Why you might want to house hunt in the friendliest village in Huddersfield

Picturedrome but if it’s strong community spirit and a lively social scene you are after then this is could be the place for you.

It has several pubs, including The Foxglove and The Woodman, a church and sporting facilities, including golf and football.

Simon Blyth, owner of Simon Blyth estate agency, which has sold a lot of homes in the village over the years, recommends Kirkburton to buyers who work in nearby areas such as Huddersfield and Wakefield because it’s easily commutable.

“Kirkburton really came into its own four or five years ago as an alternative to the Holme Valley,” he says. “It’s a bustling village, it’s busy. I don’t think I can say who the typical buyer might be, but I would say they are discerning buyers.

"It’s also popular because of the golf club at Woodsome Hall. Lots of attractions, such as Cannon Hall and Cannon Hall Farm are just a short drive away too.”

Peter Taylor, a retired traffic engineer, who moved here with his wife Sue, a retired university lecturer, from Liverpool three decades ago to take up a job with Kirklees Council, agrees: ““It’s always got plenty going on.”

Peter’s quest was to find a family house with a large garden for his now grown-up son and daughter, and he’s still there, working hard as a Green Party parish councillor and treasurer of West Yorkshire Organic Group, an organisation which encourages people to grow vegetables, fruit and flowers organically.

In 2019, the couple had a new two/three bedroomed 120 sqm Passivhaus-certified home built in the 800 sqm garden of their 19th century former family home, which they sold.

Peter feels that Kirkburton, with its fascinating range of properties – from two-up two-down workers’ cottages to grand houses built by proud woollen mill-owners, such as early 19 th century Grade II listed Kirkburton Hall, which changed hands for around £2m a couple of years ago and once served time as Kirkburton Town Hall – is the kind of place where innovation is welcomed.

He says that Kirkburton is as friendly and interesting now as it was back in the early 1990s when he arrived: “It’s a thriving, pretty village, it’s big enough to have a good range of local facilities, including a health centre, butcher, Co-op and a bus route to Huddersfield or Denby Dale, but at the same time it’s got wonderful countryside on the doorstep.”

It really couldn’t be much closer. Adjoining the village centre is Burton Dean, a nature reserve created on the site of the 19 th century Carter Mill Dye Works – the mill stream is still there. Kirkburton is also on the scenic Trans Pennine Trail, with the section towards Penistone in South Yorkshire being particular popular with walkers and cyclists.

“I think the appeal of Kirkburton as a place to live are the varied houses, both in styles and prices, that the village offers,” says James Turner, branch co-ordinator and valuer at Ryder & Dutton estate agents. “The uniqueness of the shops and businesses on offer on North Road, which are in the main, independent, offer a wide range of services. There is a real sense of community spirit.”

In price terms, there is certainly a range which appeals to everyone, from first-time buyers – Simon Blyth is marketing a two-bedroomed terraced house with a pretty garden on Lane Head Lane in the heart of the village for £170,000, to lottery winners.

On Slant Gate, Gailowind, a super-glamorous seven-bedroom mansion standing in more than three acres of manicured gardens, is on the market for £3.5m with Charnock Bates.

Investors might also be interested to learn that there are bargains to be had too. In November 2021, a tenanted one-bedroomed terraced house on North Road sold for just £69,000.

However, properties do hold their value well. Rightmove says that homes in Kirkburton achieved an overall average sold price of £286,646

over the last year.

The majority of sales in Kirkburton during the last year were detached houses, selling for an average price of £408,562. Semi-detached properties sold for an average of £251,995, with terraceds fetching £213,778.

Despite difficult prevailing winds blowing over the Pennines, the Kirkburton market seems to be holding up relative well. Rightmove says that overall, sold prices over the last year were only three per cent down on the previous year.

This is probably because there is always solid demand, says James, who highlights the ‘middle school system’ as a pull for families, stressing that Kirkburton Middle School is especially sought-after.

He adds that whilst period properties, such as the traditional stone-built 19th century cottages and amazingly renovated larger houses, are always popular, “families do like to take advantage of newer builds with large kitchens, for family living and socialising”.