Avonmouth guidebook

Avonmouth may be dominated by the docks and by its large industrial areas but between the M5 motorway and the industrial zone there is a well-established, sizeable residential area.

These were houses built mainly for people employed in the port or the local heavy industry, but in recent years Avonmouth's position next to the motorway has made it attractive to people commuting into Bristol.

It has become especially popular with first-time buyers because of its increasing number of converted flats, and you can buy good-sized period homes here for a lot less than most parts of the city.

Avonmouth Rugby Football Club, which is over 100 years old, plays in the shadow of the M5 on Barracks Lane.  There is also a hockey club, and the Robin Cousins Sports Centre.

There is a local train station at Avonmouth with services that run though Bristol to the main Temple Meads Station.

Surrounding Areas

1. Lawrence Weston

On the other side of the motorway is Lawrence Weston, a housing estate of low-rise blocks of flats, and terraced and semi-detached houses, mainly built in the 1940s and '50s, most of which are now privately owned.

Prices here are also below the Bristol average, despite Lawrence Weston's proximity to some of the West Country's most affluent areas, such as Coombe Dingle, Westbury on Trym, Sneyd Park and Stoke Bishop.

With such affordable prices and proximity to main roads it is inevitable that Lawrence Weston is especially popular with young working people, first-time buyers and families.

It is also a favourite with retired folk, and there is a large retirement home in Broadlands Drive comprising 55 properties to rent, with communal facilities.

2. Shirehampton

Shirehampton, further down the A4 and close to Sea Mills, is more of a traditional town with a proper high street.

Shopping is relatively limited, but it does have some useful local facilities including a butcher, newsagent, solicitors', day nursery, hairdresser, optician and a small supermarket.

There are lots of fine open spaces, and Shirehampton is in an excellent location with good road and rail links, yet it still offers extremely attractive house prices.

Housing stock is very varied, including some handsome Edwardian and Victorian properties, particularly around the High Street area, and many homes dating from the 1920s and '30s when it became an overspill area for Bristol.

Some of its oldest, grandest buildings have been converted into flats, such as Grade II Listed Penlea House and Twyford House. 

Purpose-built flats have been built on the site of one of Shirehampton's most prominent buildings, the former Savoy cinema and bingo hall in Station Road.

There is a thriving social scene in Shirehampton, with an art club, a choir, an acting group and numerous other community activities and organisations. 

There are also several pubs, such as The Lifeboat and The George Inn, and restaurants include the Maharajas and Ali Mahal on Station Road.