moving to Bristol

[toby50]

My husband has a new job in Bristol and I will be moving in September. It will be just us two and we are both late forties. I am keen to move somewhere that has a good community and where we could make new friends. We are torn between staying close to the city or moving to a outlying village but would still need relatively good access to the city as he will probably drive in. We are also considering trying to live between Bristol and Bath but have been told then commute would be awful. Any help or advice would be really appreciated.

Thanks!

First question is whereabouts in Bristol centre is the new job - travel around Bristol can be a nightmare, and parking v tricky.

The housing market in a Bristol is very influenced by proximity to schools, so you'll have a real advantage in not having to take that into account.

Second question is rough budget? Clifton is lovely but expensive for example.

There are some really lovely areas just outside Bristol that are doable commute wise. Winterborn for example is a lovely village with a lovely community and very near the motorway junction. 15 minutes into the centre without traffic.

All depends which side your thinking of OP.

My husband will be working near temple mead station and he has parking. Budget does depend on us selling our house in essex, don't really have a set figure, anywhere between 400 to 500K but would need a good size four bed house so daughter and friends can come to stay. Have been looking at this site and a few people have said Clifton can be difficult to make friends but do like it, but very expensive!!

In that case, Frenchay would be my top recommendation, it is lovely, and a good route down to Temple Meads - it's a village within the city, so best of both worlds in some ways. We very nearly moved there when we relocated. I like Winterbourne a lot too. Keynesham is bigger, though I might be tempted to train it rather than drive from there - it's perfectly doable though.

If your Dh is working near Templemeads, I would suggest either Southville as an inner city location or Long Ashton/Failand as a village location. Not sure how fit your DH is but its a pretty flat cycle ride from either of those two places to Templemeads area too.

One thing that would put me off Frenchay is that if there are any problems with the M4/M5 or ring road, the traffic can be hellish, plus when the hospital shuts in May and the site is redeveloped there will be a lot of construction traffic for quite some time.

Hi everyone, thanks for the responses, been a bit busy but still looking at houses on the internet as def moving. We need somewhere that has space for friends and family. I have spotted a house in oldland common. Never heard of it before. Can anyone give me any feedback and how far it is from Bristol. Thank you, so difficult when you dont know the area!!

Thank you, for the reply and information, will look at the other places as well. Need to be settled by October time so drawing closer!!!

Hi, sorry everyone, I am still looking, hubby very slow to view any we are interested in and then they are sold!! Any information on Congresbury would be helpful, is it a town or big village and is it commutable to Bristol.

Thanks again for any help.

Hi Toby50, we live in South Bristol (Totterdown/Knowle) and my husband works near Temple Meads. It's so convenient and there's so much going on for kids. I actually just wrote about this very subject, so this might be helpful, good luck! thebristolparent.com/2014/03/moving-to-bristol-with-a-baby-the-parent-social/

HI, BristolParent, thank you for the information, My daughter is starting Uni in Sept, so the child activities are not such a big thing but I will want to meet people and make friends asap. I am a mobile personal trainer and kettlebell instructor so will need a good base to find work. Not sure if it is easier to make friends in a small village or be near to the city, my preference is the city but my other half is more leaning towards living out of town, although he is not being that pro-active on either!!!

I am relocating back to Bristol in the summer and previously lived in Knowle, just off the Wells Road. It is a great location. I used to work at Temple Meads and it would usually take me longer to drive there rather than walk as the traffic on the Wells Road is very busy in rush hour.

If you are looking to set up training sessions / classes, it would be a good area to base yourself as there are lots of offices around the Temple Meads area so you could target people for evening sessions.

I like the area for the convenience to town / easy access to the motorway and Bristol airport.