Where to live in/around Bristol!?

[BristolHelp]

Hi Mumsnet,

My DH and I are looking to move to the SW from London. We have family in Bath and Devon and would like to be within easy reach of Bristol for jobs (either by train or cycle).

We have a 4 month old DD so will be considering good primary schools in our search too.

We are looking for a vibrant but relaxed community with some green spaces. We really enjoy walking with our dog and grabbing coffee at weekends, but will also want to be near leisure amenities such as playgrounds/kids clubs/swimming pools as DD gets older.

We are planning on another child as well so we'd like to be near some good nurseries and be around other families with children of a similar age.

We've looked at Nailsea/Backwell but feel it may be too sleepy for us. We've also considered Keynsham but We've heard the traffic can be awful.

Can anyone suggest some areas for us to consider? Our budget would be up to £525k for a 3/4 bedroom house.

I'm in Keynsham. I have family in Yate and I have worked in Nailsea. Ask away!

The volume of traffic in Bristol or surrounding areas would put me off, although I do love that city!

Would Glastonbury be a compromise? More bang for your buck property wise, there’s a really good community spirit that’s quite Bristolian in its vibe (well,.. at least the Gloucester Road part!) it’s probably equal in terms of distance to Bath and Devon. Definitely have yoga and a little music festival you may have heard of 😂

Another place to consider is Frome, much closer to Bath but I know people who commute Frome to Bristol. There’s a fair bit going on there community wise. It’s more ‘leafy middle class’ than Glasto, if that’s your thing.

Or you could consider further south such as Taunton, right on the M5 and you can get to Devon from there in a jiffy (ish). Taunton itself is a bit meh, but there are some decent schools and it’s quite good location wise.

Frenchay is on the metrobus route into town. You can get into the centre of Bristol in around 15mins even in rush hour by whizzing along the bus lane!

We visited Frome and we didn't like it! The vibe was just a bit weird for some reason. Glastonbury would be too far away for us from work in Bristol/Bath.

Thank you, the schooling point is a good one!

Thank you, this is so helpful! We are definitely leaning more towards Keynsham now. Are there any areas we should avoid?

Thank you! Are there any areas we should avoid?

There's nowhere I'd avoid, I'd more consider the house and which primary you want, maybe book some primary school viewings to see which you prefer. I don't know anyone who didn't get the secondary they wanted between wellsway and broadlands (both take children out of keynsham too so all of keynsham is catchment), but the primaries are more location based and I know a handful of people who got their second choice rather than first.

I'm a North Somerset girl and I too find Nailsea & Backwell a bit dull. Yes both secondary schools have good reputations but I don't believe either of them are Ofsted Outstanding anymore.

I much prefer Clevedon and Portishead. Where in Bristol would you need to get to for work? If you are central then either of these places would be a ballache as no train station (yet) but if you'd be heading to South Glos (Aztec, Filton etc) or anywhere via the M5 then Clevedon and Portishead are ideal for access.

There are plenty of nurseries and primary schools to choose from in both and there is no issues getting a school place as I dont believe any are regularly oversubcribed.

Clevedon has Hill Road & Alexandra Road with lots of independent shops and cafes (My 3 year old likes the book shop and the chocolate shop) and there are dog friendly woodland gardens with fairy doors and wooden play equipment. Then there is the Seafront with a couple of decent pubs with gardens that are close to the lovely Salthouse park (just been redone) and playing fields. They are always bustling with families and the funfair/circus usually comes in the holidays. In lower Clevedon there are plenty of supermarkets, library, leisure centre with pool (they run a soft play type thing on Sundays), the triangle has shops like Boots and B&M and some more cafes and places to eat. Lots of charity shops!

There isn't that much in the way of nightlife beyond pubs, but plenty of nice ones (I like the Old Inn) that are family friendly.

Plenty of dog walks including the woods and all the way along the river bank to the seafront.

Portishead has very similar amenities (and a Waitrose!) And is a bit 'shinier' I'd say, and there is much more choice for places to eat. The lake grounds are lovely for kids - park, peddle boats in summer, ice cream kiosk, and the open air pool when it's warm. Personally I think Clevedon has more charm but I can see the appeal of Portishead too and I have lots of friends who live their with their kids and love it!

In Bristol 'proper' I really like the look of the area around Snuff Mills (think it's Stapleton) but I can't speak for living there. Also Westbury on Trym and Henbury look lovely.

All the Knowles. 🤣

I think she means in Keynsham

Keynsham is not bad for traffic compared to the rest of Bristol. I would also suggest looking at Hanham, longwell green and oldland.

@BristolHelp I wouldn't say there's any "bad areas" unlike parts of Bristol (I'm originally from Bristol).
. There's just the usual things like kids hanging around outside the shops and making a nuisance of themselves.