1 June, 2008 – The University of Manchester – A Personal View
A passion for walking, gardening and beautiful landscapes has seen Roz Stevens and her husband make the move North after twenty-five years in London. A Senior Consultant at the Centre for Educational Leadership, Roz works at the University of Manchester and lives on the outskirts of a small village in rural North Yorkshire. Being able to work in Manchester and live in North Yorkshire has transformed her life.
“I am from Lancaster originally and had moved to London in the 1970’s where I settled with my family and worked in organisational development roles for HSBC Investment Banking, Penna Human Resources and the BBC. When our two daughters started university, my husband and I realised a long-term ambition to move back up North.
“It was a decision based on quality of life. I had family up here, but I also missed the landscape and the people. In 2004 we moved to a farmhouse in North Yorkshire – not far from Kirkby Lonsdale, a lovely picturesque market town. The house came with a walled garden where, as keen gardeners, we can grow everything we ever wanted from apples, strawberries and gooseberries to potatoes, carrots, lettuce and herbs.
“The location is ideal for both living and working. We are half an hour from the Yorkshire Dales, the Lake District and the sea with good road and train links to Manchester. The first few years we were here we didn’t go on holiday – we didn’t need to – we were where we wanted to be, with the best of the British countryside on our doorstep. We are keen walkers too and feel very privileged to have such easy access to some of the most beautiful landscapes in the country.
“We also have easy access to a diverse range of cultural arts and entertainment. In Manchester, we enjoy going to concerts at the Bridgewater Hall and plays at the Royal Exchange. There is also a very vibrant arts community in Lancaster and Kendal and the surrounding areas.
“We have built good friendships with many people in the area and have found the ability to socialise and be spontaneous much easier than in London where our friends were geographically scattered over a much wider area.
“One of the reasons we wanted to move from London was the travelling to work – it was death by commuting, really. On a bad day it could involve standing most of the way on overcrowded trains facing delays and cancellations. Although the commute to Manchester is still substantial, it is a dream in comparison to London. It’s a lovely journey. I can work on the train with my laptop and I’ve made friends with others who commute from the nearby area. There’s a positive and polite atmosphere; it’s a quiet and pleasant commute and very rare that a train is delayed or cancelled.
“Both myself and my husband, who works as a freelance business consultant, make use of the good West Coast transport links to London and Scotland. We’re only twenty minutes’ drive from the M6 and the train connection to London in particular is excellent. Our daughters who now both work in London have been pleasantly surprised about how easy it is for them to come and visit.
“In terms of choice of employment, I did have to be flexible when I began looking for positions and needed to think about my transferable skills. I initially took a maternity leave short-term contract in the University of Manchester’s careers department, which allowed me to forge links with the academic community and apply for my current role.
“It was a big decision to make to move up here but it has paid off and we are now living the life in the country that we always hoped for.”