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In July 2006 it hit the headlines when a national survey placed Moreton Hall as the best place to live in Britain for a long life. Some residents were amused and some bemused by all the attention, but the survey could only mean good things for house prices!

A year later the excitement may have died down but residents were still pleased to mention the survey to me when I visited Moreton Hall as part of my Weekend Visit series.

The estate has grown in phases for the past 30 years, built on the original Moreton Hall farmland, and now there are between 7000 and 8000 homes there, depending upon who you speak to.

Bloggers guide to Moreton Hall

Ruby writes a blog about living in Bury St Edmunds and writes for the Moreton Hall Directory.

She told me that you can see how, as you walk around the estate, the style of the homes (mostly "executive- style") reflect the changing society we live in, with the earlier houses on larger plots and in more spacious surroundings.

"When you look at the houses it's like a timeline of history as you can see all the different styles of houses that have been built in different time periods," Ruby says.

Imagine how historians will interpret the styles and what they showed about our income levels and aspirations at a time of increasing land costs!

Not only has the number of homes grown over the years, but also the facilities for the residents with an array of shops, a couple of pubs, health facilities, a church and two junior schools.

The church offers much for the young people of the estate. Jonathon Ford is proud of how his ecumenical church, Christ Church, the newest one in the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, has grown.

Opened in 1993, after members had been meeting in the community centre since 1985, the church has the high ceilings, large low windows and modern facilities to attract Christians of all ages.

Christianity in the modern age

A traditional robed and said Church of England-style communion service is held early on a Sunday morning, followed by a more relaxed modern style of all-age worship led by a worship band. The 20 microphones record the service and it is streamed on the church's website.

"It does mean a lot of our people who are at home alone or disabled can listen to the service and sermon without coming into church at all," the Minister, Jonathon told me before explaining the importance of a church having a welcoming environment:

"There's fitted carpet and central heating. It's got to be as good as at home. It's trying to be relevant to where people are today and the whole church is based on that basis.

"You don't talk in Elizabethan language and wear funny robes, so I don't think we should."

Community centre

Like any community, Moreton Hall has its challenges, what with rising divorce rates and debt. Jonathon is particularly concerned about mortgage rates and how some families may have over-stretched themselves financially to buy the very desirable homes in the area.

Near to the church is the community centre, owned by St Edmundsbury Council but run by a committee of residents and some paid staff.

A large building, the bars, kitchen, function and meeting rooms, and outside play area are used by the 1000 members and numerous organisations and groups, as well as offering a place to meet up with friends.

When the post office was to close on the estate, a new home was found in the community centre.

My guide to Moreton Hall was Tina Gibbons, the proprietor and editor of the Moreton Hall Directory, a free magazine delivered to the homes on the estate. She took me to see a side of Moreton Hall that is not obvious to any outsiders visiting the estate.

A network of well-lit cycle tracks, edged by trees and hedgerows, link the estate and are a favourite attraction to families, such asΜύthe Cannards.

Walk or cycle along the paths to Natterers Wood and you can see the work of the volunteers of the Woodland Ways.

One of them, local resident Nick Sibbett showed me how the new wood is growing and although it will take many years to grow to any substantial size, it and the wildflower meadows and pathways lead to a spectacular view across the town of Bury St Edmunds.

From the air (or from photos on their website!) it is possible to see that the wildflower meadow is designed in the shape of a bat, but from the ground you just have to take Nick's word for it!

With cycleways to make use of and pathways to walk, never mind a health club in the grounds of the Moreton Hall Prep school, this part of Bury St Edmunds should be one of the healthiest places to live, never mind what any survey says.

And there is no excuse for anyone to complain they are bored on Moreton Hall estate, if what I saw is anything to go by.
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Listen to Rachel's visit to Moreton Hall using the links on the right >>