World heritage city of Bath beckons Londoners

Rebecca and Colin Wagstaffe were facing the kind of challenge growing London families know only too well: their cramped four-bedroom Victorian house in Muswell Hill had been extended as much as humanly possible, but with three children - Eve, 10, Madeleine, eight, and Cassius, four - it was still too small.

Buying a larger home was out of the question, and they were nervously anticipating the vicious north-London fight for secondary school places in years to come. So when her sister said she was considering leaving London, Rebecca was tempted to do the same. The beautiful world heritage city of Bath began to beckon.

"It was gut instinct. It just ticked all the boxes: good schools, great property, culture, shopping," says Rebecca. "Bath really does have everything."

'For commuters the peaceable suburb of Widcombe, just south-east of the city centre, is perfect'

Last summer the couple sold their London home for £900,000 and moved into a rented house in Bath while they looked around. They are now buying a stunning Georgian five storey townhouse with six bedrooms, which will cost about the same as their London home.

"It is amazing," says Rebecca, 40, a marketing consultant. "The house is fabulous, and we've swapped a 40ft garden for a 200ft garden. We say we are moving into Downton Abbey."

She travels to London twice a week for work while Colin, 43, a marketing director, works in London and breaks up the daily commute with a couple of nights with friends and family. Trains to London Paddington take less than 90 minutes and an annual season ticket costs from £6,876.

The family have only been in Bath for six months but they are in love. Rebecca has taken up running, a great if exhausting way to get to know the hilly city. Daughter Eve plays for Bath City Football Club, and all the children play hockey. "It is not like London where there is a waiting list for every club," says Rebecca.

On fine days the family might go out for breakfast and stroll the towpath of the Kennet and Avon Canal, and explore lovely local villages such as Lacock. Rebecca made friends at the school gates, and now has jogging partners.

And Bath comfortably passes the coffee shop test - the café at the Holburne Museum is a favourite - while at night, Bar Opium and The New Inn at Freshford are happy haunts.

Properties for sale in Bath.

Think of Bath and you immediately think of its exquisite Georgian architecture in biscuit-coloured stone. Luke Brady, associate director of Savills, says you could live the townhouse dream with a three-bedroom home in the city centre from about £650,000, or opt for a lovely two-bedroom flat for about £350,000.

For the city's most famous addresses think seven figures: a house in The Circus costs at least £3 million and homes in the magnificent sweep of the Royal Crescent cost £5 million.

For commuters the peaceable suburb of Widcombe, just south-east of the city centre, is perfect. There are classic Georgian terraces like Widcombe Crescent, as well as plenty of Victorian stock, and you could pick up a handsome family house from £500,000 to £700,000.

Larkhall is a smart choice if you are looking for value for money and want to avoid city-centre bustle, at a mile from the heart of town - but it has a busy high street. A three-bedroom Victorian house there costs about £350,000.

Bath is a historic city but also the focus for a £400 million regeneration scheme on a derelict stretch of land beside the River Avon. The first phase of Western Riverside is by Crest Nicholson and was launched last month, with traditional-style townhouses priced from £550,000 for three bedrooms. Later phases include apartments, priced from £150,000 for a studio to £399,000 and upwards for a two-bedroom penthouse (www.bathriverside.co.uk).

Ultimately, in the next 12 to 15 years, there will be some 2,200 homes on the 44-acre site, and plans include two public parks, a primary school, and cafés and restaurants.

Schools

Schools are a major reason to live in Bath. St Stephen's, St Mary's and Bathampton primary schools are all rated outstanding by Ofsted, as are Hayesfield School Technical College (girls) and Beechen Cliff School (boys) for seniors, and there are no schools parents would actively avoid.