Anne fulfils childhood dream by moving to new home on the South Coast

The 74-year-old decided to move from Northamptonshire to West Sussex to be close to the seaside and to be nearer to her two daughters.

The retired home economics teacher sold her house in Rothwell and moved to a new home at Bellway’s Elizabeth Square development in Worthing in January 2025.

“When I was child, I grew up near Inverness and Edinburgh in Scotland and enjoyed a lot of family days out at the seaside and they are golden memories,” said Anne. “From a young age, it was a dream of mine to, one day, live close to the coast so I could walk along a beach whenever I wanted to.

“In 2024, I decided it was time for me to try to fulfil that dream and to move closer to my daughters and my grandchildren. Sarah lives in Worthing and Nicola lives in Dorking. I gravitated towards Worthing because my parents-in-law were from West Sussex and I got to know and like the area and wanted to be close to the coast.”

Anne started to search online for a new home and had a tick list. The property had to be in Worthing, have at least three bedrooms but ideally four, two bathrooms, a garden, a garage and be close to good public transport services.

“I booked an appointment at Elizabeth Square and went along for a look,” said Anne. “I was shown inside a four-bedroom Philosopher house and really liked what I saw. The build and specification were excellent.

“However, I preferred the layout of the four-bedroom Scrivener and loved the location of plot 30, which was part-built and situated across the road from some lovely mature trees. I reserved the place as soon as I could and was given fabulous help and advice throughout the house-buying process from the excellent sales advisors Penny and Luke.”

Anne bought her new home, which also has a garage, for £525,000.

“This house has met all my criteria and exceeded my expectations,” she said. “Upstairs, I have a wonderfully spacious main bedroom with an en suite and a gorgeous walk-in shower and three further bedrooms and a family bathroom.

“Two of the bedrooms are guest rooms for when family or friends want to stay over. The fourth bedroom has a pull-out bed, a desk and TV set so it has become a place for the grandchildren to play their games when we adults don’t want them on the main TV downstairs in the sitting room.

“I absolutely adore the huge kitchen/dining area with the breakfast bar because it feels really comfortable and homely. It’s so light and airy in that space. There are French doors leading out to the back garden and patio area which helps the layout flow. It may seem like a little thing but I love the two small windows at the top of the French doors which I can open to let air in to circulate without having to open the doors.”

As well as having a property she loves, Anne is very pleased with the location of her new home.

“I’m so much closer to both of my daughters and it’s great. It’s five minutes in the car to Sarah’s, while it takes less than an hour to get to Nicola’s in Dorking compared with two-and-a-half hours from Northamptonshire. This means I see a lot more of them than I used to and am a lot more present in their lives.

“There is everything I need within ten minutes’ walk or drive from my house. Goring village centre is a short walk and has a pharmacy, a baker, a butcher, two supermarkets and an Asda petrol station. It’s a four-minute walk to the bus stop where I can get a service into Worthing town centre.

“At least three times a week I enjoy the 20-minute stroll down to the pebble and shingle beach at Goring, which is very relaxing and calming. If I fancy a bit of excitement, I can catch a train from Worthing which gets into London Victoria in an hour and 20 minutes.

“I feel incredibly lucky to have found this house in this location which has allowed me to make my childhood dream come true.”

There’s currently a selection of three and four-bedroom houses available to reserve at Elzabeth Square, with prices starting at £410,000 and £570,000 respectively. To find out more visit https://www.bellway.co.uk/new-homes/south-london/elizabeth-square or call the sales team on 01903 337487.