Seeking opinions from scottish mums.

[figleaf]

We live in Bristol, my house is on the market but before Christmas we hope to relocate with DH work to the Stirling, Bridge of Allan, Dunblain area. My 2 boys (1 "normal", 1 very clever but with physical special needs)seem OK with the idea. They currently go to a catholic school but Id like to know what you think about schools Catholic or nondenominational in that area. So far I have found out that in Dunblane everyone goes to non denominational schools but do extra RE lessons but in Bridge of Allan the Catholic kids either go to Bridge of Allan school or to St Marys in Stirling (75 kids on roll so cant be all of them). Stirling seems more complicated as there are a lot more schools of both flavours.
Well buy a house whereever the school is that we think would best suit our boys.Our son with special needs is our biggest concern as he doesnt write but uses a computer. Well have 330K (ish) max to buy with. Ive posted about aspects of my move before and been given ace links to on line house buying sites and HMI reports for Scottish schools.Any thoughts/advice on good areas, good schools, dirt/gossip good or bad would be really useful.
Also Scotland is a big country. My DH will work in Cumbernauld (but I wont live there) so are there any other really lovelly places near by (ish)that I should be considering?

bump

St Mary's RC is located in Raploch which is a deprived area and the school is in a poor condition with I am sorry to say a poor reputation. (I have a friend who has just moved her son from St Mary's to her local PS in Dunblane). A new school is being built however under the the Raploch regeneration PFI project. There are I think only 2 other RC Primaries in the Stirling (another St Mary's in Bannockburn and St Margarets near Cowie) - I am sure you have looked at the HMI Reports. Cowie is one of the Eastern Villages and for 330K you could I think buy half the HIgh Street! Bannockburn is in itself an okay place to live I think -quite mixed in terms of housing , no idea what the RC school is like. All RC Primaries feed into St Modan's High School. A new St Modan's is currently being built (alll secondary schools in Stirlingshire (with one exception in Callendar) are being moved and new buildings provided under a huge PFI project).

Now Riverside PS has a dedicated Language & Communication unit which has I believe a fairly good reputation and this then feeds into a new secondary facility at St Modans - not sure if this is what you would be looking for in terms of support for your son with special needs.

BoFA PS has a good repuation but is fairly big (2 x 30 per year group) and I must admit that my daughter spend P1 there and has subsequently moved to P2 at Riverside (due to housing moves rather than anything sinister) and although it is early days my DH & I are far more impressed with Riverside than we were with BoFA.

330K is a difficult budget for the Stirling/BoFA/Dunblane market and it really depends what type of house you are looking. There is a new estate in the Cornton area of Stirling which is popular with a wide range of house sizes. Cornton PS is right next door, has great Nursery and extended hour provision and appears to be a lovely wee school. The catch is that the orignal Cornton estate is across the road and things are quite as nice there.

Look I need to go just now to put DD2 to bed but if you want to come back with some specific questions and an idea on what type of housing you are looking for I will check later and answer the best I can.

Cheerio

That is exactly the sort of info I was looking for gomez, cant thank you enough!
Quite depressed that 330K doesnt look good for those areas. If you were forced to say, what would your ball park figure be ie how much more do we need? I was thinking of 4 bedrooms and have a small preference for older property but dont mind the idea of newer stuff.
I`m probably being very thick but were is Riverside? Cant seem to find it.

Just Found Riverside - am going to look at the prospectus for the school etc.
What does the Gaelic medium class mean?

It means the children are educated in Scots Gaelic entirely.

The council will provide Gaelic lessons for parents, so they can assist w/homework and that.

I'd agree w/gomez completely that £330K is a difficult budget for that area.

4 bed period properties can easily fetch upwards of £400K in that area.

Are you able to get up for a weekend/longer to have a wee look around to get your own feel?

Bridge of Allan/Dunblane are expesnive precisely because they have good schools and are nice places to live - plus are commutable (just) to both Glasgow and Edinburgh.

I don't kno much more detail as I'm from Glasgow - but I hope you manage to get things sorted and will be happy with your move to Scoltand!

Ive got a friend who lives in Wales. Welsh language schools or classes are quite common and the non Welsh speakers in some areas are looked down on. Do the Gaelic classes just go on as part of school life for thoses children who choose it or are the non Gaelic speakers second class citizens? Very depressed about the 400K figure. At a squeek we could go to 350 but not the extra 50. DH and I are going up on the 27th Sep - 2nd Oct for a look around at areas and schools. I guess well have to go further out on our search. Its so difficult when Im this far away to know wherte to start.

Posts crossed prettybird - thanks for the good wishes.

Figleaf, I don't want to alarm or depress you, but you should also be aware that when houses are advertised here as "offers over", it's normal (for a nice house in a good area) to go to a closing date with sealed bids, and houses usually go for about 20% over the asking price, although I think the market has calmed down a bit. As houses in Glasgow and Edinburgh get ever dearer, people move out, and, as Prettybird said, the area you're looking at is now the communter belt. I know you don't want to stay in Cumbernauld (I agree that it's soulless) but I've heard good things about the joint campus primary school in Dullater. It might be worth a look. I can't remember what it's called, but it's brand new and has appropriate support for children with different learning needs. I'll have a look now and see if I can do a link, but don't hold your breath.

Yes, Offers Over usually means at least 20% over.

In towns that have a train station, sometimes the prices can be a bit higher b/c of the commuting potential.

As prettybird pointed out, property prices in Edinburgh and Glasgow boomed astronomically, so areas in commuting distance of either, especially those w/rail links and good schools, are in high demand. Prices reflect accordingly.

Its not looking good is it. I knew about the offers over thing. I was talking about the biggest "bid" we could put in would be 330/350. There do seem to be a fair number of fixed price houses too. Staying here isntt really an option though. Not sure what to do.

Its not looking good is it. I knew about the offers over thing. I was talking about the biggest "bid" we could put in would be 330/350. There do seem to be a fair number of fixed price houses too. Staying here isntt really an option though. Not sure what to do.

oops - double clicked!

Figleaf - lots of good advice for you from others.

Dullater as mentioned by Mrs Muddle is I believe a nice place to live. Kilsyth (next to Cumbernauld) has undergone some regeneration and has a fair amount of new housing available and is on the up also I think.

Don't be too down heartened by the house price thing there is hope without a doubt. Also the market is slowing down going into the pre-Christmas period and so there are a number of fixed price properties around at the mo which always helps.

Prices are high in BoFA/Dunblane/bits of Stirling but these areas are very concentrated and so if you are willing to live just on the egde of the super nice bits then you would I think get something quite nice for around 330K. In Stirling for example Kings Park has huge houses and is v. expensive but on the edge there is a an area of 70/80s house where you would I think get something in your price range. BoFA is split into lower/upper and in lower BoFA there are a large number of again 70/80s houses some extended/refurbished etc. which are do-able on 330K. Areas to bear in mind in the vicinity are: Cambusbarron, Cambuskenneth, Doune, Gargunnock, Bair Logie, Causewayhead, Kippen (would add about 20 mins onto a commute to Cumbernauld).

Riverside is a good bet, very central (2 mins to mainline train station) but there are very few detached house as the majority of housing is either ex-local authority (but very nice don't let that put you off) or Victorian terraces, but again some of these are super!

You might also consider Menstrie (about 10 minutes outside BoFA) with a fair amount of new builds going up at the moment - it is in another local authority (Clackmannanshire so you would need to look at school provision, in particular special needs as I have heard it ain't too hot)

Also bear in mind there is not the same pressure on schools in this area as down South so in general if you live in the local authority you would get access to the RC school and I think the unit at Riverside regardless of you address. BOFA & Dunblane and Newton PSs are the exception to this as they are full and not many placing requests are accepted.

The Gaelic Medium unit at Riverside is located in the same part of the school as the Infants and Nursery there is no isolation and secondary gaelic education is now available at Wallace HS if you wanted to continue. The mainstream classes at RS get a Gaelic lesson once a fortnight too which I am sure helps. We looked into and considered it for our DD and couldn't really find a reason to do so to be honest - academic outcomes are no higher (according to a Scottish Executive review) which is surprising given the small class size which is usually viewed as an advantage. We also were unclear as to how we as non-Gaelic speakers could support her as the work levels and intensity increased - so for exmaple I would be fine helping with her reading at 6 for example but not so confident with a geography project at 10 IYSWIM? Would probably guarantee a job with BBC Scotland when older thou' .

Right that is probably enough babbling for now. If you have questions on any specific areas in advance of your visit just shout.

We looked at a house in Dullatur (twice - but decided it was too clsoe to the railway line for the cats) - it's quite a nice wee enclave/village set aside from Cumbernauld.

Ditto with Kilsyth - I beleive the schooling as also really imporved and quite a few people from work live in the area.

I've got friends who live in Gargunnock - it seems to have areally good, supportive comunity spirit.

Gomez is right - you're coming in to the season when things are slowing down, so the "offers over" is not quite so manic and there amy be a few fixed price bargains around. Remember you need to do your survey before you offer.

How far/long would your dh be prepared to commute?

Have you looked in the Braco / Greenloaning are? About 5 mins drive up the A9 from Dunblane - both have good "village" schools (although rolls are increasing) House prices are rising but not in the Dunblane / BofA league yet!

I had a bit of a cry about this and other things while walking the dog. It was really nice to come back to so many helpful posts giving me info on schools and areas. Ive got to leave to get the little fellers in 5 mins but thanks everyone, Ill be back later after the clubs,teas and baths are done (or sooner if they let me).

Figleaf, don't cry. There are plenty of options. Between us all, I'm sure we can find you a nice house within your budget and near a good school. As someone said before, Kilsyth is nice, and so is Kirkintilloch, which is only 15 minutes from Cumbernauld with good primary and secondary schools. When does your DH's job start? When do you hope to move?

Second Kilsyth used to live in Ladeside Drive. I loved it there and it's definitely on the up. Stirling is lovely as is Dunblane but yes you won't get much for your money round there. Look at the housing website to give you an idea for housing. school info and reports . Dullatur is great but also overpriced imo, the school which only opened about 2 yrs ago is already over-subscribed. Bridge of Allan is great and other areas to the north of Stirling. If you H is prepared to travel then you can look further out at more rural areas.

Oh and please please do not look at Cumbernauld - remember Gregory's Girl?!?! Bannockburn has nice housing quite a bit period too. If you want the recommendation of a good solicitor's firm let me know I'm sure there are other Scottish Mnetters who can also help with that one.

Back for more . Cheered up a bit. Gomez another useful post - thankyou. Prettybird DH will commute as far as he has to to find a good house.

Mrs Muddle,Alibaldi and Scoutlou thanks for all the suggestions. DH and I are looking at places and schools that you`ve pointed us to at the moment. One bit of info I need though is about class size. Some school info doesnt include a staff list so when they say there are 35 or 40 kids in P5(where my oldest would be)will that be a single class?. Is there a max number allowed in a Scottish primary school, here it is 30.

Thanks for the help everyone, as my DH needs to be in Scotland by the new year we REALLY need it.

figleaf please don't cry!

you've got a good amount of cash there, you will get something nice!

good luck!

Nope they seem to have on average 2/3 classes per year group. If you want to talk to someone who lives in Kilsyth let me know and I'll get in touch with some Mums there. Balloch Primary is the best and has a great nursery attached and their children go there as my ds's would have done if we'd have stayed in Kilsyth.

So 17 - 20 kids in a class then Alibaldi?