Swindon (Hereford fan in peace)

[Don Rogers Shop]

Hi there,


Slight football club rivalry notwithstanding, I'm a Hereford fan thinking of moving to your fair town. Had a drive round Swindon yesterday, and some of it, if I'm honest, looked a bit northern.

Which bits of Swindon would you recommend (i.e. nice bits), and which bits are to be steered clear of? Ideally I'm looking for somewhere within walking distance of the station. In general, is Swindon a nice place to be, or would you move somewhere else if you could? I like that roundabout of yours, anyway.

Many thanks. Best wishes for the rest of the seaon.

Feel free to move in next door to to me

[Colin Todd]

Cheers all, I'll have a look at this more closely later, when I've got a map.


I'm moving as I'm starting a job in Gloucester, and my wife works in Reading. Swindon's in a good position, as she can get to Reading on t'train, and I'll be driving the opposite direction. She might have to get a bus to the station, by the looks of things!

sounds like the east or nothern suburbs would suit you- easy access to the A419 to Glosser

[yeo]

It really depends what sort of money you have to spend and what type of house you want.

Personally Id never live in West Swindon or St Andews Ridge or any of the soul less identikit newer housing estates that Swindon has to offer but thats just a personal preference

[herthab]

I used to live on Manchester Road. Close to the Train Station and late night entertainment....

[janaage]

What makes a housing estate "soul less"?  I lived in the town centre for about 5 years and other than my immediate next door neighbours I never really saw/spoke to anyone on my street.  Yet since I've lived in Ashbrake I know a lot of the people who live in my road, regularly go round my neighbours for drinks, loads of kids about to have a kick around after work when it's sunny.  Not sure I'd call it soul less.

[yeo]

I just dont like new houses and new housing estates,like I said its personal preference.Ill have to take your word for it that the people of Ash Brake are jolly smiling folk in and out of each others houses with Pots of Jam as ive never lived there.

I certainly dont invite my neighbours round for drinks but we speak across the fence and keep an eye on the pensioners next door and that sort of thing.

[herthab]

I used to keep an eyeon the pensioner who lived near me.

Then, when he went out, I broke in and nicked his radio and pension book.

[janaage]

I just dont like new houses and new housing estates,like I said its personal preference.Ill have to take your word for it that the people of Ash Brake are jolly smiling folk in and out of each others houses with Pots of Jam as ive never lived there.

I certainly dont invite my neighbours round for drinks but we speak across the fence and keep an eye on the pensioners next door and that sort of thing.

It's great for dogging round our way Yeovil!!

Seriously though, I was just interested, I never thought I'd move up to North Swindon when I lived in town, and to a certain extent it'd take quite abit for me to move to Abbey Meads or Oakhurst as I find them a big on the big side tbh.

[ronnie21]

You can get some really decent places in an area called "The Valley"

It's as lovely as it sounds boyo

Great transport network to the Station too (a lot of the people in that area work around the station)

:tits:

[Ardiles]

Had a drive round Swindon yesterday, and some of it, if I'm honest, looked a bit northern.

Interesting comment.  I actually heard it before from a Hartlepool fan in a pub up there before a game a few years back.  He thought Swindon was a 'northern town' down south as well, and you may have a point.  Swindon's growth really took off in the 1800s when Brunel sited his works in the town.  I would imagine that the vibe of the place would have been similar to the northern mill towns, which also drew in many thousands of workers at that time.

As the railway works floundered, many of the blue collar jobs have been replaced by white collar ones - but this switch, to my mind, is often overstated.  Employment levels are high but the town is still essentially blue collar (or working class, if you prefer the term).  So it's a comfortable place to live, but not flashy or extravagant.  You won't find much in the way of extreme poverty you might find in towns/cities of a similar size, but neither will you find many high end shops or expensive restaurants.  Swindon draws negative press these days not because it is in any way unusual, but because it's fairly mundane.

On the positive side, you are likely to find decent housing somewhere in the town at a price that is more affordable than you'll find in Bristol, Oxford or Reading.  If being near the station is key, I would agree with others that you should take a look at Old Town.  I lived there myself in the mid/late 1990s and loved the area.

Good luck with your search.

[axs]

Old Town is ace. Everywhere else near the station is cack.

Pretty much.

[pauld]

You might be best looking a little futher outside of the town for a nice area.  Although the Old Town area is within a 10 minute walk of the station and is nice, not bad bars, restaurants there either.

Old Town is indeed pleasant, but unfortunately prices reflect a premium as a result (or did last time the missus looked at properties there a few years back). And parking can be an absolute bugger in parts of Old Town - if you've got a car, make sure the place has a driveway or nearby garage

[Reg Smeeton]

 Depends how much dollar you have, but I know a few people who are need access to Swindon station for work, so have bought apartments, in the block in Sanford Street or in Paramount, and use these as  pieds a terre, and have weekend/holiday property in Herefordshire.

[Arnold.J.Rimmer]

Old Town is one of the nicer parts. What are those flats like over by the Outlet Village? or maybe somewhere between Old Town and the County Ground..Drove Road area. All 15/20 minutes walk from the station

[Spencer_White]

I just dont like new houses and new housing estates,like I said its personal preference.Ill have to take your word for it that the people of Ash Brake are jolly smiling folk in and out of each others houses with Pots of Jam as ive never lived there.

You just dont like the idea of walking further for the pubs.

Theres a cycle path/walkway that runs from the station up through the Hawkesworth industrial estate. Which means you get quite good access to the station from Rodbourne Cheney. Wouldnt particularly recommend the area though. I moved to Bassett and I like it better out here.

Id give a shout to Broome Manor area. Bit of an underrated area.

Swindon is really too big to have just one station. If it were in the south east it would have several.