Where to move in or around the Exwick area?

[Kybelesdaughter]

Dear all,
We are moving to Exeter this summer and our two boys will be starting to the new steiner school which will be in the Exwick area (Upper Exwick Hill). In our ideal world we would like to live somewhere pleasant within the walking distance to the school and to a nice park. Unfortunately I know very little about that area and I am wondering if anyone could advise me on this. I heard that only some parts of Exwich is nice.

Also is it realistic to commute to the area (ideally by bus)from somewhere like Heavitree or Pennsylvania? Any advise would be much appreciated. Many thanks to you all!

Dh works in Exeter (I just go there for shopping and the museum) and he says bus service is very good. If you move to exwick, make sure you are top of hill as it's next to the flood relief channel which occasionally flood.
Pennsylvania is student land so may be best to avoid and heavitree is a mix - avoid burnt house lane (comes up a lot on the court lists).
DH suggest south cowick as a good place to look.
Good luck

Many thanks to you PrincessScrumpy and your DH for much appreciated advise!

Nowhere is that far to walk to in Exeter ( you can get from one end of the city to another in 45 mins), the buses are good and regular ( though a bit titchy). We live in the St Thomas end of the city so very close to Exwick, the streets behind Cowick St where we live are close to the city and probably only a 20m walk from where you need to get to, big houses/ small gardens but depends what you need! There is a small parade of shops (co-op, newsagent, lots of hairdressers, local sweet shop, butcher and a fishmonger not too far away so you wouldn't need to go into the city for essentials and there are lots of charity shops which for a bargain hunter like me are too tempting). We are close to the river and yes we do get a bit nervous when the flood relief channel starts to fill up ( but it's designed to!) and there hasn't been a major flood since the 60s, did make getting house insurance a bit trickier though....good luck with your house hunting!

Thank you very much Rutwe for the helpful advise. Cowick St area does sound like a good option!

Hi Kybelesdaughter I used to live right on the Exwick/St Thomas border. The area around the school is HILLY, so I would strongly recommend having a walk around the area just to get an idea of what the school run/dash for a pint of milk might be like day-to-day. Like many cities, rush hour can take a long time in the car, and getting across the River Exe in particular can take a while. So you might be better off restricting your house search to the Exwick side of the river, or very close to the other side of the river. St Davids has some pretty spots

sorry, interrupted by DD! you could also look at Cowley Bridge area. St Thomas has all sorts going on. Alphington very nice, but again, a bit of a commute.

Good luck with your house search, and be sure to come to one of our meet-ups when you get here! We're crocheting in a riverside pub next time! :)

oh, thinking of more stuff now... Buses in Exwick are pretty good, I think they run every 10-20 mins, but I did find them a bit pricey for even very short journeys. If bus is your staple transport, then have a look at the bus map - you'll want the E bus or one of the F buses. which then go up through town and across to Stoke Hill/Whipton area, both of which are nice to live in - reckon on 25 mins to get across town, though. As Rutwe says, Exeter is a diddy city, so cycling/walking are good options (you will be walking your bike up the hill in Exwick, though!)

As for parks, you'll be spoilt for choice. Lots of green space along the river, and several nice playparks in Exwick itself.

CiderPunk , thank you for such detailed info, sooo appreciated! I ll certainly get in touch as soon as we move in July. It is a shame that I ll miss the next gathering as I do love crocheting!