Chelmsford

The only city in Essex, Chelmsford is a popular place to set up home. The bustling city centre boasts fantastic shopping, great indoor and outdoor leisure facilities, a lively nightlife scene and excellent transport links. Around 40 miles northeast of London and 25 miles southwest of Colchester, it’s a highly popular base for commuters, who can reach the capital in just over half an hour thanks to the speedy rail links. In the suburbs and surrounding villages you’ll find a good range of schools and family-friendly amenities, meaning that all in all this lovely city is a great place to call home.

Living in Chelmsford

Variety of shops

There’s a wide range of shopping in Chelmsford, whatever your needs might be. The main retail destination is High Chelmer, the largest shopping centre in Essex, which boasts a variety of clothes and food stores. The Meadows, another shopping centre in the heart of town, offers a mixture of independent stores and high street brands, whilst on Fridays and Saturdays you can browse stalls filled with delicious local produce and artisan goods at the city market.

Something for everyone

Chelmsford is surrounded by wonderful outdoor areas to discover by foot or bike, such as the nearby Melbourne Park, Central Park and the impressive Hylands Park where you can explore woodland pathways and gardens. Not only is there plenty of outdoor space to be active in, there’s also a great selection of indoor sporting facilities. Chelmsford Sport & Athletic Centre is situated next to Chelmsford City FC’s Melbourne Stadium and hosts a variety of indoor exercise classes, sports clubs and children’s activities.

For entertainment, the city enjoys a lively nightlife with a number of restaurants, bars, pubs and clubs. There’s also an Everyman Cinema, the Civic Theatre and a selection of live music venues. With a variety of places to explore, sites to see, and unique events, there is something to satisfy all tastes.

Education for all ages

Families with children can make use of the range of well-respected pre-schools, primary and secondary schools in and around Chelmsford. For older students, there’s Chelmsford College and Anglia Ruskin University.

Excellent transport links

Chelmsford is superbly positioned for road travel. The nearby A12 provides a direct route into London, with Colchester in the opposite direction. The M25 is just a 15-minute drive away, connecting the city to the home counties and Greater London, while the A130 leads down towards Southend-on-Sea. There are great public transport links in the city too – the area is served by an extensive bus network and Chelmsford train station offers regular services to London Liverpool Street in approximately 35 minutes. For journeys further afield, Stansted Airport is approximately 18 miles away with a wide range of national and international destinations.