My partner and I are moving to the UK later this year. We are currently considering Cambridge/ Oxford since there should be more lab related jobs.
Where else would you recommend for a more affordable living cost? Our target salary is around £25000 – 30000.
Background about us: partner: technical officer in biomedical science. Me: project manager.
12 comments
**For specific questions about Cambridge, you can also visit /r/Cambridge.**
If you are looking for attractions, recommendations, places to live, eat, drink, or do, [take a look at WikiVoyage](https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Cambridge) or [search TripAdvisor](https://www.tripadvisor.com/Search?singleSearchBox=true&q=Cambridge).
*Your post was not removed, this is just a friendly message*
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
While you are correct that those two areas do have lots of Science related jobs (particularly Cambridge) they are both very expensive parts of the country to live in.
It won’t be impossible to live if you are both earning that amount each, but you would have to compromise on location in those areas. In Cambridge for example Doctors for the Hospital tend to commute in from surrounding areas as even they are priced out of the market in the city.
I’d Google for jobs and compile areas. These areas are super pricey. Consider other areas and their transport links. Norwich has a big lab may be a tad cheeper and London does but I mean obviously super expensive.
The North west is a significant tech hub. Manchester, warrington, liverpool and the general area. Much cheaper living costs (in general) than down south.
I think you should really get jobs lined up before moving. As stated these are expensive areas to live in and expensive times.
How are you coming here with no job offer to support a visa application? Interested to know which origin countries the UK allows that for these days!
OP do you have visas lined up? If you’re from the EU it’s easier to get one but still a pain. Outside of the EU is very difficult especially for jobs that aren’t on any priority list.
Oxford is a lovely place to live and I loved living there, but it’s expensive. With that combined salary and renting a decently modest flat, I think it would be more than doable though. It’s fairly well connected and I would advise against driving if possible.
Cambridge is a major bioscience hub, plenty of lab work going on (and project management but that is happening everywhere).
Conveniently some of the slightly cheaper areas of the city are close to the science park which is the focus of the bio work: Kings Hedges, Milton for example. The other big area is around Addenbrooke’s hospital in the south. That is a bit harder to get to, I don’t know how prices are in Queen Edith’s or the new developments (Grantchester Meadows etc).
In any case 2x £30k without childcare costs would be plenty for a comfortable life.
Neither Oxford or Cambridge are affordable. Even with 2 x £30k, is not a lot in those areas.
People in the UK commute an average of 30 miles (50 km).
My advice is to look for cheap areas (basically excluding London and big cities) but at a commutable distance from places with potential workplaces. Some people are happy in small villages, others hate it.
You won’t survive anywhere near those locations on those salaries.. you can only move here without a job if you are both UK or Irish citizens or are coming on a Youth Mobility Visa or Ancestry Visa for other Visas you need a job before you can move here.
You should be looking more around 40-60 k for project management. You won’t survive on 25 my friend.
I noticed that Exeter have a big science park, and Southampton.