I visited an underrated West Midlands market town with chatty residents, charming business owners - and 'comprehensive' CCTV

Cleobury Mortimer is a charming, clean and above all quaint rural market town in southeast Shropshire. 

Most would agree that it's hardly spoken about in the same fashion as its neighbours Ludlow or Church Stretton, but there's plenty to uncover here. 

We headed down to see if - and why - locals enjoy living in Cleobury Mortimer and find out whether people should put it on their bucket list.

We first bumped into Martin Evans of Oswestry in High Street. He told us his long history of working in Cleobury Mortimer as a truck driver - and how nice of a town it is to be in. 

“It's kept its tradition,” Martin said. 

“It's a traditional place. This is a lovely place to visit. While we call it a village, it's a bit more than a village these days. They are like mini-towns right now. 

“The high street is lovely, yeah, and then that's just a really nice place to visit.”

Martin, who was only popping into the town on his way elsewhere, said he frequents Ashley’s Bakery, which started in a small shop in Cleobury Mortimer’s High Street before expanding to Bewdley and Stourport-on-Severn. 

Now, the business supplies plenty of cafes, pubs and eateries across these areas - and returned to the town just over a month ago. 

It’s evidently well-loved here. Every person that walked by the shop on our visit to Cleobury Mortimer popped in for a fresh bread roll, baguette or iced bun. 

Jane Key, a former estate agent, works behind the counter at the popular bakery. She told us her family has been here for generations - and she doesn’t think about moving anytime soon, either. 

With a strong community spirit and plenty of facilities, Cleobury Mortimer is an ideal place to live, Jane said. 

“Brilliant schools, library, fire station, Co-op, brilliant medical centre, pharmacy - we've just got all the facilities in one place. 

“A brilliant travel network [too]. Buses go through from Kidderminster and Ludlow, it’s just a really pleasant little place.

“It's just a nice place to spend a couple of hours, really.” 

Owner Ashley Pugh, who popped into his shop later, said he previously owned Cleobury Cafe up the road too. 

It’s now under the management of Maryan Forouhandeh. 

The young business owner had worked at the cafe for months before seizing the opportunity to take it on herself. 

And while not native to the town, Maryan said she finds Cleobury Mortimer “refreshing”. 

“It's a really lovely town. Everyone's very friendly. Everyone knows each other, it's been really nice. 

“It's been refreshing, because I was in London for the past five and a half years. It’s a big change.” 

From what I can see, it's an underrated town. Despite its charm and friendly residents, it’s rarely on the tip of anyone’s tongue when asked where to visit in south Shropshire. 

So I asked Maryan why more people should come out and visit Cleobury Mortimer. 

“There's a lot on offer in Cleobury," she said. 

"It's at the very foot of the Shropshire hills. It's a bit out of the way. Obviously, you've got Kidderminster, not too far, but it's like a little step back in time coming to this town.

“The Spice Empire is incredible and Ashley's Bakery is very, very lovely.” 

Maryan added: “There's some lovely walks around here. Obviously you've got Clee Hill just a little bit this way. 

“But more than anything, just walk around and look at all the old buildings and just see how everything has stayed as it was.” 

On the other end of the road, we met long-term town councillor Geoff Hainsworth, who has been serving his town for 15 years. 

He said Cleobury Mortimer is a “public-spirited place”. 

“I've been in Cleobury Mortimer for 30 years. I've been retired for 20 years,” Geoff said. 

“I like the atmosphere that you've got in the place. 

“It's a friendly place. If you ever come down here on Remembrance Day, for instance, the remembrance parade, there are hundreds of people here, and it's a public-spirited place. 

“It's a lovely atmosphere. I've never been anywhere where so many people know me by name.”

Geoff said the range of pubs available in the town, which appeal to people of all different ages, is one of the many things he likes about Cleobury Mortimer. 

“I'm chairman of the local footpath association, and this is a great place to walk in,” Geoff added. 

“We've got a website with 26 different walks on it. It's a lovely, lovely place to be.” 

Town clerk Dorothy McBride moved to Cleobury Mortimer a decade ago - and she said she loves it here.

“I just love the community. There is just such a wide variety of people, clubs and activities. 

“There's lots to do - and there's a real, really, really good community spirit here.”

Geoff added: “I think one of the other things that's good about it is that is is a safe place to be. 

“We've got one of the most comprehensive CCTV systems in the UK. 

“We lost our police station a long time ago. But instead of just sitting down and doing nothing, we did do something. 

“We've got a brilliant system.”