American relocation to Bristol-advice please!

[BlaireD89]

Hi there,
Planning a move to Bristol in 2016 from Texas, US. I've read conflicting things about the safe neighborhoods for us and our 9 month old daughter. We'd like to be in or close to the city centre as we would like to avoid leasing a car. I thought Clifton looked very nice, but then read on that there were many rapes and muggings there. Our budget for a flat is around £1100. Is that enough to get a nice 2 bedroom in a very good part of town, maybe small garden? Can anyone reccomend a residential area with shops and grocery within walking distance? Husband will be working at HP in stoke Gifford I believe is the neighborhood and wanting to cycle to work.

I'm pretty easy going and would love to meet some other mothers and babies to have fun at the park, zoo, etc. Is it fairly easy to meet and make new friends?

Thanks so much!
Blaire

When I read your OP I thought you were being a bit over optimistic but looking on rightmove there do seem to be quite a few decent looking flats for that money. Why would you want to live in a flat with a baby, rather than a house?

Clifton is the posh area and has no more rapes or muggings than anywhere else . Bristol is generally considered to be a safe place to live. Other nice areas are Redland & Henleaze.

Bristol is known as a cycling city but the traffic is horrible and unless you live near an off-road cycle route then the journey from Clifton to Stoke Gifford is not pleasant and is one of the major commuting routes.

My DD is 8 and we didn't live here when she was a baby so I don't know what there is to do but it is generally a place where lots is going on so I can't see it would be difficult to meet other mums. Hopefully somebody in that demographic will come along and tell you what there is.

I had been scouring blogs and message boards and came across so many negative things about the crime in the Clifton area, it's good to hear it's not a bad area. Many homes came up in my search there so its nice to have another perspective. I would prefer a house, but an apartment with a park nearby or garden would be just fine as well.

Will look into the other areas you mentioned. Thanks!
I guess also what I was trying to ask was if Americans are accepted easily?

Clifton is nice but wouldn't it be nicer to rent a house instead of a flat by your dh work? You could rent a detached 3 bed house for the same money plus some leftover.

Try having a look at the Bradley Stoke area, it's next to Stoke Gifford

Sorry didn't finish posting

Has newer houses, a mall not far away plus a shopping outlook with a supermarket, restaurants and a couple of other shops. There's also a train station close by.

I really don't think you need to worry about rapes and muggings in Clifton. Here are the latest crime stats: www.ukcrimestats.com/Neighbourhood/Avon_and_Somerset_Constabulary/Clifton

Most of those would be very minor offences. There are a lot of students and quite a lot of pubs/nightclubs in one part of the edge of Clifton, which means that there can be drunken incidents, theft from insecure student houses etc, but it's really not the kind of place you need to worry about walking around alone.

You'd certainly find it easy to live there without a car (you can join a car club if you want occasional access to a car) but it's a bit far to cycle to Stoke Gifford unless your husband is a very keen cyclist. You might find other areas of north west Bristol would be easier for commuting and would be more family-friendly, as well as offering more space for your rental budget.

Bristol is very cosmopolitan and I can't imagine you would have any problems settling in and making friends as an American.

Wonderful and helpful responses, thank you!

Have a look at Bishopston, St Andrews (or Horfield) areas close to the Gloucester Road where there are lots of independent shops and also supermarkets etc. It would be easier to cycle to Stoke Gifford from that part of town. It doesn't show up on google maps, but Bristol is a hilly city which means that distance isn't the only factor to bear in mind when cycling.
You may also be able to find a 2 bed house in that area rather than a flat and the area is more family friendly.

My new brother in law is American and has he no issues settling into life here. Hope you find your feet soon and good luck!

hi blaire - we've just moved to bishopston/ ashley down area and can walk to a great park and the lovely independent shops on the gloucester road at the end of our road. it feels very safe and vibrant. i have a 11 month old so let me know when you're here if you fancy a meet up x

My daughter lived in Clifton for two years and there was just the one awful incident while she was there. She felt quite safe walking around there day and night. It has a lovely shopping area and places for coffee. I found that people were very friendly and spoke to you easily. There lots of parks green areas and plenty of buses into the city centre or you can walk and catch a boat in. It is a more expensive area but the area near Royal York Crescent is more like a village.
She then moved to a student house in Bishopston. You would be able to rent a small house in this area, with a garden. It is a mixture of families and students. She liked this area as it was only about 10 minute walk to Gloucester Road mentioned above. This is the longest road of independent shops in Europe. Lots of different nationalities here. She then moved to Horfield which has a great leisure centre and swimming pool nearby but the house was damp so they moved again and are now on Gloucester Rd back in Bishopston.
She still hasn't come home and finished her degree a couple of years ago! I'm not a city person but I do love Bristol. It has lots of canals and parks which make it seem less built up than most cities. It is a vibrant city with something on every month it seems. I'm sure you will enjoy living there and wish you well.

twitter.com/americansinbris

There is a facebook group also Americans in Bristol