Moving to Yorkshire

[bettys]

A friend of mine is moving from London to Harrogate (due to her dh's work) and won't know a soul there. As I come from there originally I've been able to point out some places to visit, but I haven't a clue as to how she might start meeting people & making friends.

Does anyone live near there & know of any clubs, baby & toddler groups, children's activities etc? She has 2 dd's of 2.5 and 10 weeks. Although her older dd will possibly go to a nursery, as other threads have mentioned it's very hard to get to know parents at the gates & break into cliques. Plus although technically she's on maternity leave her job was London-based so it's not sure that she will be working up there.

We met at ante-natal class - but as she's just had a baby that's not really an option!! So any suggestions of ways to get out and about and meet people would be really welcome

(She's in the middle of packing or she'd post this herself)

[Tetley]

I'm in Leeds so the playgroups etc that I go to won't be much good for her - but I do know that there is a Tumble Tots in Harrogate (if she looks on the Tumble Tots website - there's a contact phone no.). Other thing I would suggest is possibly the NCT groups.
I go to a local authority playgroup in a church hall every week - where the mums are all very friendly - I'm sure there'll be something similar in Harrogate - it's a very nice place!!!

[SueDonim]

NCT is always worth trying. They may run postnatal groups or Bumps & Babies groups in the area. NCT or 0870 444 8707

[Daffy]

Tell your friend not to worry too much I think that we Yorkshire folk are very friendly and will welcome her with open arms. Try doing a search on Google for the groups that you mentioned its a good search engine and its sure to come up with something. Good luck to your friend, I hope that everything goes well for her.

[bettys]

Thanks for your suggestions. I know people are very friendly up there - in fact I'm a bit envious of her, I'd love to move back - but it's good to have a few starting points

[SueW]

I'm fairly sure there's an active NCT up there as I know a couple of people who have been involved with it. There are a fair amount of coffee mornings I think and used to be a teddy bears' picnic.

[BoysMum]

Hi Bettys - hope I may be able to help with this one!
A very good friend of mine (we go back 15 years!) moved up to Harrogate about 8 (?) years ago from the South and has now settled there (she has two young kids)and loves it. Over the last couple of years she has packed in her marketing job and taken over a daycare nursery (her life long ambition I think). She's a very bubbly, friendly person, and I'm sure she would be more than happy to help you friend, and she's completely into all the local children's facilities etc.
She can be contacted on: [email protected]
The nursery website address is probably www.woodlandsdaynursery.co.uk ?

Hope this helps - good luck to your friend.

[bettys]

Thanks BoysMum!

[pr]

I live in Harrogate with my 5 month old son and have found the NCT really useful. I go to the Bumps and Babes group (the current co-ordinator is Lyndsey on tel 01423 565032) - we meet other mondays at somebody's house and often meet in one of the town's coffee bars on the alternative monday! The NCT also runs post-natal groups based on areas of the town so there is bound to be one near where she is going to live. The post natal co-ordinator is Debbie Handslip and she can be contacted on 0870 3213 761. There are also lots of mums and toddler groups, many of them attached to the churches, which I haven't joined yet as I think they are mostly for toddlers.

Hope your friend enjoys her move to Harrogate - its a good place to live but is definitely colder than 'down south'

[syd]

We moved to Harrogate from London 3 years ago and now have a just 3 year old and a 4 week old. Suddenly being on maternity leave with a new baby and knowing noone was a nightmare but despite my initial reservations the NCT was a lifeline. I tried a couple of different groups in my geographic area to find one with mothers who seemed to be on the same wavelength as me and children of a similar age.

Like all towns there are loads of toddler groups/playgroups and so on and the NCT provide a guide to them all.

Bizarrely there is a huge expat London community up here - in fact I think nearly without exception all my girlfriends have moved here from London for various reasons. Overall it's a good thing cos it's a common link that, love them all as we do, is not just child based and gives you an identity particularly if you're not working.

Hope your friend enjoys her new life - and let us know if there's anything we can do to help her settle in!

[2under2]

We live in Harrogate with dds of 2.5 and 1.
I think there are a good number of mums and tots groups here ( most of them welcome children from 0-5), and our local NCT actually publishes a booklet (or more like a book) called something like 'What to do In Harrogate and surrounding area' listing all the mums and tots groups, play grounds, children's shoe shops and whatever else you might want to know. Unfortunately I can't find the number you need to ring to order it, but the folks at the NCT central office should know.
My girls go to nursery part-time, it's a wonderful nursery, very small and the staff are extremely dedicated, but we live on the outskirts (in Darley) so it's probably a bit too far for your friend.

[bettys]

2under2, Syd and pr, thank you for your help. Seems like the NCT comes up trumps. I'm relaying all this info to my friend as it comes in, & it's all very reassuring!