WE’RE MOVING TO STROUD

It’s been months since we first started looking further afield than Bristol for our new home and firmly decided we didn’t need to look any further than Stroud. The second house we viewed seemed too good to be true and, after a second look to be sure, we put in an offer and, well, a long story short… We’re moving to Stroud!

I’ve not wanted to get my hopes up too much. (Especially as we had a bump in the road with our original buyers pulling out). But now we’ve exchanged contracts, I’m letting myself get excited.

When we were searching for a new family home, I started to use Google Earth to look at the topography of places around the South West. It was the hills and valleys of Stroud that first caught my attention. (Later, I would discover Stroud is famous for its five valleys). A keen trail runner, the appeal of living with an area of outstanding natural beauty on the doorstop piqued my interest. And the more we found out, the more we liked. The history of rebellion, the schools, the market — it felt like somewhere we could belong.

Our lives have changed since our daughter, who I’ll abbreviate and obfuscate to H, was born. As the pub outings, gigs and hangovers become less frequent, the attraction of living in a city wanes. My wonderful wife hails from a market town and wanted to live closer to her family, so she was intrigued and equally excited when I made the suggestion.

Although I have many fears — Will we make friends? Will people think ”not more people from Bristol pushing up the house prices”? Will H like the new nursery? — the novelty and excitement of exploring a new part of the world outweighs any uncertainty.

I really enjoy writing so I thought I would document my journey finding my way around our new home town and its surrounds. If you check back, you can expect to read more posts about what it’s like to be NEW IN STROUD.