Home Report Pollokshields

Pollokshields is seen as an affluent and attractive suburban residential area of some 9,700 residents only about 3.5 miles from Glasgow city centre. It was initially developed as an upmarket residential area during the Victorian and Edwardian times. It has a feeling of being a suburb further away from the city with its attractive villas and wide, leafy streets, but is well within the city limits, so much so that travel to the city centre can be done in about 10 to 15 minutes.

This can be achieved with any of its three railway stations: Maxwell Park, Pollokshields East and Pollokshields West, all on the Cathcart Circle Line. The area is also served by Shields Road subway station on the Glasgow Subway, located in a non-residential area to the north, and by numerous bus routes. For road transport, the M77, M8 and, M74 motorways are all located near to Pollokshields, while the A77 road runs along the eastern edge of the area and the M77 forming part of the western edge of the area. There are numerous regular bus services to Glasgow and the local area. As you can see, transport links are well developed and easily accessible.

Pollokshields has an array of attractive housing stock because of its history and initial development as an upmarket Victorian and Edwardian residential area. Many well-known Glaswegian architects contributed to its development, and, among others, it contains villas by Alexander ‘Greek’ Thomson. There are several contributions by contemporaries of Charles Rennie Mackintosh including a series of good ‘Glasgow style’ tenements by the architect Harry Clifford. As far as architecture goes then, it is full of treasures. including Haggs Castle, formerly the city’s Children’s Museum and now a private residence, the 1892 Arts and Crafts house Ardtonish, the Art Nouveau Fotheringay Road tenements by H E Clifford and the 1903 Scots Baronial style Matheran, which in its many guises was a WWI hospital and a post-second world war Occupational Health College.

As for local amenities and things to do, residents can take advantage of all that Glasgow has to offer. This includes the city centre, Shawlands, and also the West End which is readily accessible via the Shields Road subway. However, Nithsdale road has a variety of independent businesses, cafes, and eateries for locals to enjoy on their doorstep.

In terms of local schooling, there are five primary schools. Pollokshields Primary, Glendale Primary and Glendale Gaelic School (on a shared campus), St. Albert’s Primary, the private Craigholme School for Girls. There are four secondary schools. Bellahouston Academy, Shawlands Academy, Craigholme School Secondary, and the private Hutchesons Grammar School.