Cambuslang or Hamilton?

[Cockawoes]

Moving due to work. Looking at new builds in Hamilton and Cambuslang areas. Bringing a child so need to consider schools (primary). Looking for opinions about the areas please? And preference to either place or anything else to consider or avoid?
Thank you.

Depends where the new builds are.

Hamilton has a lot more in it as a town, in general it has better parks/facilities etc..

Both towns are mixed in terms of deprivation, with affluent and struggling areas in both.

Cambuslang new builds feel quite isolated, the new builds at the back of Hamilton also have the same problem, so as I said it depends on where they are.

Another aspect to consider is some of the New builds in Cambuslang are built next to Paterson’s Landfill, the smell of which is absolutely horrific so make sure it’s not one of them.

Schools wise both primary and secondary are much of a muchness.

High schools get roughly the same results between Cathkin, Trinity, Holy Cross and Grammar.

If you’re planning on staying there then Hamilton has more in it socially for younger teenagers.

Cambuslang is closer to Glasgow but in reality it’s an extra 7 minutes on a train or 5 minutes on a motorway so again no big deal.

Thank you.
The estate in Hamilton is at Miekle Earnock.
In Cambuslang it is Hallside.
I know what you mean about them being far out but was wondering whether that would mean it feels quieter and nicer.
We have been to both. I was concerned about the surrounds of the Hamilton estate and the walk to the school seemed to be via an area that wasn't that nice. Do you have any further insight into these areas specifically? Thank you.

I would check the catchment for Hamilton. Some areas feed into the schools @Meeplemakeglasgowsaid and some feed into John Ogilvie and Canderside. Not sure what the results are like for each but thought I’d mention.

@Cockawoes Yes, the estates towards that end of Hamilton are surrounded by places that have struggled for a long time, places like Burnbank, Udston and Hillhouse have been in the poverty cycle for generations.

If you’re looking to avoid that as much as possible then from Silvertonhill to Ferniegair is your best bet in Hamilton.

You will also have the same issue in Cambuslang though, possibly not the walking to school aspect but Hallside is also next to places like Halfway, which also have been affected badly by poverty/deprivation.

To be frank though if you’re planning for your kids to go to school in any south Lanarkshire town then you should encourage them to mix with kids from all backgrounds, as if they don’t they will get a shock when they start secondary.

It is possible to find primary schools that are in new-build areas and not as socially mixed (Drumsagard/Jackton) but it could cause a bit of a culture shock when they first encounter other kids that have had a very different start.

Oh and check the school catchments for secondary as @tetleyhead said, I don’t think all the areas you’re looking at are for the schools I mentioned.

@Meeplemakeglasgow thank you.
Yes the school catchments for high school are Calderside and Cathkin.
I was trying really hard not to sound snobby! We are moving from a deprived area and child is used to being in a nursery class with a lot of kids that don't have English as a first language and diverse backgrounds.
I am trying to improve upon the area we currently live in but certainly not adverse to diversity. I want to avoid too much trouble or being in an area of high crime. I would like to feel some sense of community and get involved locally, I'm into sport and fitness and would like there to be opportunities for child to join sports clubs and other activities.
I suspect either area works just struggling to make a decision! Thanks for all your advice.

@Cockawoes

Not at all, I fully understand why you want to move to somewhere better for your kid(s).

I live and work around the southside, it’s a conversation people are scared to have but it’s obvious that having so many children with different languages/backgrounds is causing challenges within the schools.

The issue with South Lan is they have created ‘development areas’ such as Drumsagard and Jackton that despite the lip service have become in effect gated communities where many live in a bubble, they live in the town but don’t have much interaction with it.

Granted this is more of an issue with Jackton but many relatively wealthy people have paid a fortune for houses there, a rural area that has more in common with Eaglesham than East Kilbride then get a reality check when their children are in high school with a social mix they haven’t really encountered.

I work in property and have seen quite a lot of people sacrifice the Jackton mansion for a much smaller house in Eaglesham or Clarkston to get their kids into the alleged ‘better schools’.

Having said that obviously the school is important, a good social mix and culture of achievement is ideal.

Personally if that’s your 2 options I would go with Cathkin, league tables aren’t everything but hopefully this helps.

www.glasgowworld.com/news/south-lanarkshire-high-school-league-table-2024-all-17-south-lanarkshire-high-schools-ranked-by-academic-attainment-in-2023-4584639?page=5

Based on the name change I can hopefully help with the cambuslang part of your question! We live in the Hallside Farm estate which is technically Drumsagard but I’d always say Cambuslang. Great estate, lovely neighbours, no issues at all.

DC go to Hallside Primary which I have no complaints with. It’s a nice school and small enough that the kids all know each other and the teachers and support staff also seem to know the name of every child. It’s a pretty small catchment area for Hallside (pretty much just Drumsagard, halfway go to park view which is just round the corner) and I do think it could be a culture shock at Cathkin but it has been outperforming Stonelaw quite substantially in recent years.

Easy commute to Glasgow on the train getting the low level train from Newton and short journey to M74.

@Meeplemakeglasgow thank you so much. The school information is really useful.

@HallsideNC thank you so much this is just the type of info I was looking for. The house is in the Hallside catchment so that is really useful information. I am definitely leaning more towards this one I think as the high school seems better and the surrounding area on a drive through also nicer.

@Cockawoesno problem, feel free to message with any other questions you might have and good luck with the move

Hi OP, I live right on the border of Cambuslang with two primary school aged children so feel free to message me about any questions you might have

@HallsideNC thank you. Little one isn't due to start school until Aug 26. Do you have nursery recommendations for before that?

@pinkbonbons thank you.

We used hollytree which was right across the road from our estate. I would say DC1 had a better experience than DC2 but we’re waiting on an asd assessment for DC2 so that likely played in to it more than the nursery itself. High flyers gets a good name but I just didn’t get a great vibe from it when we visited.

More council nurseries have been built but these didn’t work for us as they do more limited hours but that may be ok for you - in which case the one near Newton Arms (can’t remember its name!) seems good. The surrounding area would put me off Lightburn but that’s maybe just me being a bit of a snobby arsehole

@HallsideNC thank you this is brilliant info

Happy to help with Hamilton and Calderside questions if you want to PM me

@HGC2 thank you. We're heading there this weekend to have another look around and get a proper feel for the place so I might have more questions after that!

Hamilton is more self contained than Cambuslang, which is more like a suburb of Glasgow. But I'd still choose Cambuslang. The high school is better. Parts of Hamilton are grim and in Meikle Earnock you'd be right next to them so I wouldn't live in that area. The town centre is also massively run down whereas in Cambuslang you can be in Glasgow City Centre in under 15 mins on the train. You're also closer to The Fort and East Kilbride for shopping. PM me if you want more info, I live in the area.

@Diggetydawg thank you. I have no idea how to private message but feel free to reply that way if you prefer.
I am in the area now looking at options. We visited a new build estate yesterday more in the centre of hamilton opposite Aldi just up from the Hamilton retail park. I had a good walk around and the area seemed pleasant enough for a town. Was around Hamilton Grammar at lunchtime ish and the kids that were about seemed nice enough. Nothing particularly off compared to when we visited the other estate near Meikle Earnock. Super accessible for shops and trains etc. and near Strathclyde country park etc.
Do you have any thoughts on this area?
Also I joined the Hamilton FB group and it is making me think twice about Hamilton as a whole. There’s a lot of moaning and negativity, reports of poor behaviour etc. which does concern me. It doesn’t really seem to equate to my experience in the town yesterday which was basically just a town of normal nice people. Nothing stunning or special but an ok place to live and bring up kids.
sorry that ended up long!

I’m on that Facebook group too, it’s not a true reflection of the place and is very negative, I just keep access to it as it can be handy to know about roads being blocked!

@Cockawoes that area is much nicer. Hamilton Grammar has a better reputation than Calderside. A lot of people who live in the Calderside catchment put in placing requests to go there. Holy Cross is the Catholic school for that area. I know people who've sent their kids there and they all say it's a great school so I wouldn't discount that either. Local Facebook groups are always like that. Hamilton is just a normal town, like I said good and bad areas. Around Wellhall Road is nice and walkable to the Grammar as well as the town centre/train station. There is also a beautiful country park just outside Hamilton called Chatleherault (my spelling might be off there) They have lots on for kids and a market on Sundays. It's fab, we go there a lot.

Generally speaking, both Hamilton and Cambuslang are places that people aspire to move "from" and not "to".

There is no point grumbling about bits that are not that nice, because in reality both places are high on the deprivation spectrum, if you happen to be slightly more affluent you will stick out for sure. The West of Scotland does have a chip on it's shoulder about people that think they are above themselves, so you may want to loose the snooty attitude if you are planning on making any friends.

Nice trolling attempt, you should maybe go and finish your paint by numbers picture now.

@Diggetydawg To be Devil’s Advocate here everything you’ve said about Hamilton is also true for Cambuslang (and most other towns in Scotland).

Cambuslang has some of the most deprived areas in Scotland (I’m assuming that’s what you’re describing as grim?).

The Main St is a mess with high pollution and also no shopping of any note at all.

Yes, it could be considered a suburb of Glasgow as it’s continuous, but it’s joined to Shettleston and Tollcross, it’s not a suburb in the way that Bearsden is a Suburb or Burnside is a suburb.

In reality it’s about 5-10 extra minutes to get to the city centre from Hamilton so not sure how much of a selling point that is.

For teenagers Hamilton has a lot more to do, lots of restaurants, cinema, parks and activities there that Cambuslang doesn’t have.

Your selling point for Cambuslang seems to be that it’s easy to get elsewhere from it, which is fine when you’re an adult and you don’t need to live in the place, but children/teenagers do.

Cambuslang does have a lot going for it, but in terms of wealth, amenities and lifestyle you really can’t compare It favourably with Hamilton, it doesn’t even have a decent pub or restaurant.

I agree, there isn't anything in Cambuslang which is why I mentioned all the places nearby and said Hamilton is more self contained.