Swindon/cricklade - advice appreciated!

[Mum2G]

Moving again!

dh accepting a new job in swindon, has anyone any reccomendations for nice villages near swindon, that have good mother and baby facilities, and good primary schools?

Cricklade has been reccommended - any good or bad areas around there that people know of?

Any other nice locations with good schools in or around Swindon?

TIA!

No night life.
Sorry!

Grown up night life in Old Town, if you're into not wearing much, binge drinking and thowing up after a good night out then Swindon town centre is the place for you!

PPH - I wish Monsoon would have a shop in the outlet

Re night life - NEVER go into the Town centre.

Always stay in the Old Town area, good restaurant, decent pubs and decent folk!

I lived in Swindon for 39 years - and only just moved away.

Crap schools and growing yobbish behaviour drove us out, so would definately look at surrounding areas.. Even the nice parts of Swindon (Old Town especially nice) have their problems these days.

Town centre - far too many pound shops. and not enough decent shops.

There are loads of nice areas surrounding Swindon, have fun looking.

We are moving back to that area in the summer. I come from Calne and did my nurse training in Swindon. Swindon isn't an atractive place bit it has everything you want ....especially if Zara is coming

However you don't have to go far out of Swindon and you are in beautiful Wiltshire countryside. We've looked at Wanborough (v good school), Wooton Bassett, Purton, Cricklade, villages around the Cotswold water park and we are currently checking out Devizes.

McDreamy, Devizes is fab!! I would move there in a heartbeat, it's my idea of the perfect country town.

Mum2G, re Swindon night life: There are a couple of good cinema multiplexes, bowling etc otherwise your only options are visiting nice country pubs in surrounding villages.

I remember going to devizes as a child to visit the Emporium to spend my pocket money on bits and pieces! It's still there

no devizes is a VERY VERY ODD PLACE

ii can tell you that wiht ciminal justice glasses on and also as someone who has whiled away many a lunch hour there,

Why do you say that Cod? I would have said that about Calne but not Devizes!

Heifer please share with me what good restaurant there is in Old Town?? The apogee of eating (so far as I have found) appears to be a Pizza Express whose main recommendation is that it is always half empty. Have I missed something?

The only good restaurants I've found are

Stanton House Hotel (wierd hotel but owned by Honda hence has 2 fabulous Japanese restaurants in it. Must have somewhere for the Honda executives to eat, after all!)

Coles in Marlborough - excellent local bistro with good wine list. perfect local restaurant

One decent Indian restaurant in Cricklade. Actually it is better than decent, it is good. Can't remember what it is called though.

Pagoda Palace chinese restaurant in West Swindon - but the food is only good if you order off piste from the Chinese menu. The usual stuff on the main menu is your average fairly crap sweet and sour pork sort of stuff. Off piste is excellent though.

Umm... the Hare in Lambourn Woodlands. Seriously good food. At serious prices.

That pub in Ramsbury - what is it called? V good. Also the George and Dragon in Rowde but a good 40mins from Swindon.

Lots of perfectly OK but not brilliant pubs doing edible but not brilliant food. Like the Saladin in Little Somerford. Lots of OK -probably won't get food poisoning but its a chance you take Indians all over the place including in Shrivenham and Wootton Bassett and Purton. Lots of FOUL pubs and Indians elsewhere, and Chineses you wouldn't go into if someone paid you quite a lot.

Further afield Lucknam Park far side of CHippenham has superb michelin starred food, ditto Whatley Manor outside Malmesbury.

Where else? I'd LOVE to know

There's The Bell just outside Lacock - lovely food

The Ivy in Heddington, spit and sawdust pub but very good food

Sally Pussy in Wootton bassett - not bad

Have you tried Cosmo in town? Big oriental restaurant, buffet style. Near the Holiday Inn?

i live in devizes and i like it lots

Do you Mufti? DH is viewing a few houses there on monday

yes, but grew up in swindon, dont like it, except old town, where i lived a few years , and still has some charm

you not able to go with him McDreamy?

No I am in Cyprus!!!

ah

In defence of Devizes -- has nice architecture, fantastic weekly market, some excellent independent shops and food shops and has avoided the clone town thing. And much less snob-appeal than Marlborough which is a big plus in my book.

Don't know about the people though!!!

I agree with the marlborough comment. We haven't even looked at houses in marlborough - just don't want to live there!

Agree the Hare at Lambourn is very good (stay away from Lambourn itself very strange place ) lovel landlord who gave us a lift home
Three Crowns at Brinkworth very good pub with good pubby food
The pear Tree at Purton too overrated with their toffee nosed French waiters

We go to the old bank in Old Town as they do reasonable food at reasonable prices and are happy to have children in.

i know all about the drug scene in devizes

not.

and in Lambourn too...

We lived next door to one of the more 'interesting' pubs and they were up to strange things in the carpark at 2 in the morning. Race days were a nightmare, if the lads had done well then the whole village didn't sleep that night!

I would have to disagree re abbey meads school. it has never been considered not a great school as far as im aware, and I am quite involved with it.

also the secondary school has only just opened so far too early to say how that will turn out.

would avoid priary vale like the plague - houses overpriced, sold on the basis that buysrs getting great deals but atually resale value is far less than buyers are told, have tiny gardens, no offstreet parking and is just a horrible area compared to abbey meads which is far better.

There's a house for sale in Shaw that I briefly looked at. Anyone know Shaw? I have a friend that lives there, seems ok.

Have you thought about villages to the West of Swindon. I live near Malmesbury and loads of people commute from here to Swindon. Takes DH about 25 mins.