please help

sanya1995

hi guys
i wanted some help. we live in bristol and my husband has got a job offer from cardiff we are very confused as we should shift to cardiff or stay in bristol.the reason being our children go to descent schools in bristol we have our own property to live.
No ideas about life in cardiff?
schools ? houses ? language
will it be difficult for us to shift back to england as my husband s job is only for 3-4 yrs

my children go to secondary schools will it be difficult for them to get admission to england universities?
thanks for the advice in advance

please no offence to any one we really dont know any thing about life in wales cardiff

full-time-mum

Tricky one. I can't comment on Cardiff although I have friends who are very happy there. The biggest issue for me would be the children at secondary school. I don't think that schools & houses will be anymore of a problem than any other city and I don't think that the language will be a barrier. Personally, I like Cardiff as a city.

You are going to have to weigh up between the commute and moving the children from school - their age and when they will do exams will probably be the biggest thing to consider.

I can't imagine there are any issues with English universities although it is a long time since I went (pre- Welsh Assembly/Scottish Parliment).

If you decide to move, you could keep you house in Bristol and rent it out and rent in Cardiff.

sanya1995

thanks thats a good point that we can keep the house or rent out the house in bristol and then take it from there
thanks any more views about cardiff living .................

ALWAYS_POOR

It's brill, love it. Everyone speaks English, ALL THE TIME!

mountainofdebt

I think alot depends on where you currently live and where in Cardiff your OH will be working.

Remember if he does commute, then not only will you have to factor in things like petrol, time travelling etc but the bridge tolls - currently £5+ - every day.

I must admit I found travelling to Bristol from Cardiff, after a while, very hard especially in during the dark nights of winter and I was travelling on a train! I recently had to do it again (this time driving) for only a week and it took me a while to recover.

I can't comment on the schools in Cardiff but like anywhere you need to do your homework (no pun intended!) regarding catchment areas etc.

To be honest living in Cardiff is like living in any other city in the UK - and there are advantages to living in Wales - like free prescriptions for one!

sanya1995

thanks guys a good point free prescription.......
any other views my oh is gng to work in cardiff
any good areas to buy houses and live how s the traffic compared to bristol as bristol is v v busy in rush hours.

commuting is not our first choice

Jorgan_2

The M4 can be bad between Cardiff & Newport, some of it is still only two lanes (they are widening some of the Cardiff stretch now) and rush hour can be a standstill. I commuted from Port Talbot to Reading for six months & found it pretty easy, but I was on the road before & after everyone else.

You need to come down & research the areas you are thinking of living in, we came down every 3rd weekend for about 6-7 months before deciding on an area.

wriggly

For a family house in a good area, you're best looking north of the A48 (Radyr, Whitchurch, Heath, Llanishen), unless you're a fan of Victorian terraces, in which case Canton and Roath are good locations south of the A48.

Although I don't have children of this age, I believe Cardiff, Llandaff and Radyr High Schools are the desirable catchment areas.

However, given the upheaval of moving house and your kids changing school, personally I would probably commute.

TJ27

Cardiff is an absolutely brilliant place. Then again Bristol is great too.

Language will definitely not be a problem. Welsh is spoken in Cardiff but English is far more common (Unless you're in Pontcanna )

I'd go with the renting idea myself. It makes it easier to return. Why pay 2 lots of stamp duty and other moving costs twice in 3 years when there's no need?

The rush hour in Cardiff is not as bad as in Bristol but is still busy. Personally I use my bike and it's extremely easy. If you get a house near the Taff Trail it's an extremely easy, traffic free and pleasant ride into town. You can do it within 20 minutes, even from the Northern limit of the city.

The secondary schools to the North of Cardiff are all good. Cardiff High, Llanishen, Radyr and Whitchurch are all fine. To the East and West you perhaps need to be a little more selective.

reggie

We moved to Cardiff a year ago - one of the children was in middle of secondary, other in last year of primary. One year later I can say the children are doing brilliantly, one settled straight away, other found joining primary school in last year harder - but now they all love their schools, made good friends and seem generally happier than where we were previously. Schools mentioned before - Radyr, Bishop of Llandaff, Whitchurch - all good. We live in village to the nw of Cardiff, near Radyr, and it's good to have the best of both worlds - village life but only 20 mins away from the city. It is hard relocating, but for 6 months my husband commuted and that was worse - we rented and that was one less thing to worry about. I think it's an individual decision - we were forced into it really, but it's worked for us. Good Luck.

sanya1995

thanks guys for these lovely ideas and views.
if we like the place we might extend our stay till my daughter finish her A levels.
Other most important thing is my daughter is really bored of her school as she finds it very hectic in bristol.As we only shifted to bristol 3yrs ago and its a very very crowded place
any more suggestions will be appreciated
thanks guys