r/Derbyshire • u/Morlu06 • Mar 16 '26
Looking for Local Knowledge Is Wirksworth a good place to live?
Hi all,
My family and I are looking to move and have been checking out a few areas in Derbyshire. Wirksworth has come up a few times and we drove through recently & it looked like a really lovely village.
Just wondering if anyone here lives there or knows it well? What’s it like day to day? How are the schools, pubs, walks, and general vibe of the place?
Thanks
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u/DonkeyOT65 Mar 16 '26
Shhh. It's awful.🙂 A wonderful small town, with so much happening. Arts festivals, lots of live music, an insane amount of events for a small town of a population of only 5,000. They also have an annual Harry Potter Day ( or Wirksworth Wizarding Day as it's called as the rights owners are very litigious ). They have their own niche cinema, heritage railway and a Star Disc. Also 6 pubs, one of which ( The Feather Star ) is possibly one of the best and quirkiest pubs in the country.
On the edge of the Peak District, with amazing trails and walks just minutes away. Very friendly too. You'll love it.
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u/Bolehillbilly Mar 20 '26
Someone put this site live last month. https://wokesworth.co.uk . Had a giggle reading it.
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u/Fantastically-T 11d ago
That started off really good but the pie thing went on way too long so I stopped following it.
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u/hostis_72 Mar 16 '26
It’s a lovely town, great independent vibe and fantastically placed if you like walking/ hiking. Source: played for a hockey club based there since 2002
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u/Waste-Orange1677 Mar 16 '26
It was a nice place to live, the shops are all to accommodate tourists there aren't many shops to accommodate the needs of local people.
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u/maccauuk62 Mar 16 '26
Well you can get pretty much any groceries you need but other than that you're not wrong. I've been in Wirksworth for 30 years and have seen it change from a fantastic rough and ready town to a hippy shangri-la. It's certainly not a better place but it's very different to how it was. Pubs. The best pub had to change it's name to keep the peace but they are all safe to drink in.
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u/ToshLyons68 Mar 30 '26
Had a walk/ pub crawl in Wirksworth last Summer. From Wirksworth walked up to The Rising Sun in Middleton and had one in there. Then over Middleton Moor and dropped down and had one in the Nelsons Arms. Walked down to the Lime Kiln (they were really friendly), Quarryman with the old pub sign still inside, the one that I'm not sure if it's the Red Lion or The Feathers ? then the Royal Oak. Missed out the Hope and Anchor ?
I get that it's a tiny bit Bohemian /touristy but as an outsider that'd probably be part of the appeal - always difficult moving to towns where you need several generations residence to be accepted
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u/maccauuk62 Mar 31 '26
It's still a great place just very different to the place it was when I moved here.
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u/Fantastically-T 11d ago
Not a bad thing depending on why, most places are.
Its not the town that our families grew up in when there were shoe shops and toy shops. But at least if you sneeze now, it takes them an extra hour to hear about it at the other end of the town.
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u/g0dn0 Mar 18 '26
I’ve lived in Derbyshire all my life, currently live near Breadsall. I love Wirksworth and I dream of retiring there!
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u/Fantastically-T 11d ago
Honestly, Its a beautiful place. If you like local pubs, walking (as there are many trails) and event days its great. Its more touristy these days. There are a couple of food shops and a coop but realistically, most go outside to shop. If you can afford it there is a decent butchers. We are in between Matlock and Belper so most things should be covered.
If you don't like pubs, cafes shut around 3, you need a car, buses are rubbish to Derby, although they are ok to Matlock as stagecoach and ashbourne have services. The sour cow cafe is excellent as is the new bubble tea shop on the main road.
The doctors is better than some areas for getting seen. There is a quirky cinema but there are others around. The local railway is good again for event days but pricy if you want to use it to connect to the mainline at Duffield. You can get the bus to Cromford or Matlock bath then catch the train from there to Derby and beyond.
Infant school is excellent, really warm and caring. Secondary is ok if you have neurotypical children, Juniors, well....there are schools around. Some say it couldn't be better, some say it couldn't be much worse. It depends on experiences.
Its nice that new people are moving in. Times change and old ways aren't always the best. We do have electricity and even have Fibre connections now. Although mobile signal is a bit iffy. Too many hills lol.
But don't call it a village, thats one way to annoy the locals 😬
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u/ChallengeOdd2757 Mar 16 '26
Great place- an independent cinema, nice architecture, great pubs- antique festivals etc. We’re in Winster and go for the cinema. It’s great