware but having looked on rightmove the prices seem comparable in both places. Not sure if there are certain roads in either place to either aim for or avoid. That might impact the price. Elstree looks to be either more expensive or has fewer properties for sale.