London Leaver: "I was wrong when I thought there would be no creative spirits outside the M25"

After 2 decades surviving successful London Helen Croydon had picked up definite prejudices astir what beingness beyond the M25 looked like.

But the pandemic forced her retired of her municipality comfortableness portion and she discovered the joys of much elemental pleasures similar agelong walks successful the countryside, dogs astatine her feet, and clip spent relaxing successful the garden.

Three years agone Helen packed her bags and swapped Limehouse for Brighton – she wasn’t acceptable to spell close retired into the sticks – wherever she has made caller friends, scaled backmost connected her moving hours, and spends arsenic overmuch clip arsenic imaginable successful the oversea oregon connected the South Downs.

“I could ne'er ideate surviving retired of London, it was the spot to beryllium erstwhile you were partying successful your twenties,” she said. “I ever thought that everyone extracurricular London would beryllium a small spot tiny minded, I thought determination would beryllium nary creatives and entrepreneurial spirits. That has proved to beryllium simply not true.”

Helen’s conversion to beingness connected the seashore happened slowly, and by increment.

Before the pandemic she was surviving successful a 1 chamber level successful Limehouse and moving her ain nationalist relations firm.

She met her fellow done friends successful 2016. He was based successful Horsham, West Sussex, and lived successful a location surrounded by fields with his 3 daughters and 3 springer spaniels. Spending weekends with him allowed Helen to dip her toed successful the state manner and she discovered – somewhat to her astonishment – that she alternatively liked it.

“Before we met I did similar dogs, from afar, but I besides thought they were a spot smelly and would get nether your feet,” said Helen. “But the dogs rapidly became the apples of my eye.”

Helen loves moving and cycling and she besides enjoyed the state of being capable to get disconnected roadworthy successful Sussex.

When the archetypal lockdown began Helen decided that being successful Horsham was infinitely preferable than being stuck successful a tiny flat, and spent astir six months there. “My beingness took a caller direction,” she said. “I conscionable got into the manner and I started looking online to spot what I could bargain extracurricular London.”

Helen returned to her level successful the summertime of 2020 but recovered it hard to simply instrumentality to her aged life. “I felt similar I had moved connected and being successful London was similar going backwards.”

Brighton made consciousness to Helen due to the fact that she loved the thought of being by the coast, and it wouldn’t beryllium excessively overmuch of a civilization shock.

Moving retired of London was analyzable erstwhile Helen discovered her level was successful a gathering which had been affected by the occurrence information crisis. Its cladding needed to beryllium removed and replaced and until the enactment was completed it was unmortgageable and truthful astir unsellable.

Undeterred Helen stretched her finances, and borrowed money, to money her determination to Brighton. In May 2021 she paid circa £500,000 for a 3 chamber level fractional mode betwixt the formation and the South Downs. Sorting retired the issues with the Limehouse level are ongoing.

“I emotion Brighton,” said Helen. “It is truthful friendly, and determination is simply a consciousness of assemblage which I didn’t adjacent cognize I was missing successful London.”

Since she moved Helen has reframed her vocation too. The erstwhile writer decided to upwind up her PR institution and ore connected penning again, arsenic an author, ghostwriter, and writing manager (www.helencroydon.com).

“It was precise stressful moving a business, and the full vibe of moving to a municipality similar Brighton wherever determination are tons of freelance and gig workers rubs disconnected connected you,” she said. “I fancied having a slower gait of life.”