We started Norfolk Living Guide in early 2026 with a simple frustration: every area guide we found online was either written by an estate agent trying to sell us something, or cobbled together by someone who had clearly never set foot in Norfolk.
Who We Are
We are a small team of writers and researchers, all based in Norfolk. Between us we have lived in Norwich, the Broads villages, the north coast, and the quieter market towns out west. We have done the school run in Wymondham, commuted from Dereham, walked dogs on Holkham Beach more times than we can count, and sat through enough parish council meetings to last a lifetime.
When friends and family started asking us where to move in Norfolk, we realised there was genuinely nothing online that gave the full, unvarnished picture.
Meet the Team
Each of our writers brings a different perspective to the county. That is deliberate – Norfolk is not one place, and it takes people who know different corners of it to write about it properly.
Tom Fletcher
Property Researcher and Area Guide Writer
Tom covers most of our inland area guides, from Norwich neighbourhoods to the market towns of mid-Norfolk. He has lived in Norwich for over a decade, first in the Golden Triangle and now in Thorpe St Andrew. Before joining the site he worked in residential property, which means he can read a Land Registry dataset faster than most people read a menu. He handles the property price analysis, council tax comparisons, and the practical nuts and bolts of what it actually costs to live in each area.
Sarah Ellis
Schools and Family Life Specialist
Sarah writes our schools coverage, family-focused guides, and the “Best Places for Families” content. She is a mum of two in Wymondham and has been through the Norfolk school admissions process twice – the second time armed with spreadsheets. She cross-references Ofsted reports with actual parent experience, because a “Good” rating does not always tell the full story. If a guide mentions catchment areas, breakfast clubs, or which primary has the best after-school provision, that is Sarah.
James Ward
Transport and Infrastructure Writer
James handles our transport guides, town comparison pieces, and the new-build development coverage. He commuted from Diss to Norwich by train for three years, so he has strong opinions about Greater Anglia timetables. He also covers broadband, road connections, and the practical infrastructure questions that matter when you are choosing where to live. The comparison articles – Norwich vs King’s Lynn, Cromer vs Sheringham – are his patch. He is good at weighing trade-offs without sitting on the fence.
Helen Marsh
Coastal and Rural Communities Writer
Helen covers the coast and the more rural parts of Norfolk – from Cromer and Sheringham to Wells, Holt, and the Broads villages. She grew up in Sheringham and now lives near the north Norfolk coast, which means she knows the difference between the tourist version of these places and the year-round reality. Her guides focus on what it is actually like to live in a coastal town when the visitors go home: the winter isolation, the second-home question, and whether you can get a GP appointment in August.
Why We Built This Site
Property prices? Sure, Rightmove has that. But what about the school that looks great on paper but has had three head teachers in five years? Or the village that floods every winter because the drainage has not been sorted since the 80s? Or the town where broadband barely reaches 10Mbps despite what Openreach’s coverage checker says?
That is the gap we fill. Every area guide on this site is built from actual local experience, backed up by publicly available data: ONS statistics, Ofsted reports, Land Registry figures, Ofcom broadband data. We cross-reference, we check, and if something seems off, we dig deeper.
51 area guides and counting. From the city buzz of Norwich to the coastal charm of Wells-next-the-Sea, and from the historic streets of King’s Lynn to the quiet lanes around Loddon. Each one follows the same format so you can compare like-for-like.
Data-backed, locally verified. Property prices come from Land Registry records. School ratings are from Ofsted. Broadband speeds are from Ofcom. We cross-reference everything against what we actually see on the ground.
We visit before we publish. Before a guide goes live, we go to the town, walk the high street, check the car parks, eat in the cafes, and talk to people who live there. If something does not match the data, we say so.
Our Research Process
We take accuracy seriously. For property prices, we use HM Land Registry data and cross-check against current Rightmove and Zoopla listings. School information comes from Ofsted reports, Department for Education performance tables, and local knowledge from parents who have been through the system.
Transport data is verified against Greater Anglia and First Bus timetables. Broadband speeds are checked against Ofcom’s Connected Nations data. We also check whether the GP surgery is accepting new patients, whether the local pub has decent food, and whether the playground actually has working equipment.
Who Our Guides Are For
We write for anyone thinking about moving to Norfolk or relocating within the county. That includes first-time buyers stretching their London salaries further, families looking for better schools and more space, remote workers who can now live anywhere, and retirees looking for a peaceful but connected community.
Whether you are considering a Georgian townhouse in Holt or a new-build on the outskirts of Attleborough, our guides give you the information you need to make a confident decision.
How We Keep the Lights On
We are an independent site. We do not charge for access and we do not hide content behind paywalls. Some of our guides contain affiliate links to services we would genuinely recommend: estate agents, solicitors, broadband providers, removal companies. If you click through and use them, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
We also work with a handful of local advertisers and sponsors who share our values. None of this influences our editorial content. If a town has rubbish broadband, we will say so, even if a broadband provider is advertising on the same page. You can read our full Affiliate Disclosure for more details.
Get Involved
If you are thinking of moving to Norfolk, or just moving across it, we hope this site saves you some of the headaches we have had. And if you spot something we have got wrong, or a town we have not covered yet, drop us a message through our contact page. We are always looking to improve, and local knowledge from residents is one of the best ways to do that.
You can also grab our free Moving to Norfolk Checklist, which walks you through everything from council tax registration to finding a decent fish and chip shop.