FOR…OLD FASHIONED CHARM

Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Yorkshire

On a stretch of the coast usually associated with industrial landscapes, this little charmer was the vision of Victorian entrepreneur Henry Pease, local MP and former director of the Stockton and Darlington railway (still in use, connecting Saltburn with Middlesbrough, among other places). His 19th-century new-town, circa 1860, consists of tight-knit streets and terraces – some named after jewels (Ruby, Diamond, Emerald) – an old-fashioned high street, a Blue Flag beach, a North Sea pier and the oldest, working water-balance cliff lift in the UK. The town was recently listed in The Sunday Times’ Best Places to Live report (thanks to a combination of good schools, transport links and ‘posh’ Victoriana). And although there are pricier houses, two- or three-bedroom terraces go for under £200,000.

• Average house price £139,525