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Bristol Area Guide

The Bristol Office covers a wide area but is conveniently placed in the heart of fashionable Clifton Village. Described by John Betjeman as ‘the finest suburb in England’, Clifton plays host to delightful independent shops, galleries, boutiques and antique dealers.

As well as the advantage of a prosperous city, beautiful countryside srrounds Bristol. Favorite areas include villages in The Chew Valley, The Mendip Hills and South Gloucestershire.

Bristol is the home of:

• The Clifton Suspension Bridge
• The SS Great Britain
• Concorde

History of Bristol

Finding the new world
Bristol has a rich maritime heritage. By the 14th century the city was trading with countries such as Spain, Portugal and Iceland. Ships also left Bristol to found new colonies in the New World. John Cabot set sail in 1497 from Bristol, in his ship the Matthew, hoping to find a passage to the Eastern Indonesia.

Britain’s second city
By the mid 18th century, Bristol became England's second biggest city, as ships docked in this west country port to unload their cargoes of sugar cane, tobacco, rum and cocoa, all products of the slave trade, together with many other goods.

Brunel’s Bristol
As merchants relocated and built houses further away from the docks towards the end of that century, Clifton village grew. By the 19th century, the port was beginning to decline. However, the arrival of a new chief engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, helped to attract investment. Brunel did more than anyone to shape the face of modern Bristol. His legacy includes the Clifton Suspension Bridge, the SS Great Britain, and Temple Meads Old Railway Station

Spanish practices
Much of Bristol’s original architecture remains today, including the area around King Street, Queen Square, Christmas Steps and St Michael's Hill, as well as Clifton village. Many beautiful houses in these areas were built from the proceeds of Spanish shipping plundered off the coast of the Americas, mostly funded by Bristol merchants.

Airline heritage
The aerospace industry has thrived in the city since the Bristol Aeroplane Company was created at Filton in 1910. In the mid 1960s, Concorde was built and tested here and it is also the home of Rolls Royce.

Bristol today is a large commercial centre. Its harbourside renaissance began with the opening of the Arnolfini contemporary arts centre in the 1970s. In the 1980s harbourside regeneration continued with the opening of the Watershed, Britain's first media centre.

Places of Interest Country Parks Avon Valley Country Park, Pixash Lane, Bath Road, Keynsham, Bristol 0117 986 4929 Westonbirt Arboretum, Westonbirt, South Gloucestershire 01666 880220 Tyntsfield 0870 458 4500 Houses and Gardens The National Trust, Clevedon Court, Clevedon 01275 872257 Oldown Country Park, Old Down House, Tockington 01454 413605 The Georgian House, Great George Street, Bristol 0117 921 1362 Museums, Galleries and Heritage Sites The Architecture Centre, Narrow Quay, Bristol 0117 915 5000 Ashton Court Manor House, Long Ashton, Bristol 0117 963 9174 Bristol Cathedral, College Green, Bristol 0117 926 4879 Bristol Empire & Commonwealth, Temple Meads, Bristol 0117 925 4980 Clifton Observatory & Cave St. Vincents Cave, Litfield Place, Clifton 0117 974 1242 Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bridge House, Sion Place, Clifton 0117 974 4664 Royal West of England Art Academy 0117 973 5129 SS Great Britain, Great Western Dockyard, Bristol 0117 929 1843 St Mary Redcliffe Church, Redcliffe Way, Bristol 0117 929 1487 Zoos, Farms and Wildlife Parks Bristol Zoo Gardens, Clifton, Bristol 0117 973 8951 Horse World, Staunton Manor Farm, Staunton Lane 01275 540173 Longleat House & Safari Park, Longleat, Warminster 01985 844400 Noahs Ark Zoo Farm, Clevedon Road, Wraxall 01275 852606 Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, Slimbridge, South Gloucestershire 01453 891900

Getting to Bristol Roads The M4 and M5 meet at Bristol Rail Bristol is served by two mainline stations: Bristol Parkway and Bristol Temple Meads Operator: First Great Western www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk Bristol Parkway to London Paddington:1hr 22 mins Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington: 1hr 40 mins Air Bristol International Airport Served by British Airways and Servisair 0870 1212747 www.bristolairport.co.uk

Local authority Bristol City Council Council House, College Green, Bristol www.bristol-city.gov.uk 0117 922 2000 North Somerset Council 11 Rawlins Ave Weston-Super-Mare BS22 7FN 01934 514552 Mendip District Council 17 Stony St Frome BA11 1AB 01749 343399 South Gloucestershire Council Council Offices Castle St Thornbury Bristol BS35 1HF 01454 868686

Going Out The Albion Public House and Restaurant Boyces Avenue Clifton BS8 4AA 0117 973 3522 The Clifton Sausage Restaurant 7-9 Portland Street Clifton BS8 4JA 0117 970 6517 Thornbury Castle Hotel and Restaurant Castle Street Thornbury Bristol BS35 1HH 01454 281 182 Pony and Trap Public House and Restaurant Knowle Hill, Chew Magna Bristol BS40 8TQ 01275 332627 Bear and Swan Public House and Restaurant South Parade Chew Magna Bristol BS40 01275 331100

Schools in Bristol
Clifton College 32 College Road Clifton Bristol BS8 3JH Tel: 0117 3157 000	Queen Elizabeth's Hospital School Berkeley Place Clifton Bristol BS8 1JX Tel: 0117 930 3044	Badminton School Westbury-on-Trym Bristol BS9 3BA Tel: 0117 905 5200
Backwell School Backwell Bristol, BS48 3BX Tel: 01275 463371	Churchill Community School Churchill Green Churchill North Somerset BS25 5QN Tel: 01934 852771	Chew Stoke C of E VA Primary School School Lane Chew Stoke Bristol BS40 8UY Tel: 01275 332354
Wells Cathedral School Wells Somerset BA5 2ST Tel: 01749 834200	Marlwood School Vattingstone Lane Alveston Bristol BS35 3LA Tel: 01454 862525	Tockington Manor Washingpool Hill Rd Tockington Bristol BS32 4NY Tel: 01454 613229