Self Storage in Bath

Bath has some of the most expensive property in the UK — and that includes parking spaces. In a recent Telegraph article about property prices in Bath, the situation was expressed succinctly by Richard Bertinet, a French chef and baker living in the city: prospective property buyers, he said, “want a view, a garden and a parking space. But you can only ever have two. You have to compromise.” And a parking space in Bath can cost £30,000.

Historic gem

This situation is a by-product of Bath’s very special qualities. Cherished for its therapeutic hot springs since Roman times, Bath became the focus of high society’s summer social scene in the 18^th century. Money poured in to build fashionable neoclassical residences in creamy Bath stone, plus a mass of speculative rental accommodation — much of it high-rise and densely packed to match the press and excitement of the social whirl. This was the place to be and to be seen from about 1710 to 1830, and over this period the population leapt from 2,000 to 30,000, making it the eighth largest city in the UK by 1800.

Bath has retained its historic charms ever since. That is why the city was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. And that is why 3.5 million visitors come here on day trips every year, and another million stay overnight.

Add into the mix a selection of good schools, two universities, and a lively modern economy that includes IT and creative industries, and you get the property market of Bath today, with the highest average price for houses in the West Country, at about £295,000 (Bristol £208,000; national average £224,000).

Many of the most desirable, historic properties are also relatively small: the architects of Georgian Bath had not factored in the modern taste for consumer goods, and so storage space — like a parking space — comes at a high premium.

Self storage in Bath

A tight, high-value property market, and a general shortage of space: surely a case for self storage? Yes indeed, and the need is met by two companies: Pickfords Self Store, and Safestore. Both are located on, or close to, the Lower Bristol Road, to the west of the city centre.

Pickfords Self Store, at 34–35 Lower Bristol Road, is one of a set of four self storage facilities operated by this national removals companies. Pickfords has plenty of storage facilities dotted across the nation: but for the most part, these are designed for removals clients, and access to possessions is limited, and by arrangement. Pickfords Self Store centres, by contrast, offer self storage facilities to the general public and businesses, with access six days a week. All of the Pickfords Self Store centres are in similarly select locations: Bath, Edinburgh, Cambridge and York.

Safestore’s Bath facility is a little further to the west, in Bellotts Road, Twerton. Also open six days a week, it offers all the amenities one might expect of Safestore, the UK’s largest self storage company in terms of the number of sites.

For those prepared to look further afield, there are a number of other options within a radius of 12 miles or so from Bath. They include Alligator Self Storage in Bristol (8 miles to the northwest); Space Contained at Hullavington Airfield (11 miles to the northeast, near Chippenham); and Mendip Self Storage at Radstock (12 miles to the southwest).

To locate self storage in or around Bath, use the “Find Self Storage” tool on this website, or the “Looking for a particular self storage company?” facility on the Home Page.