If you are a family looking for houses to rent in Kettering, then as well as considering the overall size of the property you need, you will also need to think about schools and other facilities that you would like to have nearby. As experts in Kettering property rentals, we have put together a short guide to some of the key amenities of interest to families settling in the town.
Schools
Kettering has a good mix of state, independent and religious schools, many of which have superb reputations. One of the top performing primary schools is Hall Meadow, Lake Avenue – a community based school with an excellent academic record and a coveted Ofsted rating of ‘outstanding’. The school was even awarded ‘Sunday Times Parent Power Primary School of the Year’!
If you are moving to a village location, however, Brigstock Latham’s Church of England Primary School is an excellent voluntary controlled school with just over 100 pupils and an overall Ofsted rating of ‘outstanding.’ Another primary school achieving high standards is the smaller, voluntary aided Great Addington Church of England Primary, which is situated in this much sought after village.
For those looking for houses to rent in Kettering with older children, the top rated secondary schools include Bishop Stopford School, Headlands, a co-educational academy which saw eight out of ten pupils achieving 5 or more GCSE level grades of A*-C (including English and Maths). The school has been described as ‘outstanding’ in its most recent Ofsted report and is actually the feeder school for Hall Meadow Primary. It also receives children from St Peter’s Primary, a small independent, co-educational primary school with another good record.
Leisure/Sports Centres
Keeping fit and being active is on many people’s must-do list, and if you moving into rental accommodation in Kettering the good news is that there are plenty of council and privately run sport and leisure centres. The town’s largest leisure centre is Balance on Thurston Drive, where gym members can also use the swimming pool, sauna, steam room, join fitness classes, and have access to the squash, volleyball and badminton courts at discounted rates. It is based within Arena Sports, a superb sporting facility offering a range of fitness activities from short tennis to netball, indoor football and beach volleyball.
Kettering has a wide range of sporting venues to suit all budgets. Other centres include LA Fitness on Pytchley Road, and Kettering Swimming Pool, London Road – a popular facility with a gym and pool. If you are serious about cricket, head to the Kettering Town Cricket and Sports Club on Northampton Road. Meanwhile, the Kettering Lodge Bowling Club is the only club in the borough offering both outdoor and indoor bowling.
Parks and Playgrounds
There are a good number of parks and play areas for young children throughout Kettering. One of the largest is Rockingham Road Pleasure Park in the north of the town, catering for all ages from toddlers to teenagers.
Another favourite is the 147 acre adventure playground Wicksteed Park in Kettering. It is the second oldest theme park in the UK and has beautiful grounds to explore including a free children’s playground, which you can find at the entrance to the park. A visit to this park makes a great family day out.
Transport
Train journeys from Kettering into the capital – to St Pancras International Railway Station – take just 61 minutes. From there, the more adventurous could even take the Eurostar to the continent as the train from St Pancras to Paris takes just 2 hours 25 minutes.
In addition to the train service, there are also regular bus services. Routes 2A and 2B on the Stagecoach Midlands go to and from Corby, and there are also bus routes linking Kettering to Northampton, Leicester and Milton Keynes. In addition to this are the regular bus services in and around the town and to the outer villages (3C Stagecoach Midlands, for example, goes to and from the village of Oundle). Several taxi companies also operate in and around Kettering.
Shopping
Kettering has a good mix of independent and high street stores, with many of the big name brands represented. The main indoor shopping centre is Newlands, which is right in the heart of the town (behind the bus station). It has 45 shops including familiar names such as Dorothy Perkins, Holland and Barrett, Boots, The Body Shop, Clarks shoes and Claire’s Accessories.
Medical Centres
Kettering has a number of medical centres and GP surgeries. The district hospital is Kettering General which is situated on the western outskirts of the town. It has an accident and emergency centre, 524 beds, 35 maternity beds and covers north Northamptonshire, Rutland and South Leicestershire. Woodland is a private hospital to the north west of the town, offering a variety of treatments including physiotherapy and spinal surgery.
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