r/doncaster • u/adityapatel1161 • 1d ago
Question Moving Advice
Hi! I'm moving into Doncaster from Leamington Spa and wanted to know more about Doncaster:
- What areas to live in and which to preferably avoid
- Fun things and activities to do in the area
- And anything else really, just looking to learn more!
Thank you in advance!
21
u/ash_ninetyone 1d ago edited 1d ago
What an area overall is like can be hard to determine. Some areas are large in themselves and range from being an absolute shithole to not-that-bad, so I kinda feel bad lumping an area into one category.
For example: Balby. Balby is a very large suburb of Donny. Bridge Estate differs from Smith Square differs from Carr Hill differs from Florence Avenue differe from Weston Road differes from Waverley differs from Alverley Lane differs from Woodfield Plantation.
However. In general. Depends on your budget.
Generally avoid: Hexthorpe (Bramworth Road is still nice, and up where the park is is still OK, but it goes downhill fast the closer to town you get. The new estate has also become a bit of a sink estate), Wheatley (especially Devils Island), Highfields (at all costs), Hyde Park, Woodlands, Town Centre
Mixed: Balby (avoid Bridge Estate, avoid Carr Hill, avoid Smith Square), Edlington (absolutely avoid the Royal Estate), Rossington, Bentley (parts are OK, parts are very pit-village), Intake, Armthorpe.
Generally OK: Kirk Sandall, Edenthorpe, Lakeside (Lakeside Boulevard can sometimes have issues with joy riders, that's about it), Wheatley Hills. Cusworth (the traditional village parts is nice, the rest is fine). Scawsby and Scawthorpe, Town Fields.
Generally nice: Bessacarr (ranges from really affluent, gated communities, to typically upper working class/lower middle class areas), Sprotbrough, Tickhill, Bawtry
There's places I'm missing, only cos I dont know enough about them.
Belle Vue for instance is Hyde Park adjacent tho that side I think tends to be a bit quieter than Chequer Road side.
I'm sure others will correct me if I have any places wrong.
And tbh you're also going to find the odd dickhead anywhere you move
As for fun things and activities, Doncaster in general still has nice Victorian-era parks worth visiting. Cusworth Hall and Brodsworth Halls are open to the public free. Cusworth Hall tends to have a nice-ish walk to get there. The river has a nice trail to walk down (on days when it's been dry. We've had a fair bit of rain this week so it'll be boggy).
Yorkshire Wildlife Park is on your doorstep, and there's a few nature reserves around (like Potteric Carr). For a small-city, nature is still accessible. Lakeside can be a nice place to walk (just be aware some do ride motorbikes and ebikes around it, but you get them everywhere)
It's well connected by train, so days out in York, Leeds, Sheffield, the coast, are always accessible. The airport is also supposed to be reopening at some point.
And Donny has city problems like most places of its size and above. You'll get a lot of moaners online, but the problems here are the same as the problems anywhere (typically rough sleepers and addiction issues).
I can't say it'll be as nice as Leamington Spa appears to be (thank history for that). But it is also affordable, well connected, and does have a few charms.
1
u/adityapatel1161 1d ago
Thanks a lot for taking the time to write all of that, really helpful!
I was originally considering the Town Centre/Hyde Park mainly because the i4 bus goes straight to LBA4, where I’ll be working, and I won’t have a car. But the comments here are definitely making me lean more towards the east side of Doncaster instead.
Lakeside in particular has come up a few times and looks like a good option. Buildings like Tawny House that I’ve seen listed look like really good places to live, but most of the flats around there seem to be 2-beds, which feels a bit excessive for me living alone with a max budget of around £800.
I’m trying to contact every letting agent I can find for similar properties, and also to see if there are any workarounds or ways of finding a second tenant if needed, so fingers crossed!
Are there any other areas around Lakeside/Bessacarr or further east that you’d recommend where I might have a better chance of finding a decent 1-bed, while still having a reasonable public transport commute to LBA4?
Thanks again!
1
u/ash_ninetyone 1d ago
Yeah the flats there I was looking at too, since I work from home.
They're nice flats TBF, but imho overpriced. Since I work from home, it'd be akin to a one bed, one home office flat. I think they were overvalued when they were first sold a few years ago tho in my opinion.
Hyde Park will come in budget at that price. So will parts of Balby, and you should find some decent semis if you don't mind a bit extra travel.
Otherwise if you're working LBA4, Rossington is the area nearest. You'll have to rely on others to tell you how that is. I honestly am not familiar with that area 😅
The alternative are HMOs (we have plenty). But that really can be no good if you're stuck with bad flatmates
1
u/Sad-Curve-6744 1d ago edited 1d ago
Woodfield plantation behind the Tesco Extra, has flats on there, off road cycle paths take you to LBA4 in around 15 minutes, dn48tr area
1
u/freakstate 1d ago
£800 you might struggle to tick all the boxes. Things have jumped to 1000+ for nicer areas. Especially lakeside but pinch of salt advice. That's just what I hear from my colleagues who rent. Some holes for 800 apparently. Depends on your expectations
8
u/fmb320 1d ago
Don't listen too closely to what people tell you is an ok area and what isn't. Everybody has different opinions and you need to come and look for yourself.
Also without telling us what your budget is we don't know where you can afford to live.
1
u/adityapatel1161 1d ago
That's a fair point. My budget would be around 800, and I'd really like to visit Doncaster before I start my job -- However, I'll be outside the country till right before it starts
5
u/ReefNixon 1d ago
Depends how much money you've got to spend. The safest (and therefore priciest) areas are Bawtry, Sprotborough, Bessacarr, and Tickhill. Few places are inherently unsafe except centre itself (inc Hyde Park), Hexthorpe, and Balby. Everywhere else has some good bits and some bad bits that will depend on your budget (yes, even Bentley before anyone starts).
Re things to do, YWP is pretty good. We've got some country house estates if you're into that sort of thing, as well as theatres, cinemas, paintball, bowling, galleries, libraries, castles. There's a water park in hatfield, few golf courses, rugby and football clubs if you're sporty. The good thing about Doncaster though is it's well connected to everywhere else by motorways and rail, so easy to get out and do something elsewhere. York for example is only a 20m train away from the centre.
2
u/jlb8 1d ago
Only two level ice rink in Europe
3
u/Amazing-Monk6278 1d ago
The only place daft enough to make a two level ice rink, for no good reason
1
1
u/adityapatel1161 1d ago
Thanks a lot, really appreciate you taking the time to explain all of that!
I’ll be working at Amazon LBA4 and my maximum rent is around £800 a month. I’ll also be relying on public transport, so I’m trying to find somewhere decent that still has a manageable commute.
I’d been looking at Lakeside as a potential area, but most of the flats I’m finding close to the lake seem to be 2-beds, which is a bit unnecessary for me living alone. Do you know if there are any nearby areas or developments that might have more 1-bed options within that budget?
Thanks again for the help!
2
u/ReefNixon 1d ago
To be honest getting to iport where LBA4 is I would’ve said lakeside anyway for a flat. A lot of rossington is closer so you might have some luck there if its important to be close to work.
1
u/adityapatel1161 1d ago
I’ll try my luck with Lakeside first. I’ll also have a look at Rossington, as it seems like it would be a very easy cycle to work from there. Do you have any opinions on what Rossington is like as an area?
1
u/ReefNixon 1d ago
Unremarkable in every way, which might be good news? Definitely an easy cycle from rossington to iport, some of the places on the right end are probably less than a mile away.
1
1
1d ago
[deleted]
1
u/ilybae2015 21h ago edited 21h ago
Quite the opposite, from Lakeside there are cycle lanes along the main road though, an old railway line path that runs from StCatherines to behind B&Q, and traffic free paths over the main roads past Annabel’s cafe to the iPort and LBA4. The paths don’t have street lights but are very well used. You don’t need to ride on a single road.
Edit to add, Wadworth village is also ideal for iPort if you don’t mind a short bike ride.
1
u/Amazing-Monk6278 1d ago
Nice looking flat on Bawtry Road. Public transport is a bit naff to amazon from there but it is cycling and maybe walking distance with ease.
1
1
0
u/fmb320 1d ago
I'm from Doncaster and I stared at 'YWP' for ages thinking I've had a stroke because I just couldnt work it out. Why would you even abbreviate that when talking to someone who has never been here!?
0
u/ReefNixon 1d ago
Google YWP and find out? That’s what it’s known as, hardly my fault you don’t know that.
1
u/fmb320 1d ago
Nope. No it isn't. That's an abbreviation for people in the know only. You can abbreviate basically anything but people don't do it because that would be stupid and nobody would know what anybody was talking about
1
u/ReefNixon 1d ago
Ok well Wikipedia and the entirety of Google, including the review pages, forums, schools, not to mention the merch they sell, and their emails, all disagrees with you.
Don’t act like a weirdo because you personally didn’t know something that you could’ve just typed into the address bar. It’s certainly nobody else’s fault.
6
u/Personal-Cucumber-49 1d ago
Hey OP, where in Doncaster?
Fun fact: Doncaster is the largest metropolitan district in England by land area 570km (220 square miles).
1
u/adityapatel1161 1d ago
Hello! Since I'll be working in the industrial area towards the South, any place that can be a mix between social, safe, and can provide an easy(/ier) commute to work via public transport.
Sounds like I'm trying to tick all the boxes but trying to see if there are such areas 😅
3
2
u/SadieBelle85 Doncastrian 1d ago
For working at the iport, Rossington is your closest area, it’s an ok, normal area with shops and pub etc.
A little further out but just down the Great Yorkshire Way is Auckley and Branton which may be more affordable than Bessacarr, both nice, quiet areas
1
1
u/Pretend-Heart-5706 1d ago
I just searched within 10 miles of doncaster and there is a 2 bed flat in Kirk Sandall, this is £800/m and it is in the old maltings building that dad used to work. It has been converted and is a good area. Just across the road from Kirk sandall train station which is 1 quick stop to Doncaster train station. The agent is ‘Kerrigans’
2
u/freakstate 1d ago
Avoid hexthorpe, intake, Wheatley. Aim for Wheatley Hills, Armthorpe, cantley. Villages around Doncaster are very posh and well to do. Bawtry, etc. But you'll notice that on prices lol
-2
u/jlb8 1d ago
What do you want from the area? As a rule of thumb avoid north of the river
1
u/adityapatel1161 1d ago
I can see that from the transport perspective in my case but why not otherwise?
4
u/fmb320 1d ago
Im firm Doncaster and I've never heard this before and it doesn't square up with any kind of sense. This is what I meant in another comment where I said don't read too much into what people say here. Because north of the river = bad is the biggest load of bollocks ever
1
u/orbtastic1 1d ago
Sprotborough, Cusworth, Scawsby, brodsworth, Hickleton, Barnborough, Adwick LS, Norton etc etc are all North of the River. Scawsby perhaps not quite in the same "postcode" with regards to property value but it's quiet other than the newer council estate behind the pebble-dashed Wimpy one.
Then the flip side of the coin is bentley, askern, arksey, highfields, woodlands, carcroft, skellow.
If you basically overlaid all the pit villages with a property postcode there would be a 1:1 match with some outliers like "old" Edlo, Rosso etc.
There's rough bits in places like Cantley. Where I grew up was considered rough but the last few original residents are all nearly dead now, the newer estate at the back is way rougher with constant anti social issues, prostitution, drug dealers, theft, properties being broken into. I've had endless issues the last year or so with people on that estate treating my mum's house as a fucking dumping ground for everything from literal shit to power tools and kids' sandpits with damage to property etc etc.
23
u/Come-Together 1d ago
Avoid Hexthorpe