St Andrews, Bristol

St Andrew's is a suburb of Bristol situated about 3 km (1.8 miles) north of the city centre. The area was developed in the late 19th century as St Andrew's Park Estate, and consists mostly of large Victorian villas, with some inter-war housing and some minor rebuilding in Cromwell Road and Belvoir Road following enemy action in World War II.

The area is roughly bounded by the Severn Beach Railway Line, Gloucester Road, Somerville Road and Cromwell Road; however the boundary is debatable: according to the Ordnance Survey map this area is Montpelier, whereas according to the National Gazetteer of 1868, Montpelier is a hamlet within the Parish of St Andrew's. St Andrew's Church, which gave the area its name, was in St Andrew's Road, Montpelier. The church was demolished in 1969.

The David Thomas Memorial church was erected 1879–1881 and demolished in 1987, destroying most of a Gothic fantasy by Stuart Colman. The building still retains a thin octagonal spire and west front but the massive halls, apse and rib vaults have now gone in favour of flats by Stride Treglown.

In the mid 20th century, the area became unfashionable and many of the houses were converted to multiple occupation. However, during the 1990s, the area became fashionable again and consequently many houses are now being converted back into family homes.

St Andrew's is well served by public transport, with frequent buses to all parts of the city from Gloucester Road, buses to University of West England's Frenchay Campus and a local train service from Montpelier to Bristol Temple Meads, Clifton and Avonmouth on the Severn Beach Line.

St Andrew's Park

St Andrew's Park is at the heart of the area. The park was laid out in 1895, and is home to events such as 'Music in the Park' during the summer, and 'Carols in the Park' at Christmas. The park features a well-sized children's play area, permanent paddling pool (serviced and used only in the summer months) and public toilets (limited opening hours). Despite being located on a hilly incline, the park is well used for football and frisbee throughout the year. On 30 April 1941 a Wellington bomber on a night training flight crashed in the park after hitting barrage balloon cables. There is now a memorial to the crash in the park. A website has been created about the crash.