According\u00a0to a recent study into quality of life\u00a0it was\u00a0found that 96.6\u00a0per cent\u00a0of the\u00a0residents in Winchester reported being in good or fairly good health compared to a national average of 94.6per cent<\/p>\n
More good news for the over 55s is that life expectancy rates for the Hampshire city were also higher than the national average, with men expected to live to about 82 and women to about 85.<\/p>\n
The crime rate was also found to be among the lowest in the country, while education, access to broadband, population density and the weather were also taken into account in the study by Halifax.<\/p>\n
Steeped in history, Winchester began as a Roman town. Built about 70 AD and called Venta Belgarum it grew into a regional capital.<\/p>\n
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However, it is probably best known for its association with Alfred the Great in Saxon times, who revived it in the late 9th century, and formed a network of fortifications to defend it from the Danes. Winchester was rebuilt with its streets laid out in a grid pattern and as today, people encouraged to come and live there.<\/p>\n
The \u2018current\u2019 cathedral was built by the Normans in 1079 having demolished its predecessor.<\/p>\n
Today there is so much going on in and around the city. From concerts, lectures and performances at the cathedral or Theatre Royal, to the annual Hat Fair, fortnightly farmers market and the leisure centre, Winchester is a real contender for anybody looking to relocate for the good life.<\/p>\n
Outside the city there is also a wealth of interest, from trout fishing on the River Test, walking in the Southdown\u2019s National Park, Jane Austen Museum at the house in Chawton where she lived from 1809, the Bombay Sapphire gin distillery at Whitchurch, or Watership Down, made famous by the writings of Richard Adams.<\/p>\n
It was this quality of life that led the former owners of 6 Abbotts Lea Cottages to move to Winchester from Somerset.\u00a0![\"\"](\"http:\/\/newclone.retiremove.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/162550-6c.jpg\")
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The property is one of a small collection of retirement houses built around a central courtyard, and within the grounds of a care home, adding reassurance should assistance ever be needed.<\/p>\n
The property\u00a0has\u00a0two bedrooms, one en suite, plus a separate shower room, a good sized sitting room and dining room, fitted kitchen, entrance hall with cupboards, and a conservatory\/sun room overlooking the well-planted garden area. The house\u00a0also has a Stannah stairlift, which is included in the price of \u00a3440,000, and an allocated car parking space.<\/p>\n
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Winchester is just a mile from the development, and there\u2019s an excellent and frequent bus service into the city, with the mainline railway station offering fast trains to London in around an hour. Southampton Airport, one of the country\u2019s most accessible regional airports has good connections to Europe, and is just 20 minutes away.<\/p>\n