quick can someone tell me more about Cramond in Edinburgh..

[fairylights]

some of you will have seen my many and various threads about us moving to edinburgh. Its getting a bit desperate now in terms of finding somewhere to live that we can afford (!) but a house has come up to let in Cramond, it looks ideal for us but i know if we want it we need to commit ASAP. To see it will require a flight for me to get there and complicated childcare arrangements so really want it to be worth it - so i have looked online as much as i can and its looks lovely (and we did really briefly visit there on one of our trips up) but is it ok to commmute from there by bus into town (my dh will be working at George square campus of the uni)? Does it feel miles out from the city? has it got a nice sense of community? And do you think there is any chance we will be able to get ds into the nursery class at the primary?! and where are the nearest shops/sports centres etc..
thanks!!

Hey,

I think the 41 bus goes there (I get that one to work) and I am a student at the George square campus. That bus goes straight to the campus, stops at Potterow and Becleuch Place so a 1 min walk from the stop.

I think that its a good place to live...lots of big houses and good schools at that side of town.

Someone who knows more may be able to help soon.

thanks girly, anyone else?
how long do you think the bus really takes girly? on the timetable it looks like about 40 mins but guess it might be more with traffic?

house in cramond has already been let after being advertised for 16 hours will we ever find somewhere to live?!

Aw,

sorry to hear that.

Fwiw, there are roadworks everywhere at the moment, so id leave a good 15 or 20 minutes earlier than planned by the bus timetable!

Hope you find somewhere soon.

thanks! sure somewhere will appear soon

Hi Fairylights,

Sorry that the house went before you could get it but for what it's worth here's the lowdown in Cramond in case it comes up again. I grew up there and my mum still lives there.

It's one of the more 'exclusive' areas of the city and firmly middle class, very desirable for some. Quite pretty and there are some huge houses there but also some more modest houses. J K Rowling has just bought the biggest house there! Some people refer to it at 'Cramond Village' as it used to be on it's own outside the city limits (centuries ago I think) and it still has the feel of a village. Great primary school and the secondary school also has a great rep although you'll find that a lot of children who live there go to private school. I have heard that there is quite a lot of pressure on nursery and school places in Cramond but in Scotland (might be same in England) you are guaranteed a place in nursery for the year before school so they may need to accomodate you or you could try Davidson Mains which is the next 'village' up. It is coastal so there is the beach down the road and the river almond is great for picnics and walks. Cramond Kirk (church) is pretty lively and there are lots of toddler groups etc in the church hall. There used to be a small post office and shop but I think that's gone now so all shops are a bus or car ride away.

It isn't particularly well served by public transport with only one bus (41) going into town and during rush hour it's pretty tough going with queuing traffic in all directions into town (there are a couple of routes out) but I know plenty of people who do it and don't mind. There have been additional services put on in the past but there doesn't seem to be the demand as most people there have cars.

My personal opinion is that it's pretty quiet and can feel a bit isolated, if you like areas like Portobello, Brunstfield and Stockbridge you may find Cramond the same and prefer to keep it for day trips.

thanks bellebelle thats a great lowdown! Sounds like a lovely if quiet place..
yes, I think I had drawn similar conclusions about the potential for isolation but was willing to suffer(?!)that to live somewhere with a bit of space.. but anyway, I don't think anything half as nice will come up there again any time soon for such a reasonable amount so the decision have been made for us!
We have kind of got to the point where all the areas that we thought we would like to live in have nowhere to buy or rent (especially portobello ) that would suit us/that we can afford so we are having to look further afield as we do need to move in the next 6 weeks!
We still yearn to live somewhere that has a good sense of community/stuff going on that is a reasonable distance to town, but if course we need to think about schools (and where has nurseries places for next year!) whioch obviously limits options...hmmmm..
and after a lot of thinking i have come around to thinking that a place that is best for the kids (ie space/good school) is probably going to have to take priority over thr things that i would like but we shall see..

Linlithgow has a great sense of community and good schools (quite full up though), 20 mins by train to centre of Ed.

Cramond is under flight path and has a LOT of aircraft noise, I know someone who moved from there for that reason..I am late to this thread though.