"I'm living a stress-free lifestyle at Mickle Hill"

Mrs Mary Hook aged 81, a former telephonist, cleaner and school dinner lady before retiring many years ago, moved from Bristol to Mickle Hill, North Pickering in May 2022, prior to the sale and legal completion of her home in August 2022.

Mrs Hook commented:

“I was first introduced to Mickle Hill by my son Andy, who lives close by and he suggested we paid a visit to see what the properties were like, as well as the amenities on offer here.

I had been living in a 3 bedroomed house with a large garden and was becoming increasingly overwhelmed and stressed about the prospect of maintaining such a large property on my own after my husband passed away in 2018. The house, along with the increased cost of living, was becoming quite a worry.

My son Andy was having to make the long drive from North Yorkshire to Bristol every time something needed doing at the house, and it was becoming harder to maintain the property and carry out the regular repairs that were needed.

When I was experiencing  some health issues affecting my mobility, Andy suggested that I consider moving closer to him and that we have a look at Mickle Hill, I was delighted, and I was very impressed with the village and its facilities. I decided to put my house on the market, after living there for 60 years.

My house sale took longer to complete than expected, but I was eager to move in as soon as possible. When we were given the option to move in and make sure I was settled into my new home, before I completed on my property, I was delighted, and I have to say I haven’t looked back since!

My previous house was situated on busy road with lots of traffic and a number of potential hazards, such as uneven paving stones and wheelie bins in the street.  I was constantly worrying about going outside and potentially tripping over or bumping into something, as my mobility at that time was not too good, all of which meant that I didn’t venture out much and I became quite isolated as a result.

As soon as I moved to Mickle Hill my mindset changed completely, and I felt so relieved as everything is so flat and well laid out, that I don’t have that constant worry or obstacles to mobility. There are lovely, landscaped gardens to walk around, and I regularly take the local bus, which stops at the village, into town to enjoy all the local amenities. I can also walk into town if the weather is fine.

Everyone is so friendly here and there is a real sense of community. I’m also enjoying the social aspect of living here, I’m a very social person by nature and so now I get to mix with other people, it's nice to have a chat over coffee or in passing. I also took part in the recent jewellery making workshop, it was great to learn a new skill.

In the summer, I really enjoyed taking part in and watching a range of sports on the village green, including croquet. I also lead a far more active lifestyle here and take part in regular exercise and Yoga classes. There’s always something going on, and you can be as involved as you want to be.

I don’t make use of the additional care services at the moment, but it's very reassuring to know that there is on-site care here, should I need it in the future, it gives me great peace of mind and my family too.

I would say the main benefit of living here, is that all my worries have disappeared and I’m now living a stress-free lifestyle, my son says I’m like a new person and I have to say, I feel like one!