Falkirk or Stirling?

[SandJuggler]

Hi, my family is committed to moving to Scotland in the next few years and we have done a lot of research about house types, prices, locations, etc. We are settled on 2 areas - ideally the Larbert side of Falkirk, or Stirling. Larbert has a good high school and is well placed for access to the 3 nearest cities but how does it compare to Stirling for quality of life, crime and safety. (Another factor is I am English and my wife and kids SE Asian). Where do you think we should focus on? What are the pros and cons of each location?

I've lived near both, though not recently, and I'd choose Stirling. For me Falkirk feels more 'central belt' and although it's not far away, Stirling has easy access to the Trossachs, Perthshire etc. so just feels nicer. I'm sure someone with more recent knowledge will be able to give you more practical advice though!

Stirling and Perthshire much nicer, larbert very meh - great commuter town but nothing to it

I'm biased as I'm in Stirling, we did live to the west of Falkirk for a while. Nothing particularly wrong with Larbert/Falkirk per se (usual rough areas and town centre not looking great), some very nice houses and schools and close to Falkirk retail park and access to trains etc, but being honest, even when Falkirk was closer we ended up coming to Stirling a lot as we preferred the general ambience and it felt more like home.

With the exception of Bannockburn which doesn't do well academically (might have loads of other stuff going for it but i don't know) the Stirling schools are all decent. There will be a few areas that you wouldn't want to live in unless you were already from there but otherwise plenty to do in terms of activities. Some areas possibly more culturally diverse than others, I'm in an older new build estate and we have a range of nationalities even within the street including a few asian families (at least one of which who are direct immigrants and not Scottish asians if that makes sense?), also english, italian, south african, canadian, we've at times had families from the middle east, africa, eastern europe. I think having the university with visiting lecturers increases diversity.

What areas of Stirling were you looking at?

For Stirling area, Dunblane and Bridge of Allan would be lovely but likely out of our price range. So I have shortlisted Dunipace, Riverside, Tillicoutry, Alva, Dollar. We need easy access to a train station and a good high school is a must.

Since the school is the big deciding factor, the catchment area for Stirling HS is of major interest, so what are your opinions on these areas: Cambusbarron, Kings Park, Torbrex, east St Ninians, Coxet Hill, Borestone and Braehead?

Of the areas you have listed I’d only look at Riverside. Dunipace is quite bleak with nothing there. I’d avoid the Hillfoot towns as I’d not choose the catchment high schools. I’d focus on the more affordable parts of Stirling with a Wallace High of Stirling High catchment.

Would you go elsewhere? Linlithgow? Winchburgh?Polmont & Brightons are nice areas of Falkirk.
Is it Edinburgh you need to commute to?

@SandJuggler

For Stirling area, Dunblane and Bridge of Allan would be lovely but likely out of our price range. So I have shortlisted Dunipace, Riverside, Tillicoutry, Alva, Dollar. We need easy access to a train station and a good high school is a must.

Dollar is nice but because it has the private school I think catchment is maybe Alva?

There are some lovely bit's in the hillfoots villages and towns but I'd always choose to be in Stirling instead. Dunipace is close to where i lived before, another area where being a local is quite important. We never settled there, catchment school would be Denny high

Riverside a nice mixed demographic, High school is Wallace. Make sure you check the flood risk.

Unless you are looking for Catholic provision, I agree with above that I'd concentrate on the catchments for Wallace or Stirling if you are staying in Stirling. Stirling high has always had a good steady reputation and Wallace has a very diverse catchment and has risen quickly up the academic ranks in the last few years. Obviously Dunblane as well is you get in catchment. It used to be easy to get a placing request in Dunblane but that has become more difficult in recent years.

Cambusbarron, Kings Park, Torbrex, east St Ninians, Coxet Hill, Borestone and Braehead? There are always nice bits and poor bits in areas, Torbrex is a nice mature 1960s estate with a little new build as well. Kings Park is lovely older big houses, lots split into flats, Cambusbarron, mixed but some lovely bits. The rest are the other side of Stirling from me and I don't know much.

When we moved we decided to be north of the river but if i'd had more knowledge then the areas around Torbrex would have been on my radar also.

I'd add in Causewayhead, Wallace Park/Westhaugh estate, Forth Park estate and also keep looking in BofA and Dunblane. There is a lot of newish houses out at Kildean but there isn't much else out there at the moment and it's a trek for High School.

If you see any houses in particular, post a link and I'm sure we can give a bit of a steer.

Thanks for the replies. I will also look at Winchburgh, Polmont and Brightons. Linlithgow looked nice but there is the flooding risk and prices were outside our budget. Torbrex is still a sweet spot but I have a few other places mentioned here to look into. No mention really of Larbert? It appeals since it has good and short link times to all 3 cities. Looking ahead Edinburgh would be our commuting destination rather than Glasgow but I cannot be definite (too many other factors affect that). I just wanted to get near a good High School and be well placed for the 3 cities. [Ideally looking for an end semi I can pick up cheaper, fix up and extend as much as possible (side and rear). Hopefully that is not a unicorn farm dream!].

Larbert is mainly made up of the large Inches estate, perfectly nice place to live, and school is decent but very full and being extended and will be the biggest school in Scotland. I have family who went there and did okay.

How much budget are we talking about? This isn't like London or other large cities where gentrification happens relatively quickly, there aren't massive stocks of run down gems on the edges of up and coming areas unfortunately. An ex council semi in a decent area will go for a good price and be in high demand.

Cheaper housing in rougher areas is generally bought up by locals who know who is who and what the best streets are, or by landlords who don't care that much. You could do that up to within an inch of its life and the added value would be minimal as the reputation proceeds it.

Obviously most families in these areas will be perfectly fine, I grew up in similar myself, but you'd need local knowledge to know which bits really aren't fine.

@SandJuggler if ethnic diversity is important to you I would take a look at population stats for those areas.
I'm in West Lothian (from your list Winchburgh and Linlithgow) and it's not ethnically diverse, over 95% white British, and most of them white Scottish

With the places you’ve listed, only Riverside is classed as Stirling.

Dunipace catchment is Denny High School and it doesn’t have a good reputation. There’s a lot of new builds now in the area so it may improve over time, however that’s a bit of a gamble.

Larbert is fine. There’s nothing wrong with it but it’s not the most exciting place to live. It is a sensible choice though. Decent school, plenty of clubs and activities for children, good transport links and house prices are reasonable. I know a few people who drive from Larbert to Falkirk High station to get the main Edinburgh to Glasgow service as it’s more frequent.

Stirling had more in the way of amenities but a slightly longer commute - it comes down to your priorities really.

Many years ago, when I was making a similar decision, I went for the sensible option. With one of us working in Edinburgh and one in Glasgow at the time, we chose Falkirk and have been very happy here. I have plenty of friends in Larbert who are also happy.

Intrigued by your mention of flood risk in Linlithgow. There’s only a very small part of the town that’s been flooded in recent years and there been work done on flood prevention. It is a lovely place to live but expensive.

I think something like 96% of people in Scotland define themselves as white. Parts of the biggest cities will have higher levels of diversity which leaves the more rural, smaller cities etc at probably less than 4% other ethnicities.

@SandJuggler

Since the school is the big deciding factor, the catchment area for Stirling HS is of major interest, so what are your opinions on these areas: Cambusbarron, Kings Park, Torbrex, east St Ninians, Coxet Hill, Borestone and Braehead?

I live in King’s Park and I grew up in Torbrex. Both are nice areas, King’s Park is "posher" - Victorian houses, leafy etc. And correspondingly more expensive! Both are walking distance from the train station but KP is closer. I don't think you mentioned what age your kids are but the primary schools in both areas are good and there are two decent parks nearby, plus residents get free entry to the castle when it is open. At my kids school there are plenty of mixed race families, a mixture of more recent arrivals and the kids of people I went to school with in the 80s/90s. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions on Stirling!

@WaxOnFeckOff

I think something like 96% of people in Scotland define themselves as white. Parts of the biggest cities will have higher levels of diversity which leaves the more rural, smaller cities etc at probably less than 4% other ethnicities.

Yes, this figure matches what I've seen quoted. But I think the only way for OP to get a more diverse community in Scotland would be to live in Glasgow and that's not on her list?

Yes, the majority isn't diverse but it is really hard to tell, we have 3 Indian or ethnically Indian families in a street of 24 houses. I think going by the surname, one is South Indian, its been harder to get to know people over covid and my DC are now adults whereas they all have primary age DC. However, the next street over might have all white UK for all I know

I'd say the area in total is probably pretty much average.

Flood risk in Linlithgow?? Only the High St area, residential areas are all uphill!

Many thanks again for the follow up answers.

Our budget at present is close to 180 to purchase, hoping to do up if possible at a later stage. This would be to extend a family house not to flip for profit.

My kids would be entering High School at the time we are planning to move - 10/11, maybe 11/12.

My kids are half Eurasian but look caucasian (daughter is whiter than milk).

Linlithgow was mentioned as being in a flood plane. Glad this isn't so but the house prices are out of our budget.

We also looked at the Borders, especially Galashiels but Falkirk/Stirling seemed better located for us. Gala prices seemed ok but the school is below par I read.

I would look towards the east side of Falkirk - Polmont, Brightons, Wallace stone, Maddiston rather than Larbert. Polmont is full of folk who aspire for Linlithgow but can't afford it. On the train line for Stirling, Edinburgh and Glasgow, all within half an hour.

Some of the places you mention such as Dunipace are not Stirling but Falkirk and Denny High catchment.

In my opinion Stirling is a much better place to live than any of the others you’ve mentioned. The high school and the wallace high school both seem good, I think, and Stirling is handy for trains and just a really nice place.

I think your budget will exclude King’s Park then. In Torbrex you might get something with extension possibility - like a chalet style bungalow that you can convert the loft with a dormer and also extend at the back or down the side. And this would be a great location for your kids to walk easily to school.

Many thanks - I will keep an eye out. We are currently overseas but the plan is to relocate in around 3 maybe 4 years. I would consider buying ahead of that to rent out. Torbrex ticks a lot of boxes. I will also add Polmont for more investigation. I am from NW England but visited Scotland many many times (mostly East and West coastal towns) and it seems to offer a more positive opportunity for my family. We are really enthusiastic about making it our home.

OP, Barrett Homes are currently pursuing planning persimmon for a field on the Torbrex/Cambusbarron border. No idea on type/cost of housing, but if you enter "21/00206/MSC " on the Stirling Council planning portal you should find details.

If you are not in a rush then it's worth just keeping an eye on it. It's a bit of a seller's market just now.

Realistically Falkirk falls more within your budget. One area that springs to mind is Lionthorn, a lovely area within Falkirk, beautiful walks in woodland areas, canal walks and best of all shorts walk to Falkirk High station.