Your thoughts on St Austell

[paddypaws76]

Hi I posted something like this in this forum before but thought I'd try again seeing as the babys now here, doing well and 6 months old already. Hubby and me still want to move down to St Austell, just wondered what you good people who live in and around think of the town in general, primary schools and areas to avoid. We don't drive and would like to be able to walk to the beach in an ideal world, so would need to be no more than about 2 miles inland. And a strange question, but on all the property pics on right move its always cloudy, a local told me it always is in that area, is that true? He said it had something to do with the clay pits. We have family in Hayle and St Agnes but its just too pricey there, and st austell ticks all the boxes. We also liked Par, closer to the beach but not so much choice. Is that also under the same grey cloud that seems to bug St Austell. Coming down in a couple of weeks, and would like to have a look at some property. Any thoughts would be great. Thanks X

[EmeraldGaia]

I guess the original poster has moved by now but as a resident of St. Austell for nearly 5 years I just wanted to counter a lot of the negative things said about it in the replies to this post.

It’s the most populated town in Cornwall so crime will naturally be higher but having moved here from south London it’s all relative and where I live, just outside Charlestown, it’s very quiet and safe. Anyone I know who has moved down here from any of the big cities up country say the same thing. Sadly there was a stabbing not far away last year but this was drugs related as I understand it and definitely a shocking but thankfully very rare event. There was also a problem with drug use in the town centre, again during the pandemic in 2020, but the local town businesses and leaders thankfully came together very quickly and effectively to deal with it and it’s not a problem anymore. DH and me were actually really impressed to see how quickly, firmly and openly that was clamped down upon.

The town centre hasn’t got much going on there but as Truro which has more shops but not many restaurants or variety of restaurants is 20 minutes away by car that’s not an issue for us. There used to be a Frankie & Benny’s and Prezzo but sadly both closed before the pandemic. We’ve got a nice cinema which hopefully will keep going! The town council seems a bit useless to be honest from what we know in that it doesn’t seem to care much about enhancing the town centre which is sad but hopefully that’s going to change. Ditto the local MP, not really sure what he does for the town. The lack of civic pride is enduringly regrettable.

I do get a bit fed of the ignorant and offensive comments about St. Austell - or St. Awful as it’s disparagingly referred to by some down here. Every town in Cornwall is different and has its own unique charm but every one, without exception, needs sprucing up and some tlc. DH and me were shocked at the number of homeless people sleeping in shop doorways in Truro 6 years ago when my family came down for a holiday before making the move the following year. I could repeat some of the negative points about other Cornish towns, there’s plenty to chose from, but I won’t because I don’t live in those towns and so it’s not my place to do so and I firmly believe a lot of the negative points about all the towns down here that can justifiably be made are because of a lack of investment in decent jobs and a lack of civic pride on the part of civic leaders and residents. Second / holiday homes and seasonal work are big problems and don’t help local communities at all either. Like anywhere, St. Austell has its good and not so good parts but all in all it’s a nice place to live and we do get fabulously sunny days, contrary to what another poster said. As it’s more sheltered being on the south coast there’s lots of greenery from trees unlike Newquay for example. It just needs a bit more civic pride which I hope is underway now with a nascent arts and investment scheme and I would refer readers to this website link below for more independent info on St. Austell.

www.staustell.co.uk/

St. Austell has great transport links. It’s on the mainline rail from London Paddington to Penzance (less than 4.5 hours to London). It’s close to the A30 but not too close to suffer with holiday traffic. It’s got lots of good schools and is very close to some lovely beaches. It’s just under an hour along the A38 to Plymouth and an hour and a half up the A30 to Exeter for shopping, eating out, theatre. I personally think not having a car / being able to drive is a big drawback but Cornwall Council is investing more in public transport and this can only be a good thing.

St. Austell was a well-to-do place once upon a time with a rich mining heritage that it should be proud of - it was the biggest exporter of China Clay from Par Docks at one point during the twentieth century! - and with the amount of new housing developments currently going on, and a bit more civic pride by everyone, residents and local and county leaders, it could be again one day 🙂

[shinook123]

I lived in St Austell for 11 years and don't rate it at all.It's quite deprived now and has a major drug problem and crime has risen sadly,even stabbings.Carlyon bay beach is no longer the beach it once was,mostly teens hang out there in the summer,many of them drinking.We walk our dog on par beach but to me that's what Par beach is,a dog beach.Sadly too many dog owners don't clean up and it's full of shit.It has loads of seaweed too so isn't nice for paddling.Have a look at a town called Lostwithiel.Its not coastal but does have a river beach which is lovely.In the summer all the kids paddle and swim in there,families having picnics,fish and chips or a bbq.There is a train station in Lostwithiel which gets you to St Austell in 15 minutes.The trains are regular as it's on the main line through Cornwall.There are two primary schools in the town,a co op,two fine dining restaurants,3 pubs,newsagents,dentist,doctors surgery,library,church,Bakeries,chip shop,2 play parks,playing fields,walking trails,a castle.There are many activities to take part in both for children and adults.There are many job opportunities here too with hotels,guesthouse,care homes as well as in the local shops.You can use the train to get to Par,St Austell,Truro,St Ives etc for days out or work.We don't have a main supermarket but many use online delivery service and there's shops to buy fresh fruit and veg and there's the butchers too.Its a very pretty,trouble free town,peaceful but with plenty going on.There are various family friendly festivals,carnivals etc throughout the year too.Its a wonderful town to raise a family.If you Google the town the pictures will show how lovely it is.

[MARLEYHARVEY]

Hi me and my husband live in bristol we have a caravan in Morgan porth Cornwall we travel down every other weekend fed up with the drive we now want to move to Cornwall found a lovely hose in carthew st austell what is the area like does any one out there no or even live close.

[princesscupcakemummyb]

OLD THREAD i know but honestly cornwall is the most loveliest place its just sad when loads move their from anywhere cornwall is beautiful but they need to stop people moving their it will be ruined

[paddypaws76]

Hi just thought I'd update this if anyones still watching it. We were in cornwall last week, terrible weather but had a great time.
stayed in st agnes and visited Falmouth and st Austell/Charlestown as usual. Not a great walk from St Austell town centre down to charlestown,, but we went down the main road, through mount chalres etc and there might be a better way. Not too much of a problem because if we moved to that area it would be sort of Carlyon bay direction anyway. Thought the town centre wasn't bad at all, just people going about their daily business. On the falmouth side of things, yes its lovely even though the weather was rubbish. We got a taxi from St Agnes and fought the train back into Truro from Falmouth Town station. Found a nice pub for dinner on the harbour side with an open fire. Decided not to walk into falmouth from penryn due to the weather but drove through. Looks ok but maybe a bit of a treck on foot. So still trying to make up our minds on what would suit us best. Thanks to everyone for all the help and advise. Think we might try and get the house on the market in the spring.

[paddypaws76]

To be honest I Thought St Blazey and Par were pretty much the same place. Like with everything, you get what you pay for in terms of a house. If it helps I think our budget will be around the £200.000 mark.

[kernowal]

St Blazey has the lovely Mid Cornwall Gallery for a bit of culture & funky jewellery shopping.

[lagoonhaze]

Par docks has had development plans kicking around. I think it could be an area on the up.

Those who say St Blazey isn't nice are prob just not looking past a few bad estates. Some justified some snobbery. There are several areas in St Blazey that are nice enough places to live. Biscovey too is in St Blaise parish. Again lots of nice houses.

Its like the poster who said St Austell was awful because Penwithick was grim. No correlation different places. Oh and Penwithick has some nice housing too (as well as bad!)

[paddypaws76]

Had a few people say St Blazey isn't that nice, do they mean to look at, or just generally a bit run down? The problem with picturesque cornish towns and villages is that thats where all the second home owners want to buy pushing the prices up above what there worth. I wonder what affect closing the china clay works at Par will have on the area, more expensive apartments perhaps?

[lagoonhaze]

Par area would be good option. Dont discount st blazey

[paddypaws76]

Ok a solution would be, don't have a car, use an electric mower which tend to be plastic, buy a bungalow so its less exposed to high winds, and easier to clean the windows and plant hedging instead of fencing which is less likely to suffer the same fate. I think you'd need half a million to live next to a beach anywhere in devon or cornwall anyway wouldn't you?

[PigletJohn]

I don't know St Austell, but one thing I will say

If you want to live in a warm, rainy area in a county with a coastline, you haven't got to live next to the beach. There are actually disadvantages, like your car and lawnmower will go instantly rusty, and your windows will get salt and sand on them (in storms, seaweed as well) and the roads will be blocked through the summer. You will get more damage to roof and fences in storms.

If you can cycle there, it's near enough.

[paddypaws76]

Ok thanks for the info. Porthpean is a nice beach although every time we go there the tide seems to be in. Isn't duporth private swell? Isn't there meant to be a public footpath that leads from porthpean beach towards town, avoiding those narrow lanes?

[kernowal]

Just as a word of warning, check out the fibre/broadband coverage as web access is critical. My family are about 5 miles out of the centre of St Austell & 2MB is a fantastic broadband speed on a good day with the wind in the right direction. The same applies to mobile coverage which can be very patchy anywhere around the coast. We can get Vodafone but none of the others and then only by going outside.

You might be better off looking at the beaches at Duporth & Porthpean. The beach at Carlyon Bay/Crinnis was always private even before they decided to build on it. My teenage years were spent at the Wimpy & Radio 1 roadshow down there with Dave Lee Travis & David Kid Jenson. Less said the better...

[paddypaws76]

Hi we run an online business so thats not really an issue. Probably worth mentioning, and I don't know how many there are in the area, but I don't think we could buy a unit bungalow due to mortgage requirements. Any other suggestions for places in the area that fit the bill? Carlyon Bay looks nice, hopefully one day they will decide that building the apartments at the back of the beach was a mistake and return it to nature. I don't know if I said but around a 45/50 min walk to the sea would be doable, is that a word?

[kernowal]

Par - no. It's definitely not one of the prettier parts of the area.
Meva & Charlestown lovely but pricey.
Polgooth, Trewoon & Sticker are all too far from the sea for what you want.

What are you planning to do work-wise if you don't drive? Anywhere away from the town centres will be a nightmare to get to without a car if you have to be in a certain place by a certain time. Truro's the hub of the working world.

[paddypaws76]

Thanks someone once suggested Fowey but its just too expensive. What about Mevagissey anyone? Not too far to St austell for the main train line and a regular bus service. Not visited there in years. I remember a nice sandy beach close by, but it was only accessible down some rather scarey steps in the cliff.

[zebrafinch]

Sorry OP on reflection Liskeard is too Far East for your purposes and you are wanting a walking trip to the beach. Hopefully someone will come along and advise you on the schools in the Falmouth area. It's good that you are visiting and viewing houses outside the main tourist season as you will get a different feel of the placel

[zebrafinch]

I would choose Falmouth over St Austell. Get a Devon and Cornwall Railcard as a resident and you will get discounted rail fares. most of your time will be Spent living not travelling away so choose the town with the best schools and work opportunities and somewhere where you can be on the beach quickly. I have never been taken with St Austell town centre but my spirits lift on going into Falmouth.
What about Liskeard? Good train and bus link to the beaches at Looe??? On mainline to Plymouth and London.

[paddypaws76]

We did seriously think about Hayle for a while, but that seems to have got quite expensive over the last couple of years, maybe the quay developements have helped. Lovely beach!

[southbank]

Par for me was always Par Market on a Sunday morning,it was huge.other than that and the beach,not sure what else there is.
I think Fslmouth has more to offer,aesthetically moe pleasing,lovely surrounding areas and close to some great beaches.

[paddypaws76]

Yeah. I like just mooching around the dock area. Remember an october day last year sitting Gylly beach, couldn't see my hand infront of my face, just listening to the fog horns on the ships moored in the bay, very atmospheric. Have to say though, I also have a soft spot for Charlestown, and Par is a great place to walk the dogs. Never been to falmouth in the summer, so don't know how busy the beaches get with uni students etc.

[southbank]

Falmouth is great,if I was going to live in Falmouth or St Austell it would be Falmouth definitely,every time.

[paddypaws76]

Haha don't worry its fine, nice to see. No one has a bad word to say about falmouth/penryn, We love it, but I can't deny that being on the main train line would make things easier. Being able to get to Truro, Plymouth and up country without having to change trains is tempting. Someone said to me once, is not where you live in cornwall that matters, its that you live in cornwall. I've had loads of good advice on here though, certainly couldn't afford a house on sea road :) If we did decide on St Austell, its not too far to spend a day in Falmouth.

[southbank]

Lol op,hope we haven't hijacked your thread too much,sorry!
Really enjoying this thread,my own experience of St Austell when I was a child was going shopping with my parents occasionally,mum didn't really like it because the shops weren't as good as Truro!
I remember the old Market building near a pub called The Sun I think,it always had funny organ/accordion style music playing and always smelt of food from the stalls.
Had a friend who lived on Sea Road in Carlyon bay,the house was amazing,I remember being amazed that you could see the sea from EVERY room in the house!
Have you got any more thoughts about where you are hoping to move to op?
Also we