I too grew up in Suffolk, and my folks still live up there (Newmarket). Its not such a bad place, and due to my Dad's spot of property developing in the mid-90's we moved about a fair bit. Depending on where you have to drive to it can take between 2-3 hours either up the M25/A12 or the M11. Agreed that Ipswich or Colchester would be better from a commuting point of view, but both are quite bustling and not for everyone. I spent a large amount of my time growing up in and around Sudbury which is quite a charming market town, then moved to Long Melford (which I personally really liked) and finally Bury St. Edmunds/Newmarket. There are definitely worse places to live than any of those! It all really depends if you want a busy town environment or a 'charming' country cottage type affair.