Anyone living in Sheffield?

Just curious what that town is like to live in?  I've heard it had gone downhill for some years but has turned around is being rejuvenated. 

It apparently has high rankings as a green city (61% green space and more trees per person than any European city) and ranked as one of the top 10 best places to locate a business in 2008.  However it has a low cost of living and it makes me wonder why? 

I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts on Sheffield (or nearby) as a place to live.   Thanks.

Alistair-
I live in Sheffield, however I will say that my opinion is of an American who has spent most of her life in large US cities.  Sheffield is very friendly and compared to what I have seen does have a lower cost of living.  It has the feel of a series of small villages and not really that urban vibe that most cities have.   You can very quickly get into the Peak District or out into the country and much of the "city" is really rural.  I live in the city centre and still see Hay trucks and chickens.   However, there are access to shops and most conveniences.  There are two universities here so you do get a number of Uni students in town.  I do think that Sheffield is more of a car city.  We do not have a car but most people do.  There is good public transport but as so much of the city is very hilly, it can take a while to walk (especially with small children in tow). 

PM me if you have any other specific questions I would be happy to try and answer.

I went to Sheffield for the first time recently and was blown away by how awesome it was.  Totally not what I was expecting.  It has a great vibe to it and the people are SO friendly.  I come from the North of Scotland so i'm used to friendly people but the people in Sheffield were just so warm.

It also seemed to have really good shopping and a great music scene.  Aaaaaaaaaagh I LOVED IT.  Sorry i'm gushing but I was just really impressed.

I went to Sheffield for the first time recently and was blown away by how awesome it was.  Totally not what I was expecting.  It has a great vibe to it and the people are SO friendly.  I come from the North of Scotland so i'm used to friendly people but the people in Sheffield were just so warm.

It also seemed to have really good shopping and a great music scene.  Aaaaaaaaaagh I LOVED IT.  Sorry i'm gushing but I was just really impressed.

Yes!
I visited Sheffield in September and totally enjoyed it... good beer, too.

eep, can never resist replying to Sheffield topics...

I've lived in Sheffield for about 2.5 years in all, and I love it.  nonreneh is totally right in that it doesn't really have an urban feel like say, Leeds, Manchester or Birmingham- I've heard Sheffield described as the "biggest village in England" and it's so true.  That said, I'm a city gal and I still love it here because you still have all the amenities and events you could ever want.  It's like the best of both worlds, really.

The easy access to the Peaks is great (in fact, a third of the area covered by Sheffield City Council is actually in the Peak District), but I really love the amount of greenspace within the city itself.  I'm not so much a fan of the hills, but the scenery at the top of the various hills does make up for it!

Also to touch on what nonereh said about it being a car city- we don't have a car, and we really don't need one as public transport is generally good here.  And you do get used to the hills, truly. We will probably get a car eventually, but it'd be more for sheer convenience rather than actual need (you'd only really need a car if you lived in one of the out of the way suburbs.)

As for why it has a low cost of living...it may be that the masses haven't cottoned on to how awesome living here is, and how different a city this is to what it was even 20 or 30 years ago (this area has seen massive amounts of regeneration investment, and for Sheffield, at least, it seems to have worked.)  Shh, don't tell...

Wow, those descriptions of the city really do sound great.  Seems like you can live in an urban area without it feeling as such.  That would be appealing to us. 

Only real downside so far I've noticed is that on UpMyStreet it shows that burglary of a dwelling, theft of a motor vehicle and theft from a vehicle are all about twice the English national average in Sheffield. 

Are there specific areas to avoid living or is just general crime spread about?

Sheffield is often cited as one of the safest cities in England- often enough that there's got to be some research behind that you could probably get your hands on.  Obviously, despite its atmosphere Sheffield is a pretty large city, so you're going to have crime.  But it's not especially worse here, and I feel perfectly safe.

That said, just like other large cities there are a few areas in Sheffield I would definitely avoid which are well known for being dodgy. The rest of the city is generally fine

eep, can never resist replying to Sheffield topics...

He he neither can I.  I've lived in a village outside of Sheffield (we're classed as being under Rotherham for Council Tax, but address-wise we're classed as Sheffield - gotta love the British systems  ) for 4 years now and can't say how much I love Sheffield and the area in general.  I agree that Sheffield is a very commuter and public transport friendly city.  We have a car because of how far out of the city we are, but our village has 2 train stops and very adequate bus services, plus we're not too far from the Super Tram as well.

There're 2 main hospitals in Sheffield itself with a top notch Children's hospital as well as renowned Cancer unit.  Like Noreneh mentioned there're the 2 universities, there's Meadowhall Shopping Centre (massive mall); the next closest (large) malls are going to be in Birmingham, Manchester or Leeds (so you're looking at at least an hour away), aside from the usual shops in the City Centre.  2 football teams on either side of the city.  2 does seem to be a recurring theme for Sheffield doesn't it?   

Further to shopping mentioned before you'll find a good variety of shops and services to suit all walks of life.  Like any city there are the good and bad places.  If you're looking for more specifics on particular areas or want more info than what Up My Street can provide you may want to check out the Sheffield Forum if questions you pose here don't answer suitably enough.  Good luck!

  2 football teams on either side of the city. 

Three!
Wednesday, United, and FC!
People always forget about Sheffield FC... the oldest football club in the world, apparently!

Thanks for the additional replies.  We'll keep Sheffield on our short list.  

Three!
Wednesday, United, and FC!
People always forget about Sheffield FC... the oldest football club in the world, apparently!

And Rotherham United play their home games in Sheffield at the moment.

What I would say though - driving in from the M1 the place looks a dump! So many derelict buildings, but nice once you get in the centre.

Yay for stumbling upon this! It makes me even more excited to move to Sheffield!