Weston, Gloucester, Telford, Swindon

[Sittingonasale]

Ok, so my house has sold. In fact, I'm 6 weeks in and I'm looking to move to an area where I know people or where I'm not too far from family.
I have 3 children who are mixed race and have experienced racism in different forms since they were young, some areas more than others. (sadly this has to still be factored in in 2023).

I've lived in Somerset near to Weston so know the area fairly well but never actually lived in the town. I really miss living near the sea.

I do not know Gloucester but it would be within an hour's driving distance from family.

I grew up in Shrewsbury but don't know Telford very well. It's more affordable for me and I still have friends and family in Shrewsbury. Shrewsbury is still a possibility.

I have some family in Swindon but do not know it.

These are some of the areas I could afford to move to. I'm currently in South Wales in an affordable area but for the scheme I want to use (Heylo), I need to buy in England. The schools here also have been pretty dire where we live so I'm looking for better schools (primary and secondary).

I work as a TA and tutor currently but am looking into doing my TT next year.

I'll talk with him tomorrow as we've just got back from Devon - also house hunting . (Nothing wrong with where we are in Weston apart from it's rented and we need to buy again before we get too old).

I'm in Keynsham. Midway between Bristol and Bath. Linked to both cities by rail (10 minute journey) and good bus services (the buses go into the main bus stations in each city). It also has a direct bus to the airport.
It's got good primary and secondary schools. Bath and North East Somerset (BANES) isn't a grammar school system area.

Another vote for Worcester here. Lots of good schools, no grammar system.
Yes there is flooding but relatively easy to avoid.
Good transport links to Birmingham on train and elsewhere by road.

Why not look at Chippenham, Calne, lyneham, Wooten Bassett? Easy access to m4 and nice small town communities (friendly, independent shops and lower crime than Swindon), bath direction also very nice… corsham, box, rudloe cheaper than bath.

I also feel I need to defend Gloucester! Whilst not perfect, I have lived here for many years. I'm out & about at night with my job & have experienced no issues.
Gloucester is as multi cultural as Gloucestershire gets.

I live in Gloucester and definitely not a shit hole! Yes there are rough dodgy areas but there is in most cities / towns. North of Gloucester like Longford, Longlevens, Churchdown is much better and 5 min drive to motorway M5. Schools are fine too

Kind of surprised at the views of Gloucester here. Yes compared to pretty villages it will seem more deprived in comparison but there are surely many many other areas of the UK with much higher levels of deprivation and related issues...

St Georges used to be a fairly small area/village but now included a lot of new builds, same with West Wick

Don’t know if already mentioned, but look at Backwell, Portishead, Yatton nr Weston.

Well I watched Turdtowns last night until about 3am. 😜

Newport was top of the list in My area for the worst town.
Gloucester didn't fare too badly
Weston, Bridgwater and Taunton all failed pretty badly (surprised at Taunton as it used to be quite an affluent area when I was there).
Not done the Worcester episodes yet!

Portishead/Cleavdon I have looked into but little there within my budget.

How well do you know these areas yourself @Sittingonasale ? Is it worth trying to spend a couple of days in each place eg so you can experience rush hour traffic and Saturday night town centres etc yourself ? Thinking about people's descriptions eg of Gloucester - you will be approaching this with a different point of view if you are currently living in Newport than someone who is living in a large house in a pretty Cotswolds village. Also maybe look for some local Facebook pages to try and get a feel about the local schools ?

I know Weston quite well as I've lived in the area before. I kind of know Telford but that was quite a long time ago. I know Shrewsbury much better as I grew up there.
I don't know the other places and only have relatives/friends in Swindon, Shrewsbury and Somerset.

Personally, I never go out at night (I don't really have to opportunity!) but I hear what others are saying about my children as my eldest is approaching 14.

I have lived all over really so it's hard for me to say where home really is.

0-14 - Lived in Shrewsbury (actually just outside and very remote_
14 - 15 - South of France (small town)
15 - 18 North of France (remote village)
18 -20 - Taunton
20 - 21 - Plymouth (uni)
21 - 24 - Cardiff (uni)
24 - 27 - South Korea
27 - 29 - Spain, Greece, Ireland
29 - 30 - Watford
30 - 32 Hemel Hempstead
32 - 34 N London
34 -35 SE London
35 - 37 Somerset (again)
37 + Newport

🤔

Oh, I forgot Manchester somewhere along the line. I lived there too and loved it but too far now.

Sounds like you are very adaptable then OP!

Just not to where I live now. 😂

She worked for a large chain and apparently they had been discussing it at some training thing. It didn't surprise me as I don't like Worcester, found it really unfriendly and the only place I've ever been mugged and I've lived in some rough inner city areas. It was lunch time, broad daylight in the city centre and I got mugged at a cash point. Passers by just ignored it happening. So for me it is probably the last city in England I'd go to.

Well I've had my first conditional (that I pass the GCSE equivalency in maths first) offer today for TT in......................................

              drum roll please..............

Gloucester!

Gloucester is not as bad as some PP have tried to make out!

I live in Linden and the neighbours are all really lovely. Short walk to the Quays - restaurants, cinema, the shops are fine.

And you work in primary? Me too, although not in Gloucester itself. There are some good networks going (especially if you lead a core subject) which are great for getting to know people.

Thanks Doctor. The QTS course will be in secondary though.

I am not super familiar with some of the other places but I am surprised at the bad press Gloucester is getting. Sure there are places to avoid, but there are decent suburbs, decent schools (just be mindful of grammars and comps) and lots to do in the area.
I have friends who live in Churchdown, between Gloucester and Cheltenham and that seems like a really nice place when I visit.

I'm sure you are already aware of its existence, but https://ww3.gloucestershire.gov.uk/schoolvacancies/Vacancies.aspx is where you will find many jobs listed.

No I wasn't actually. That's very helpful. Thank you.

The other place I was going to suggest Op was Keynsham which is bang between Bath and Bristol- on train to both , has good schools , Waitrose and an ok if a bit functional town centre- safe area - gives you options for jobs in both bath and Bristol and is just in budget for you- something like this maybe?

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/134947736#/?channel=RES_BUY

Central Weston near the beach has a great vibe and is more ethnically diverse than the outskirts of Weston and the surrounding areas. House prices still reasonable compared to some places and schools are good. It lacks in sophistication but slowly it's getting there.