Let's Move to Faversham

 It seems appropriate that leafing through the Saturday Guardian Magazine this weekend at Whitstable station waiting for the train to Faversham to do some house reconnaissance, that this should be the subject of the 'Let's Move To... ' article. We took it as a good omen!
After our trip to Whitstable a  few weeks ago  we  booked a  B&B  to test out the  'Javelin line' on a Friday evening, and  explore the housing there locally while  doing some of the  artists trail. In the meantime we'd done some more research   and Faversham looked like it had potential but  we decided to go to Whitstable anyway to use  it as a base.

Accordingly  I met  up with Ian at  St Pancras at 5pm ( after a brief explore of the continually changing colours  of the  'magic tunnel'  which leads to his offices!). The journey to Whitstable was about 1hr 15mins, very smooth,  and we  were made very welcome at the 'Pearl Fishers'. We were in the 'Paris' suite,  smart art deco with a very high bed - comfortable once  you'd   scaled it. We had a lovely meal at 'Alimo', a  Moroccan fusion restaurant, highly recommended and then a walk along Oxford Street to  see the sea with the nightlife just starting - lots of  good-natured students.
After a delicious breakfast,  we headed to the railway station, picking up a 'Guardian' on the way.

 

In Faversham , just 8 minutes away,  we looked first at the housing south of the railway- lots of  new builds  well within our price  about 15 mins walk from the station. Then we headed into town using a walkway above the railway bringing us out by the recreation ground.  I know that Faversham is known for its medieval streets and its market  but I was unprepared for how pretty and buzzy it was . The market was in full swing with lots of  varied  stalls. We'd popped into the 'Fleuer de Lis' heritage centre for some leaflets and the volunteers were so friendly especially when we said we were thinking of moving there.
After an excellent lunch ( with local Shepherd Neame    beers ) at the  Anchor we headed off on the artist trail.    

Lots of inspiration around the Creeks 

 Brickwork patterns

Lost of black and white ( and other coloured!) buildings

We loved the work of Magz Roberts and Mike Roberts. Magz started off in textiles and Mike has a lovely quirky style in his cartoons.  After a detour via the Abbey Physic community Garden, I heard beautiful singing coming from the church  - Faversham Choral Society having a final rehearsal before their performance that evening.
We finished up at ' Creek -Creative' for coffee and cake and a look round the studios. When I asked what the rent was  ( thinking  that a new house might not have suitable painting facilities)  we were given a  behind the scenes tour! 
An inspirational, welcoming place  and  we're both agreed that Faversham feels right for us.  We'll be back in December for the Xmas markets and to explore a  different  housing area.

Researching Plan B in Whitstable

 This morning we made  a trip to the seaside, to Whitstable on the North Kent Coast. Unlike other outings we've made to Bexhill, Margate and Weymouth, I set out on this one with butterflies in my stomach as this wasn't just  a pleasant day out or  holiday but potentially the place we're going to live.
I'd made a list of properties within our potential budget  within 1 mile of the train station  and marked them on a map and then we  wandered around the areas concerned , several helpful people asking whether they could help us, whether we knew where we were going! Anything near the beach ( including this  'des res' of an old fishermans hut) is definitely beyond us but there's a surprising amount of ordinary houses that might fit the bill.

 Then we had a very pleasant lunch of  fish and chips and real ale at the 'Old Neptune' which reminded us very much the' Cove House Inn' at  Chiswell on Portland to cogitate on our findings before doing  more touristy stuff walking along the beach to the harbour.

 Lots of inspiration - peeling paint, a nice bit of rust and Thames Barges

The reason   behind our day out is that we're in the process of developing 'Plan B' .
As I said in an  earlier post, there is no job for me in the new structure for science at Kew Gardens  and after some heart searching have decided to apply for voluntary redundancy. The time table for this has not yet been confirmed  but I will probably be leaving in January and I've got my work cut out over the next few months  winding up the projects I'm involved with. 
We're fortunate that Ian has the potential in his job to work more from home   and the value of properties in our road  has increased markedly since new developments have shot up near us ( I never thought I'd live in a house worth in excess of  1/2 Million pounds!  ). If we sell up and buy a house  in a cheaper area within commutable distance of London  we can be mortgage free which gives me some  breathing space  to find a job more locally.
Whitstable seemed to fit the bill for us  with fast 'Javelin' trains to Kings Cross in the morning and evening, good local buses to Canterbury.There's a thriving arts scene ( we intend to go back in a few weeks for the artists house trail) and potential for jobs  in the area for me -   conservation consultancy, lab work, who knows. Most of all it's by the sea , our dream for retirement- we're just moving  a bit earlier  while we're still working. In any  case I intend to have at least 6 months creative time  to recover from moving house and for grieving. I've worked at Kew for nearly 25 years  and am desperately sad to leave my colleagues who  are currently in a great state of uncertainty about their future. I'm  doing all I can to provide constructive feedback as part of the consultation process, the fight is not yet over:  our Prospect Union rep Julie Flanaghan  continues to be absolutely  committed  to continuing the fight against loss of jobs and expertise.