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Bramcote seemed the ideal choice. To work in the city centre,
the notorious Trent Bridge rush-hour traffic could be avoided and, at the weekends,
visits to parents in Cheshire would make the journey easy. This was 1958.
The house was two years old and the estate far from complete.
The roads, without pavements, had numerous potholes and ownerdrivers were
easily distinguishable from those with company cars. Thoresby Road, in its primitive
state, ended at the top of the hill, with rabbits numerous and skylarks prevalent.
Disappearing into the distance towards Wollaton, weathering left rivulets and
a number of large trees grew where nowadays cars speed past the golf course
and over the city boundary. The Derby Road (A52) was single carriageway and
able to cope with demand. Gardens were planned and boundaries stark with concrete
posts.
Housewives had food delivered by several suppliers: a coach
stocked with fruit and vegetables, a Co-operative Society butcher, a grocer
from Beeston who delivered a weekly order, solid fuel and so on, but the source
for an extensive range of goods (from shoe-laces to paraffin - 'you name it,
they've got it,o open-all-hours') was the long-established shop of Mr &
Mrs Eatch in old Bramcote. For some time a Co-op store was available at the
comer of Sandringham Drive and Bankfield Drive and at its closure the Community
Association attempted to take it over, but this was unsuccessful. On the opposite
comer, after some controversy, the Rose Grower was built and the concern of
noisy behaviour never materialised. The four shops on Seven Oaks Crescent have
remained viable in spite of changing businesses and, understandably, the post
office became another focus of village life.
The primary school (Headmaster Mr Wing) was planned to develop
a junior department, but for some time the older children went to Beeston Fields
School and then elsewhere.
As the Bramcote Hills community grew, the activities of the
Association mirrored its interests. Some, such as the camera club, have faded,
others are still viable and their activities are dealt with elsewhere.
A career that was essentially city-oriented may be summed
up as:
(1) If one has to live in a city, Nottingham is an excellent choice (even for
an outsider)
(2) Bramcote is an excellent part of that city. |
