You have a point, the information to your questions is there, but it is scattered all over the place. I think it is genuinely difficult to be comprehensive, concise and easy to find all at once. Maybe we need to reflect on that one a bit to see if (e.g.) we set up a Regionalists Start Here thread. But some thoughts to get the process going:

1) RFS is great in the regions. You can either go straight on to a European destination for the same cost as London travellers, or put in a stopover to get two trips. You can even mix and match sectors around so as to get the most out of it. Domestic availability works off short time frames than longhaul, which causes difficulties to those (unlike me!) who can sort their lives out months and months in advance.

2) Other oneworld carriers are a bit thin on the ground in the UK "regions", you've got Finnair and the Billund service but there's not a lot.

3) All UK locations have lounges. The quality varies a bit, I'm lucky to have the best one on my doorstep (Newcastle) and Manchester is in lower end of my list, but basically they are there.

4) TPs: big issue, but the new subsidy from Avios combined with hand luggage fares can get some sectors near to £2 a tier point. Also the add ons for a regional start are often not too high, therefore gaining 20 / 40 extra TPs over a LHR / LGW start for very little extra cost (sometimes). Other times fares are non combinable so it is cheaper, but riskier, to split the bookings. It's also cheaper, sometimes, to buy singles, not returns, to the "regions".