With its quiet way of life, tight-knit community and affordable living costs, it is easy to see why Folkestone in Kent is a favourite among retirees.
For years, Folkestone in Kent proved the perfect retirement destination for local builder Patrick Murphy.
‘Older residents like me are feeling increasingly marginalised and not wanted,’ he says. ‘It is not just property prices pushing us out — but shops and restaurants, too.’ Abandoned until a decade ago it has been ‘reimagined’ to include a swish cocktail bar at the lighthouse, seafood restaurants and a host of live music events at weekends.
The move towards working from home means that families who were once tied to large cities can move out to seaside towns for the space and sea air — without having to give up their jobs. Artist Jose Juan Barba, 45, moved to Folkestone with singing partner Sarah Quist a year ago — and was holding an exhibition of his work in a local gallery.
At the time one friend feared I was moving to a lorry park because of traffic queues leading to the Channel Tunnel. District councillor John Wing is taking a brisk morning stroll on the promenade. The path is part of a new gentrification of the area that includes palm trees and deckchairs on the beach. He welcomes improvements but fears it could mask a housing crisis.
‘Folkestone is not a holiday resort but a home to real people who should be looked after and not be isolated.’ When billionaire Sir Roger De Haan sold Saga, the company started by his father Sir Sidney De Haan in Folkestone in 1951, for £1.3 billlion a decade ago, he decided to invest some of the windfall in local developments.
‘I think the council only wants to present a glitzy fake image of the town to grab new investors,’ she says. ‘I understand we need to attract money to the area — but this brings its own problems for elderly residents.
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