Gloucester, dont know where to put this so...

[happychappy]

whats it like? thinking of moving around there and don't know anything at all. Give me the low down.

We live 10 minutes from the city centre. It has some lovely countryside especially out towards the Forest of Dean. The actual city has seen better days but it does have a lovely cathedral. I alternate between loving living here and wanting to move to pretty much anywhere else!

These links might give you a better feel for it:

local newspaper website
city council website

thank you
What would say was the best and worst thing about being there?

Would go for the outskirts if you have the money, the Cotswolds are lovely (Ciren, Barnsley, Bibury) otherwise, more affordable, but still countryside, Brookthorpe, Waddon, Newent, Huntley.

I (personal pref, not trying to insult anyone) wouldn't look at Coney Hill, Matson, Tredworth, Brockworth.

Best? V friendly, great rugby team, not bad transport links, train and road. Quite central.

Worst? Accent, I sound like a farmer and I've never been near one!

lol, we are looking at Highnam just outside Gloucester, we won't get to choose really where we live. The house comes as part of the package.

I know about the rugby team, my family are rugby mad. We all sound like farmers here too (but with an Italian accent).

Work for me doesn't seem hard to come by, though I'm happy to do anything really.

We lived there from 2007 until earlier this year (DH is in the Army). I had never been to Gloucester before but fell bit in love with it :) The city has seen better days, but has character and an amazing history if you scratch the surface - roman walls, cathedral etc. It's also nice and multicultural, has a half decent ammount of shops (also not far from Cheltenham whch has everything you could want in terms of shopping), and from anywhere in the city you are only a few miles drive from stunning Gloucestershire countryside.
If you are at Highnam you have easy access to A40 and Forest of Dean. The only thing that I didn't like was flood risk (we moved there 2 weeks before it flooded in 2007 but luckily it only got as far as our back garden fence!). The north of the city (towards Highnam) is a lot less built up, but I gather that is because an awful lot of it is flood plains. Sorry I have gone on a bit :)

Also I loved the accent, much nicer than the pseudo London one where I live now! (Beds)

Drusilla, no the more I know the better. At the moment we are waiting for a job offer. If theres no job offer its all academic

Highnam is nice and you'll be close to the fab little farm shop at Over.

Is the flood risk very high?

It definitely flooded in 2007 but so did the rest of the county. I'm not sure year on year. I'll try and find you a link.

Try [[www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/inform/utilities/action/act_download.cfm?...
this]]

If it doesn't work, google 'flood risk at Highnam' and look down the list for 'The Demography of Floodplain in Gloucestershire'

I have lived in Gloucester for 2 years, previously lived in Cheltenham for 2, and prior to that lived in Devon from birth.

I moved here because of jobs - that is the best thing abouyt the area, there is a lot of work here for my industry (aerospace) and is easily commutable distance also from Bristol, Birmingham etc.

But...I would rather not live here. I don't like it at all. It is the worst of both worlds - is a city so has all the disadvantages, but is only a small city (more a town really) so is parochial and small minded. As soon as dd is 18 and has left home I am moving away.

There is a large amount of poverty in Gloucester, which is evident. Property is rather expensive - I used to live in a 2 bed flat in Cheltenham, howeer you can buty a 3 bed house in Gloucester for the same money. People in Cheltenham are very snobby towards those who live in Gloucester. Personally I don't think Cheltenham is any better, yes it is pretty but is still just a small town. Lots of stuff going on, lots of festivals, but it still isn't as dynamic as (say) Bristol or Bath. A very small town feel to it.

Re flooding - our house in Gloucester was submerged in 6 foot of water in 2007! Uninhabitable for a year. However SO many places in Gloucester flooded that year that have never seen flood water before, our house was one. There was an enquiry and it was proven that Severn Trent water had blocked drainage culverts which had not been maintained, which meant that the deluge could not run off, and hence the flooded houses. Our house was categorised flood risk 3 initially (what fun those insurance payments were) but had been downgraded to risk 1 (which is the lowest risk) in light of that information. However there are places which are a risky flood plain as other posters have suggested.

I don't want to run down Gloucester, I think it has a lot of potential, however with Cheltenham next door it is not likely to get the attention it needs. The city centre is rather ugly, it has a look of a city which was bombed in the war (it wasn't), all concrete 60s madness. But the cathedral green is beautiful, and there are a load of older tudor buildings. But it has an air of somewhere neglected.

There are very few restaurants, there are very nice pubs in Painswick and Cranham, but for restaurants/nightlife you will need to go to Cheltenham tbh.

That said, people from Gloucester are incredibly friendly, they are like Bristolians, very chatty and down to earth. The accent is rather funny (think Bristol with a twang) and my daughter is the proud owner of a full on Gloucestershire burr!

Also (I will shit up soon) if you have a child of late primarty age, Gloucester operates a compulsory 11+.

I will shut up soon, I meant.

I have a dd who is 12, 13 this year and a son 8, 9 this year
DD very bright but not good in social situations. She reads and writes English but writes rather badly (spelling wise)
Son on the other hand is a sports fanatic (rugby is his passion) but is also dyslexic so reading and writing in English so far has been lets not go there. Stick with Italian.
The school is Highnam seems to be a hothouse for the grammar schools. There was another school a little further away which seemed much nicer.
As for dd don't how it would work for her seeing as she's too old to do the 11+. She speaks Italian and English fluently, is very musical and got straights 9 and 10s in her school reports showing she's an excellent student. Don't how she would get on with the 11+ anyhow because of her rubbish written English skills.

Until the job offers there we can't go any further.

The house we have been offered was redecorated 2 years ago, so sounds like it was flooded. That would be worth a question.

I work as an English as a foreign language teacher here, but have run a nursery, (all in more than 10years working with children). Before that I used to organise courses. What are my changes of finding work. I don't mind doing anything, nannying, TA work, office stuff. Work is work

Well, watch it with the 11+. My dd moved into the area when she was 13, could not even get any of the 2 girls grammar schools to let her sit the entrance exam, as they had a huge waiting list. So dd goes to one of the bof standard comps (Beaufort), and to be honest I am very happy with the school. She used to go to a selective school in Cheltenham, which looks to be a far better school on paper, however her new school is excellent. She has always struggled with writing, and she was diagnosed with dyslexia really quickly, and gets excellent help. She is now doing 12 GCSEs in very small classes, and the school is very friendly socially as well. I cannot recommend it highly enough, in fact I am now PLEASED that she didn't get a place at the girls grammars, as she would have struggled.

I think Newent school is quite close to Highnam, however I know nothing about that school. Highnam village is very pretty, have a friend who lives there, and Highnam Court is very pretty also.

The work market is very bouyant in Gloucester, like I said it is an easy commute as well to other places. I imagine that you would find a job in childcare quite easily, there are loads of nurseries, and always demand for childminders as well.

There is a fantastic aerial photo on the wall in the farm shop at Over of the usrrounding area during the 2007 floods. Apparently "Over" comes from some Norman word meaning high ground or something like that and you can see why on that photo - it was the only little patch of land in that area not flooded. I think Highnam escaped as well, but am not definite.
We loved Gloucester/shire so much we have just put an offer in on a house in Gloucester shire, but I don't know that I would move into Gloucester itself.
Get orfmoiland is right re nightlife etc. I rarely go out, if we did it was Cheltenham. All the young guys who worked for DH went out in Cheltenham usually. Also the Cheltenham snobs - I come from Tunbridge Wells and Cheltenham was a bit like going back there!
DS was in Reception when we left so can't comment much on schools.

Another thought, re the work situation - I lived on an Army patch and it is notoriously difficult to get a job when married to service person. However all the people I knew who wanted a job got something in the local area, it may not have been their ideal career choice but there was always work. HTH

If you can afford it (I bloody can't ) look at Painswick, Upton St Leonards, Brookthorpe in Whaddon, Birdlip (villages within spitting distance of Glouxcester). But add several thousands of £ on the property price.

GetOrf - I went to Beaufort some 20 odd years ago (after not getting into Denmark Road!) and was very happy there. I have friends with DC at Beaufort now, or just left and they all seem sorted. It was a very 'modern' school for my era, and can only have got better with all the extra building/funding.

Happychappy - Highnam is very nice, I used to have friends from May Hill, Huntley and Highnam - all who went to Newent School. Cant say what it is like now, but it did have a very good reputation when I was at school. If I were ever to move back to Glos (unlikely) it would be that side I would choose.

The one thing I will say about living that side of Glos is that commuting can be a nightmare; lots of single country lanes merging onto faster dual carriageways. If the house is part of the package where will the job be?

The 11 + is not compulsory though is it?

Agree with that end of Gloucester being awful for traffic - DP used to work in the Forest of Dean and he used to queue there for ages at rush hour.

LtEve - that is really nice to hear . I feel quite defensive about teh school, because the 11+ polarises the school reputations, people pull a face when I tell then where DD goes to school. But I can't fault the place. She is very happy there (after being bullied horribly at her previous 'good' school in Cheltenham) and is predicted 12 GCSEs at A* - B despite her dyslexia. Really excellent pastoral support also - the teachers really do care for the kids.

Also, LtEve, think I remember you from another thread, you are a RAF officer aren't you? Remember your advice (DD wants to join the RAF at 18, she goes to air cadets which she adores).

Don't quote me Emkana (as dd didn't take the 11+) but I think it is compulsory, as that is how they allocate the school places.

The 11+ is an optional exam if you live in Cheltenham and want to get in teh grammar, but the system there is based on catchment/1st preference first. You can also choose to take the entrance exam for the grammars if you live outside Gloucester (know some children from Bishop's Cleeve who go to High School for Girls).

Hey GetOrf - no, not an RAF Officer but an Army Warrant Officer (enlisted not commissioned) but I work in a Joint environment (which means with Army, Navy and RAF all working together) so lots of experience of the RAF (It's also what I would choose for my DD if she ever expressed a wish to join the Forces) Don't get me wrong, I've loved the Army, but think there are more benefits to a RAF career.

Do you live near to Beaufort? I used to live in Tuffley.

Sorry for hijack OP!

I live on Painswick Road, just off Eastern Avenue. So border of Abbeydale/White City/Tredworth (but according to the council when I voted is classed as Robinswood ).

DD was going to go to university and join the RAF after, however she went on a summer camp and talked to officers there, theer were a couple who joined at 18, and although it will be tough (she will be up against 21 year old uni graduates) that is what she wants to do. I am a bit eek about it as am not from a forces family, but the RAF seems btrilliant from what i have seen, and she is 100% more confident and happy than she was (she only joined air cadets on recommendation of a pastoral support worker at school, as she was a nervous wreck after the bullying and the ysaid that cadet schemes really boost a child's confidence). I cannot fault it.

DD has certainly picked up on all the inter service rivalry! We watched a TV programme about armed forces procurement last night and she snarled at the Army chief of staff when he made disparaging comments about the air force!

DD wants to be an Aerospace Battle Manager (crikey) eventually. It is quite funny as she has spent years taking the mick out of me for being an aeroplane geek (I am an aeronautical engineer) and now she is one as well! DP rolls his eyes at us when we start talking about aircraft

Pretty sure that hignam is Newent Community School catchment area, which is very well thought of comprehensive.