Where to live in/near Glasgow

[longestlurkerever]

Dh applied for a job in London (where we currently live) but has been given an interview for one in Glasgow. It's not something we'd have seriously considered if it hadn't happened this way but the more we think about it the more it might be a good opportunity (if he were to be offered the job, obviously).

I am just at the daydream stage really but where are good areas for families in and around Glasgow? The job is fairly central and I'd be looking for one too (I'm a civil servant and would be hoping for a transfer of some kind). We are in the fortunate position of owning a house in London that has a fair amount of equity. We'd probably get about £950k if we sold it and but if we could reduce our mortgage and get something closer to 500 or 600k that'd be helpful. 3 or 4 bedrooms and a garden would be ideal. I can't decide if I'd prefer close to the city centre or somewhere further out with access to the countryside. Open to suggestions!

I have two girls aged 5 and 1. Any information about the school application process and childcare position would be really helpful.

You'll get loads for your money in Glasgow with that budget. In the suburbs, look at Newton Mearns/Giffnock/Clarkston areas to the south - excellent schools, very Naice area and train links to the city centre in about 30 mins or less.

If you want somewhere busier, the west end (G11/G12 postcodes) is lovely but you won't get a detached house. Subway links to city centre in less than 15 mins.

The very centre itself is all flats so wouldn't suggest living there.

I live in Uddingston which is about 7 miles outside Glasgow and I absolutely love it. Great for families and lots of amenities. But with your sort of budget you could pretty much live anywhere. The south side would probably suit you well.

With that, lovely west end property, near botanics and kelingrove park.

Bearsden, Milngavie (suburbs outwit the city boundary to the north - start of the West Highland Way) Jordanhill ( within the city but suburban style living within walking distance of the West End) .. you can get something really, really good with a garden and reduce your mortgage. Go for it :-)

From Glasgow you could be in the train for an hour and be in Edinburgh, Stirling, Ayrshire, Loch Lomond.

Glasgow has lots of parks - Kelvingrove is on the subway, even the necropolis is nice and quiet.

Easy access to 3 airports (possibly even a spaceport).

Glasgow is easily accessible by train, lots of people live in Ayr or Stirling and commute in. They have just upgraded the line so hopefully no massive disruption in the near future.

Kelvinside, Jordanhill, Bearsden to name a few areas that might suit you. You'll get a lot more house for your money than you realise and commuting time to the city centre is 30 minutes.

Wow yeah with that budget you can live in any of the lovely places mentioned already. There's also Bothwell which is a very sought after area and easily commutable. If you liked the thought of countryside living you could look at Killearn/balfron area perhaps. Or maybe Clyde Valley. Or even out towards Loch Lomond/Helensburgh way depending how far you wanted to commute. A lot to think about!

Look at what you can get for the very top of your budget. Very close to train station, 20 mins public transport to city. www.corumproperty.co.uk/html/property-view/southbrae-drive-jordanhill-glasgow~9039

I drive to work along Nithsdale Road and you could get something amazing there for your budget!

You could live anywhere with that budget. And you'd be amazed at how quickly you can be out in the most amazingly scenic places from the city, 30-40 mins and you can be Loch Lomond, the west coast, etc.

Hope your DH gets the job, you'll love it here!

Ooh thank you everyone. I can see a right move session coming on! I love London but just lately have been craving the ability to escape to the Great Outdoors more easily. I'm scared about uprooting dd1 though s would need it to be somewhere that would work for her as she gets older. No idea if dh will get the job but we could always apply for others if we fall in love with the idea.

Lol at that house. It is a castle!

Have a look at Pollokshields (Nithsdale Road mentioned above is in Pollokshields). The first planned suburb with lots of lovely big stone built villas, big wide streets, large gardens, trees and parks.

Newlands, the other side of Queens Park (and yes, that is a park ) also has nice Victorian era houses.

Shawlands - in particular "High Shawlands" - also has some nice houses. Strathbungo is a conservation area with some lovely townhouses.

Once you've lived in one, with their high ceilings and large rooms you get spoiled for "modern" houses.

For that budget, you might not get a full stone villa, but many of them have been converted. We live in one - dh calls it a "horizontal semi" and have 3 bedrooms, a study and a big dining room (which could be a bedroom) as well as a large dining kitchen and an enormous living room. The garden (even just our half but we choose not to have a boundary with our downstairs neighbour) is of a size that in London would have been sold and 2 4 bedroom houses squeezed on to it)

Shawlands, Newlands and most of West Pollokshields feed into Shawlands Academy, which is a good school. We actually had to do a placing request for ds for Shawlands Academy as we're in the catchment for Glendale Primary (which has an excellent reputation but you might struggle to get in in a in-year request), as it feeds to a different secondary but to date, all placing requests have been able to be requested.

On that note - catchments are key in Scotland. Every child is effectively in the catchment of two schools - a non-denominational school and a Catholic school. (There's also a Jewish primary in Newton Mearns). However, it is possible to do placing requests to a different school which may or may not be accepted, dependent upon space. We thought we'd have to do a placing request for Glendale but it turned out it has a strange shape of catchment and we were already in catchment.

Southside has good links into Glasgow (and in Pollokshields, our wee diddy subway) and lots of lovely parks - Maxwell Park, Queens Park and Pollok Park.

I'm close to prettybird in Pollokshields and that's tonnes of money for the south side - better value for money than the west end but I'd also add Hyndland into the mix.

I absolutely love it here. Loads of parks, walking distance to everything you could ever need. 10 mins drive to massive shopping centre and the same time into town on a very regular train.

We are NEVER moving!

I agree Trooperslane - I love it here. And I'm originally a Northsider (Bearsden/Milngavie - dh takes too much great pleasure in telling me I'm not really a Glaswegian ) and am totally converted to the Southside. Still easy access to the mountains as Glasgow is a small city with a motorway through it (40 minutes and we're at Loch Lomond) but also really accessible to the city centre.

Longestlurker - the other thing to be aware of is that Scotland has different cut off dates for school entry. So depending on when your older dd's birthday is, she would be in P1 (Primary 1), P2 - or even have the option (if she's just turned 5) of deferring and starting P1 next August. Cut off is 1 March, with flexibility for those turning 5 in Jan/Feb (and used to a lesser extent, Nov/Dec) to start P1 a year later.

For secondary education, be careful with Jordanhill because there's no guarantee you'll get a school place and may end up with a place at Knightswood Academy. From what I know of a few years' back, half Jordanhill is also in the catchment for Hyndland (very good) and half in Knightswood (which may well have improved).

Private schooling in Glasgow is also more affordable and accessibility than in London I think I wouldn't limit where I live because of the school although Jordanhill is great.

Pretty bird thank you. I've been looking at right move and I dont think I need a billiards room and an indoor swimming pool and I have parks and access to amenities here but what I really crave is being able to get up on a Saturday morning and be having a picnic somewhere properly stunning by lunchtime, or a day at the beach.

I love Scotland. I've spent many happy holidays in the Western Isles and we got married in Ayrshire, but I only really know the city centres of Glasgow and Edinburgh and have no idea about what places are like to live in.

Dd1 was 5 in August so is the youngest in her class (y1 - the year after reception). Which year would she be in please? Dd2 is a summer born too so not being the youngest would be good.

She would be technically pretty much in the middle but because of deferrals, that skews the average.

Ds' birthday is at the beginning of September and I would say in practice, he's in the "young" half of the year.

She would sit her Nat 5s (equivalent to GCSEs) when she is 15, her Highers at 16 and would be advised to stay on to do S6 (Advanced Highers or more Highers - assuming she is academic) rather than go to Uni straight after her Highers at least, that's the advise we've given ds who is not long turned 16

So she'd finish school the same time she would have done in England.

Other advantage of the Southside is that in 30-40 minutes, you can be on the Ayrshire Coast!

Fab! And have you any idea how in-year admissions works?

And what do they learn in P1? Reading? Dd can read pretty well now, having been at school a year but it's been a bit of a slog. Waiting till she was 5 would have made for an easier time I think.

Some kids can read in P1, some can't. We don't have a Reception year, so they assume not. Ds was in the "top" group for reading all the way through P1 but was just memorising. He was moved to the middle group in P2 and only actually "got" reading towards the end of P2.

He's now in the top set for English (and got an A for his Nat 5) so it all evens out.

No idea how in-year admissions work. Before buying/renting a house, I'd call the primary school that it's in the catchment of and check they've got spaces and ask what the policy is. If there's not space, the Education Department will allocate the next closest school with space.

Here's a nice townhouse in Strathbungo. Think the catchment is Shawlands Primary which is a good primary.
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-43909938.html

Yes I saw that one! Looks lovely. Thanks for all the info. Lots to mull over. The other thought was whether anywhere between Edinburgh and Glasgow is nice, as it would open up a bigger jobs market if we were commutable to both, but I guess we would be further from the sea!

You could consider Linlithgow if you'd like to be between Glasgow & Edinburgh. Good schools & rail links. Maybe Stirling. But it all depends on exactly where your DP will be working, it's a big city.

In terms of Glasgow, it depends what you're looking for: suburban or a bit more happening?

Suburban: Giffnock, Clarkston, Busby, Mearns - all with excellent state schooling.

Villagey: Eaglesham, Thorntonhall,

A bit more happening: Shawlands, Newlands, Broomhill, Hyndland.

These are all South/West End. Someone will be along soon who knows more about the North side e.g. bearsden, milngavie, etc.

Thank you. I think, "more happening" would probably suit us better, though where I currently live is perhaps a bit more urban grit than is strictly ideal as the kids get older, so I do have half an eye on secondary catchments. Access out of the city would be key though - although I assume anywhere would be better than London for that. The job is very close to the M8 but we'd want to be future-proof in terms of being able to apply for other jobs for both dh and me.

Another vote for Bearsden and Milngavie, schools are first rate, 20 minutes into the city centre, lots going on for families. We have been here since the kids were small and there are loads of clubs and activities for them like Scouts, drama, dancing etc. Good sporting facilities close by, 20 minutes the other way and you're at Loch Lomond. Main reason for moving here was the schools which are fab - both primary and secondary. For your budget around here I'd be buying this one - Bearsden Academy catchment. www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-62895323.html

Remember that Glasgow is a lot smaller than London and easy to get around. From here there are regular trains into town and it's an easy drive.