Move into a ready-made community
Downsizers find new-build developments great for making friends, says DEBORAH STONE
ONE OF the biggest selling points of moving to a retirement village is the ease of making new friends – but downsizing to a new-build development can be just as good for this. Neighbours become good friends on new developments because it’s A SHARED experience – everybody is hoping to make new connections.
And it’s particularly easy to join a community when a developer goes out of its way to help forge new bonds, as downsizers Stan and Pam Edmands discovered.
The retired couple moved to Broadacres development in Southwater,west Sussex, near the market town of Horsham, last year to be near their son.
Berkeley Homes still has a sales office on the site and has hosted barbecues and drinks parties at the marketing suite.
“These events are really well attended and we have met some lovely neighbours by popping in for an hour,” says Stan. “The Berkeley Homes staff are really good at introducing us to each other – wanting to build an established community here at Broadacres.”
Stan and Pam have also gone out of their way to make friends: “A few know that our door is always open for coffee at 10am and we look forward to extending this network,” says Stan, who also enjoys walking the Downs Link that runs through the development.
“I am looking after my son’s dog at the moment and we have had fun exploring new footpaths. I have also joined the local angling society – fishing is a great way of relaxing and meeting some new friends.
The couple moved from their sixbedroom family home in Hertfordshire to their three-bedroom semi because they found the upkeep exhausting.
“The decision to move was done. Finding the perfect location was the harder part,” says Stan. “We had a few ‘musts’ on the list: lovely places to walk, a village with a real community spirit, good amenities and a friendly feel were all very important.”
In the end it was the women who worked in the cafe at Southwater village who tipped the balance in favour of Broadacres.
“We knew we had found the perfect location after having coffee and a bun a few times in the local cafe in the village.the ladies in there were so helpful, offering advice, telling us about what goes on in the community – they did an amazing job selling Southwater to us.”
Their new home has a south-facing garden and views across open farmland. The fully fitted kitchen came with modern appliances and the bathroom has a luxurious finish. “I have a construction background so was expecting to find some snagging items as the house settled,” says Stan. “But no, not one. Not a crack or a blemish on our lovely new home.”
Local amenities include Southwater’s new cricket pavilion and community centre, built by Berkeley Homes.
There are also cricket and football pitches by the pavilion, tennis courts and play areas, which make the 600-home development a good place for families as well as downsizers.
Horsham is a 10-minute drive away, with trains to London Bridge and London Victoria, and south coast resorts such as Worthing and Brighton are about half an hour by car.
Broadacres features two, three and four-bedroom homes with prices starting from £385,000 (01403 334000; broadacres-southwater.co.uk).
“One of the highlights of living around here,” says Stan, “is the lack of cars on the road. Southwater is nothing like Bushey; here the roads feel empty. People are generous, they let you out at junctions and smile and wave; that would never have happened in our old town!”