Topic ID 1699
I've just been contacted by Raymond Brown for my comments on an article in the Telegraph (don't normally take the Telegraph unless a Wednesday during Fantasy Football Comp) that Ware came third in a poll to determine the best town to live in, inside the M25 corridor. This was not conducted by the Telegraph but possibly Countryside Life Illustrated (or similar) with business connections in Ware. Suffice it say Hertford came nowhere. On the other hand Hertford was completely ignored when the same mag did a feature on clone towns. I said 'bully for Ware' but as someone who lives, works, breathes, dies and drinks in Hertford I am bound to say that Hertford is a better town. I am all for information and data sources and profound research on the social mores of the middle classes in outer surburbia but when the county town is somehow ommmitted twice you have to question the reference base. On the other hand it will give Raymond a good headline tomorrow and plenty of gossip in the letters pages for weeks to come.
Reply ID 20904
Here's the article. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/main.jhtml?xml=/property/2006/07/13/pm2513.xml
Reply ID 20905
quote:Amazing....Ware estate agent suggests Ware's a good place to buy a house!!
Originally posted by iorek
Here's the article. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/main.jhtml?xml=/property/2006/07/13/pm2513.xml
Reply ID 20906
quote:What are the business connections you refer to sloopjohnb? I'd be interested to know.
Countryside Life Illustrated (or similar) with business connections in Ware
Reply ID 20907
these things often have hidden agendas! However having lived in ware i would agree it is a very nice place to live, different type of place to hertford, more villagy in many ways, and certainly a lot more active with events and community feel i'd say.
Reply ID 20908
quote:Any poll, customer survey, consumer choice etc etc usually stems from a large company looking to advertise themselves. It can be found in all the best books on self PR - do a survey, publish the results, as long as the survey relates to what business you are in. Therefore such a survay of nice towns to live is undertaken by a group of independent or loose affiliated chain of estate agents who can also call on their members to say nice things about the town they work and trade in. Nothing wrong with it but like all surveys it pays to find out who commissioned it and what was the audience population. Put it like this - if ASH and FOREST both commisioned survays they would come up with completely opposite findings. I have nothing against Ware - nice type town that it is but I do treat 9 out of 10 cats with great caution - especially the striped ones - sorry, having a bad day. Flu, cold, headaches etc etc.
What are the business connections you refer to sloopjohnb? I'd be interested to know.
Reply ID 20909
The article doesn't really highlight anything that makes Ware stand out from the crowd. Yes, Ware is a pleasant Hertfordshire town but the comments made in the Telegraph article about travel into London or to Stansted could apply equally well to Hertford, as could the comments about walkers, cyclists and the Lea Valley. This looks as though the "research" consisted of phoning a few local estate agents - I wonder how many of those quoted have advertised previously in Countryside Life Illustrated .........
Reply ID 20910
I'd discount the Countryside Life connection. In fact I can't find any reference to any survey about places to live in the south-east. All it seems to be is a few towns picked out by a Telegraph hack.
Reply ID 20911
quote:I must admit as a Ware resident I was rather surprised! The article was less than lukewarm - it's a great place to get away from seemed to be the subtext - very strange. Mind you, I haven't been able to see the survey yet, so don't know what the criteria were.
Originally posted by Deveraux
The article doesn't really highlight anything that makes Ware stand out from the crowd.
Reply ID 20912
quote:I think they are basing it upon research conducted by http://www.whathouse.co.uk
Originally posted by Steve
I'd discount the Countryside Life connection. In fact I can't find any reference to any survey about places to live in the south-east. All it seems to be is a few towns picked out by a Telegraph hack.
Reply ID 20913
quote:The only survey is on housebuyers' priorities. Sheila Prophet has then picked out five towns that reflect those priorities. To say that Ware is third is wrong because the survey was not about towns. The towns mentioned aren't ranked 1-5 either.
Originally posted by ian.ball
Mind you, I haven't been able to see the survey yet, so don't know what the criteria were.
Reply ID 20915
quote:You're not trolling are you? [;)] I've lived in both towns and can honestly say they are both great places to live - it's just that Ware got the mention, so what? Posting on here is simply fuelling the argument, and as you say, making good headlines for Mr Brown.
sloopjohnb ...Hertford is a better town.
Reply ID 20916
quote:What argument? There's none here that I can see.
Originally posted by craig
Posting on here is simply fuelling the argument
Reply ID 20917
Even if there was an indepth method of determining the 'Good places to live' it would surely still provoke debate whatever.
Reply ID 20918
quote:Sorry, I meant debate.
fuelling the argument
Reply ID 20920
Craig, if you knew Raymond like i do you will know how so careful you have to be over words. He also has a very good sense of humour (seriously) and what he is looking for is controversy. I am usually happy to oblige. There is no argument, no debate as Steve says. There is of course a great need to sell newspapers and you can see the sign of the times on another thread. I always look forward to Friday with a heightened sense of expectation wondering just what it is that I (and for that matter a lot of other people) actually said. [:)]
Reply ID 20924
OMG - Sloop - You weren't wrong were you. (regarding todays Mercury) I'd like to propose that we have a town "lovein" and each town respects the other and not be drawn into this game.
Reply ID 20926
Lived in Ware nearly 8 years (loved it)Lived in Hertford 26 years ,first 10 years lovely last 16 years hate it.Ware10 Hertford 1
Reply ID 20929
quote:You could always move back if Ware's that great..... I'm sure there's an estate agent who would be only too happy to oblige [:)]
Originally posted by rgs_rick
Lived in Ware nearly 8 years (loved it)Lived in Hertford 26 years ,first 10 years lovely last 16 years hate it.Ware10 Hertford 1
Reply ID 20938
quote:Gosh, you really are quite unhappy - perhaps your forthcoming move to Spain will help. I really love Hertford, and glad that I moved here (sorry but I'm an outoftowner, right handed and a Cancer, married into to a long standing Hertford family to widen the gene pool). There are positives and negatives with all towns and I enjoy the different vibe in Ware when I go there, but it's Hertford for me. I think you get as much out of a place as you put into it; I enjoy the fact that Hertford is small enough that you can actually feel part of the town, which coming from a big city, I've not previously enjoyed.
Originally posted by rgs_rick
Lived in Ware nearly 8 years (loved it)Lived in Hertford 26 years ,first 10 years lovely last 16 years hate it.Ware10 Hertford 1
Reply ID 20942
Having seen the article in the Mercury reminded me of a reference I found online for the publcation it mentioned http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=43630. If you look at page 3 you can see a report for the parishes of Hertford, Ware and lots more local disticts - it makes fascinating reading!
Reply ID 20954
Hertford is a great place to live. It is only spoilt by all the damn traffic. If you go out between 7 and 8am on a weekend it gives you an idea as to just how nice our town could be. Baldock has just had a bypass opened, Royston and Ware have one. Even Letty Green has one and yet Hertford remains blighted by traffic. WHY [?]
Reply ID 20974
quote:I think the A414 was our bypass...
Originally posted by Reg Varny
Hertford is a great place to live. It is only spoilt by all the damn traffic. If you go out between 7 and 8am on a weekend it gives you an idea as to just how nice our town could be. Baldock has just had a bypass opened, Royston and Ware have one. Even Letty Green has one and yet Hertford remains blighted by traffic. WHY [?]
Reply ID 20979
quote:Vert true. Hertford was lovely when the A414 used to be a single lane road. Sure the traffic was a problem, but it is now. The dual carriageway cut the town in two. Oh for an out of town bypass and the return of a single lane town! [:)]
Originally posted by Reg Varny
Hertford is a great place to live. It is only spoilt by all the damn traffic. If you go out between 7 and 8am on a weekend it gives you an idea as to just how nice our town could be. Baldock has just had a bypass opened, Royston and Ware have one. Even Letty Green has one and yet Hertford remains blighted by traffic. WHY [?]
Reply ID 20980
As far as Ware is concerned, I think it has come on leaps and bounds in the last ten years. Its a great place to go out. The only problem I find is the level of violence.
Reply ID 21006
Agreed about Ware being a good place to go out, but I cannot say that the level of violence has ever been a problem. Does Ware have more than any other town in the area?
Reply ID 21021
The problem with papers like the "Telegraph" (which, by the way, is my preferred paper, so I've no wish to denigrate it) extolling the virtues of small country towns, is that if enough people read the articles and act on them they will no longer be small country towns.
Reply ID 21155
quote:yes i'd say so! there seems to be more gang related violence ware than most small towns!!. i'v worked in ware and hertford and ware was a lot more trouble[B)]
Originally posted by Andrew
Agreed about Ware being a good place to go out, but I cannot say that the level of violence has ever been a problem. Does Ware have more than any other town in the area?
Reply ID 21185
quote:That's interesting. Any idea as to why it's worse in Ware? Is it organized gangs from out of town or from within Ware?
Originally posted by doormanstu yes i'd say so! there seems to be more gang related violence ware than most small towns!!. i'v worked in ware and hertford and ware was a lot more trouble[B)]
Reply ID 21197
quote:Is that really the case, can you cite examples of this?
Originally posted by doormanstuquote:yes i'd say so! there seems to be more gang related violence ware than most small towns!!. i'v worked in ware and hertford and ware was a lot more trouble[B)]
Originally posted by Andrew
Agreed about Ware being a good place to go out, but I cannot say that the level of violence has ever been a problem. Does Ware have more than any other town in the area?