Life in North West Anglia
Our Trust is providing acute care to our local communities through two District General Hospitals, Peterborough City Hospital and Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Huntingdon. We operate one community hospital in Stamford, and work closely with the community hospitals at Ely and Doddington. The sites and the services operating out of them provide secondary care to the local communities of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. Most of our patients are from within Cambridge and Peterborough ICS, however we provide some care for individuals in East Leicestershire and Rutland, Northamptonshire, South Lincolnshire and Norfolk and Waveney.
Life in Peterborough
At the north of Cambridgeshire, the cathedral city of Peterborough lies at the heart of the Cambridgeshire, Rutland, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire borders. Lush green countryside surrounds the city, punctuated with picturesque villages and bustling towns.
The area offers housing at a wide range of prices, to rent or buy. There is something for all tastes and preferences: contemporary city apartments, character terrace housing, family homes and rural living outside of the city. The city is located less than an hour away from London by train, and other cities such as Cambridge, Leicester and Birmingham can easily be reached by rail or road.
Life in Huntingdon
Huntingdon and the surrounding towns of St Ives, Ramsey and St Neots are all market towns. Although still essentially a rural community, the area has experienced rapid growth and a rising population over the last 30 years. Town development schemes and nearby science and technology parks (Cambridge) have all served to generate the expansion, which has brought with it improvements in housing, education, employment opportunities and leisure facilities, as well as good transport links to London and Peterborough.
Life in Stamford
Stamford is generally acknowledged as one of the most historic and beautiful stone-built towns in England. The town’s intricate street patterns retain their medieval design with narrow passageways and cobbled streets housing a wealth of architecturally important buildings and interesting shops.
The North West Anglia region is also a great place to learn. The area is bustling with fantastic primary and secondary academies and schools, providing quality education to children between the ages of 4 and 16. The area also has an abundance of highly regarded Sixth Forms and Colleges. North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust is also well placed for some high regarded independent schools such as: Oakham, Uppingham, Oundle, Stamford Endowed and The Peterborough School.
Enjoying North West Anglia
The area we serve has a wealth of things to do outside of work. You can indulge in a variety of sports and activities where you can either spectate or participate. Our region also has a thriving arts and music scene for you to enjoy. As well as an abundance of beautiful outdoor spaces, perfect for exploring.
You can either actively participate in or spectate a whole host of sports across our region. We are well served by teams in sports including Football, Rugby, Hockey and Ice Hockey, as well as this there is horse racing at Huntingdon and Newmarket, greyhound racing in Peterborough and Speedway, which is hugely popular in the area.
There is also plenty of activities you can take up recreationally in the area. Peterborough City Rowing Club are located at Thorpe Meadows, just a short distance from the city centre. It is home to one of the few purpose built rowing lakes in the country and hosts large club regattas every year. If you’re an Ice Hockey enthusiasts you can get your fix at the Peterborough Phantoms games, you can also skate recreationally at their arena, Planet Ice. There is also plentiful cycle routes across the area.
The selection of retail outlets in the area is growing all the time, and for big stores Peterborough, Cambridge, Milton Keynes, Leicester, London and Birmingham are all within easy reach. If smaller niche shops are your thing then you will also find these within many of the towns in the area, such as Stamford. You can enjoy hours of shopping, dining and social activities, all within an hour of our hospitals and without the hustle and bustle of the larger cities. Farmers markets thrive throughout the region and offer local produce and artisan goods for all tastes.
You can explore a wide selection of outdoor spaces across the region, Nene Park is the largest outdoor space in our area and is made up of five separate designated spaces: Ferry Meadows, Orton Meadows, Woodston Reach, Thorpe Meadows and The Rural Estate.
Ferry Meadowsis the focal point of Nene Park and it is easy to get to with excellent links to the city and surrounding countryside. It provides beautiful safe and un-spoilt landscape where you can walk, cycle, play, horse-ride, ride a train, go fishing, exercise the dog, jog, push the buggy and explore endless meadows, lakes and woodland - all less than three miles from Peterborough’s busy city centre. There are cafes, hard surfaced routes for wheelchair users, a busy events and activity programme and endless opportunities for outdoor recreation.
Nene Valley Railway is great for steam train enthusiasts and has a history of featuring in films and television programmes. It is home to Thomas the Tank Engine, a favourite with children and adults alike.
Rutland Water, houses a popular sports centre offering a selection of water sports, you can also walk and cycle along a 25 mile (40 km) perimeter track. A pleasure cruiser, the Rutland Belle, carries people around the man made reservoir. Bird watchers travel from far afield to visit Rutland Water and the former butterfly centre at Sykes Lane has been turned into Bugtopia - The Zoo.
Near Huntingdon, Hinchingbrooke Country Park and Brampton Woods offer a wide range of outdoor pursuits. Grafham Water is set in 2,400 acres of beautiful countryside, and Grafham Water Park offers a wide range of attractions for visitors of all ages.
Burghley House, on the outskirts of Stamford and famous for its horse trials, is a grand 16th century country house. It is a leading example of the Elizabethan prodigy house, built by and still lived in by the Cecil family. Both the house and gardens (laid out by Capability Brown) are open to the public throughout the summer.
