We spoke to two local councillors to get their views on what it is that makes the town so great
With London property prices showing no real signs of declining to affordable standards, and living costs doing pretty much the same, a lot of Londoners are understandably looking to move to the commuter belt. Thankfully, there’s a wealth of places to choose from.
Rochester in Kent is one of those places. It’s a town which you can get to London Victoria in 41 minutes, and Bromley South in under half an hour.
Homes go for an average of £334,381, according to Rightmove, a whopping £320,588 saving. It is one of the five Medway Towns (the others being Chatham, Gillingham, Rainham, and Strood), with a population of around 207,282, so it’s still pretty busy, but doesn’t have London’s sense of restlessness.
Rochester is steeped in history and culture. It’s home to the amazing Rochester Cathedral – a Grade I listed building and the second oldest in the land – founded by Bishop Justus in 604 AD. Charles Dickens also lived nearby at Gad’s Hill Place, and Rochester inspired settings in many of his novels.
It was also considered a city for almost 800 until 1998. But after the Medway unitary authority was introduced two years before the millennium, a failure to petition for the preservation of its status meant it was no longer a city. This earned Rochester the reputation as being the first UK city to lose its city status.
We spoke to two councillors to learn more about life in the Kent town.
Labour Deputy Council Leader, Cllr Teresa Murray, has served the town for 26 years, having moved to the area in 1979 from Norbury, South London. She said: “We’re in a really good location because near the coast, and near to London.
“We’ve got a lovely historical centre, a thriving arts and community, pretty good schools which I’m proud of. And look, for me it’s my home. I’ve lived here for a long time. I’ve raised my family here. I’m happy here.”
But despite having a population of more than 200,000 people, Rochester has a ‘villagey feel,’ according to Cllr Murray, who added there is a good sense of community to go along with it. She said: “There’s a quite a sort of small town, villagey centre, although we’re part of a bigger group of towns, (the Medway towns) and they are very clearly linked within Rochester itself.
“There is a sense of being a small town and a sense of people knowing each other well, and doing things together. There is also a lot of commitment to community events and festivals. The best known one is probably our Sweeps festival, which is a kind of folk music festival that happens every Mayday bank holiday. And it’s got it’s got independent shops, nice places to eat, and nice walks.”
The beautiful Cathedral
It’s not just the people that make Rochester so charming in Cllr Murray’s view, it’s the rich history behind the ancient town, too.
“It’s got the second-oldest cathedral in the country,” she continued. “It’s a beautiful Cathedral. We’ve (also) got Rochester Castle, a Norman castle. We’ve got a history of Charles Dickens being in the Medway towns themselves, and a strong association with engineering, partly through the dockyard, partly through the Rochester Bridge, which has still got the local bridge wardens.”
We also spoke to Cllr Linda Bowen who has been in local politics since 2023. She moved to Rochester 10 years ago having lived near Bromley.
Cllr Bowen called the area a ‘friendly, pretty’ place with ‘historic buildings’ and ‘lovely countryside.’ She added there’s a ‘good sense of community’ with a number of volunteer groups. One example the Cllr gave was The Friends of the Esplanade, ‘who do a lot of volunteer work in keeping the green area at the esplanade nice.’
She also told us about Rochester’s rich history. “There’s Restoration House, where Charles II was meant to have stayed on his way back into London. There’s a Tudor House in the High Street – Eastgate House. That was restored with lottery money.”
The nature is also something Cllr Bowen finds deeply appealing. There’s a lot of farmland, and a lot of wildlife,” she said. “You can walk along the river, and I used to walk along it to work when I was in the office full time and watch a family of swans growing up.”
‘Down from Londoners’
However the Cllr was very honest about the concern some people have about Londoners moving into the area. So much so that those moving in from the capital have been dubbed ‘Down from Londoners.’
She said: “I think there’s a hell of a lot of people who are not originally from the area. They are called ‘Down from Londoners’, and people do worry about the more expensive housing going to Londoners rather than locals because (they) obviously tend to get priced out a bit.”
Cllr Bowen added: “Nobody’s ever been nasty to me because I’m originally from London, but there is concern about local people getting on the property ladder. Housing is a problem like everywhere else.”
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