Is Grimsby a nice place to live?
I’m always asked this question through stifled sniggers when I venture out of our town. See, Grimsby has a somewhat bad reputation.
Don’t get me wrong, we’re not famous for anything really terrible, but Grimsby is often the butt of many jokes. Long before Sacha Baron Cohen pinched our town’s name before shooting a film in Essex (nowhere near Grimsby, by the way), “…better than a wet weekend in Grimsby” was a phrase often thrown about on TV shows.
I’d argue, Grimsby doesn’t deserve its reputation.
I was born here and I’ve stayed all my life. If it was that bad, then surely I’d have cleared off year ago?
Is Grimsby a Nice Place to Live?
Before I delve into my favourite neighbourhoods or list the good stuff about Grimsby, I have to acknowledge it has good bits and bad bits. Sadly, one of the first bits you see as you enter from the A180 is one of the bad bits.
The A180 brings you in through a route that sounds like your tyres have popped. Yes, all of them. I don’t know what’s wrong with the road, but it’s loud as hell and very disturbing to new visitors.
After you hit the loud bit of road, it stays loud until you’re properly in Grimsby. Just before road turns into a normal one, you’re hit with the smell of the factories nearby. Everyone says Grimsby smells of fish, but really it smells of fish fingers. A subtle difference.
Upon entering Grimsby, you come to a very rundown bit of town. It’s called Riby Square, running into Cleethorpe Road and it has lots of boarded up shops and derelict buildings. Cleethorpe Road in Grimsby turns to Grimsby Road in Cleethorpes, and you’re still faced with lots of empty shops.
None of these images are indicative of the Grimsby/Cleethorpes area as a whole, and really need to be disregarded upon entrance. Just understand it’s bad route in.
Which are the nice bits of Grimsby?
So I’ve covered the bad impression, now we need to look at the nice bits of Grimsby. This isn’t to say the other bits aren’t good, just that these parts of Grimsby are especially lovely to live in.
Also, this is a nice place, if someone wants to settle down and join their family in the UK.
Scartho
Technically Scartho is a village in its own right. Everyone calls it “Scatha” for no apparent reason. If you pronounce the “r” in it, people will call you posh. I pronounce the “r”, I am not posh.
This is another area with lots of amenities. It has lots of things you need, good takeaways, a good chippy and near lots of very highly rated schools.
Some of the houses are very large and very impressive with giant gardens. I used to live around the corner from those houses in a small house with a small garden. Again I can vouch for the area being quiet, no trouble and the people being nice.
Wybers Wood/Aylesby Park
The Wybers as it’s known to locals is a pleasant housing estate on the edge of town. It’s an area that has good transport links, a pub, a chippy (one of my faves), a Co op, two hairdressers, a pet shop, a pharmacy, a pizza place and a Chinese takeaway. Behind The Wybers is the River Freshney, and it’s a lovely leafy green area (that is possibly going to get built on in the next few years).
The good thing about the Wybers is that it’s near good primary and secondary schools, the area is quiet – it doesn’t get a lot of trouble and I personally think you get a bit more house for your money. You could snag yourself a 4 bed detached house with a garage for around £230k. That kind of money would get you a small semi in central Cleethorpes.
Aylesby Park technically has a different name to The Wybers, but it’s basically the same bit. The Wybers stops and Aylesby Park seamlessly starts. It’s only made up of a few roads and most of those roads back onto The Wybers, so although it build at a different time, it’s really one and the same.
I can used to live in this area and it was lovely.
Laceby
Laceby is techincally Grimsby but, again, it’s a village in its own right. It’s on the way out of Grimsby, towards Caistor and other parts of Lincolnshire.
My hairdresser is in Laceby so I spend a bit of time admiring how nice it is about every 8 weeks. I like the tearoom there. They also have some good shops and takeaways and they’re in the middle of building a Co Op too, so there should be even more shops.
House prices are about what they should be, not overly cheap or expensive, but there are some bargains to be had.
They have a good primary school but your kids need to be bussed out for secondary school. Usually people send their kids to Healing Academy, but some people will opt for Caistor Yarborough instead. It’s also not too far from Caistor Grammar School, so if you child gets in, the school puts on a (paid) bus to pick them up and drop them off.
Bargate and People’s Park Area
Some of the streets around Bargate and People’s Park have gigantic old houses that are incredibly beautiful. These houses are true dreamhouses and demand a big price. I love this area of town, but it’s unlikely I’ll be buying a small mansion any time soon.
The immediate area is quiet and doesn’t really get a lot of trouble. The only thing I will say, is that it isn’t a big walk from the town centre, which can sometimes be populated with some dodgy characters. I can’t comment as to whether those dodgy characters like to take a stroll down the posh streets, but it wouldn’t be a stretch for them to trot 10 minutes down the road.
Old Clee
The Old Clee area of Grimsby is as close as you can get to Cleethorpes without living in Cleethorpes. We looked around houses in this area and found you could get good size semis with moderate gardens for around £150k that aren’t rundown in any way.
To buy the Cleethorpes counterparts of these houses, you’re looking at around £200k (at least) for a house that is three streets away. If you’re not ashamed to have Grimsby in your address (instead of Cleethorpes, which seems to viewed as slightly posher), I’d recommend saving yourself 50 grand and snapping up a bargain in Old Clee. Good schools are nearby too, you’re not far from Cleethorpes Beach, one of the convenience shops has a subway sandwich insde it and everyone raves about Carr Lane Chinese (I don’t think that’s it’s current name, but it’s the only one on Carr Lane.)
Healing
Healing is a another village in its own right. It’s on the edge of Grimsby, past Wybers Wood and on the way to Immingham. It’s self contained, leafy, and quiet. I personally really rate Healing and would love to live there one day. The house prices are a bit higher than the rest of Grimsby. A 4 bed detached house will cost you between £275k and £375k depending on when it was build and what needs doing to it.
If I win the lottery any time soon, I’d probably buy a lovely big house on The Avenue in Healing. If you’ve got a bot of cash to splash, then this is a great area to look. It has good schools, a small shop, a pizza place and a chippy (I haven’t tried this one so can’t rate it, sorry).
And what about the rest of Grimsby?
Just because I haven’t gone on about the rest of Grimsby, doesn’t mean it’s bad. I just have some favourite spots and can comment on areas I’ve lived in.
What I will say about the rest of Grimsby is that housing can be super cheap. You can snap up a 3 bed terrace for £45k, which is an amazing price, right?
It’s also mentioning some of the area with the cheaper housing areas have some great facilities for children. There seems to be more investment and charitable organisations providing entertainment and help for families. There are subsidised clubs, baby clothing banks and other great set ups in certain areas.
If you live on the Nunsthorpes and are one a low income, you can sign up to the Community Shop and they sell ace food for tiny prices. There’s also Centre 4 on the Nunsthorpe that offers a lot in the way of free or subsidised family fun. Nunny’s Farm should also get a special mention here, it’s at the back of Centre 4, pretty cheap to enter and fun family day out.