About Nailsea...

Nailsea is located in North Somerset, just eight miles from the centre of Bristol, and boasts easy access to both the motorway and rail networks and Bristol International Airport.

As a result of its location, plus its proximity to Bristol, the town has become a desirable place to live with a growing population. Today the combined population of Nailsea and nearby Backwell is approximately 23,000.  With a population of over 70,000 people within 15 minutes or so drive, a thriving business community and excellent links to Bristol, one of Britain's leading cities, Nailsea is a 'good place to do business.....'

Nailsea’s charm is that whilst it has all the modern facilities families need, it has managed to retain its village atmosphere with independent traders and retailers providing quality of choice in a lively shopping centre.  With Tesco at one end of the High Street and Waitrose at the other, the town is well supplied with quality supermarkets.  

Traders and small businesses in the town are represented by Nailsea Chamber of Trade and Commerce.  Nailsea Chamber of Trade and Commerce is growing and attracting new members all the time. 

Nailsea has a long and proud history.  The presence of pennant sandstone in Nailsea, Portbury and many areas of Bristol gave rise to coal mining which flourished locally for some four hundred years. The seams, sandwiched between layers of stone up to thirty feet thick, sweep in a great arc from the North Street / Union Street area, run parallel to Silver Street and High Street, through Trendlewood and down to Backwell Common.

The earliest date for coal mining in Nailsea is 1507 when coal was being transported to fire the limekiln at Yatton. At this period the coal would only have been mined where it outcropped near the surface, but by the mid nineteenth century the Golden Valley Pit operated at a depth of six hundred and twenty feet. Whilst some seams were up to three feet six inches thick, others were only eighteen inches and barely viable. The last pit closed in 1882 in the face of competition from larger mines in South Wales and the North of England where the coal was easier and cheaper to extract. Due to the abundance of coal, the area became known as a substantial producer of glassware in the 18th and 19th centuries and gave its name to a particular type of coloured glass, highly sought after by collectors around the world.  Nailsea glass is justifiably famous!

Today, the glassworks have long gone, but the area still has a thriving local economy providing employment opportunities. In addition to the traditional rural occupations of agriculture and cider making, an increasing number of manufacturing and distribution businesses have relocated to the Nailsea environs. It is also an ideal base for touring and walking holidays, with several National Trust properties a short drive away, including Tyntesfield and Clevedon Court.

Nailsea is a thriving country town which nestles in beautiful North Somerset countryside, minutes from both the Bristol Channel and the Mendip Hills. Eight miles to the south of Bristol, Nailsea has good links to the M5, Bristol Airport and to the other towns and villages in North Somerset. Nailsea has a population of around 18,000 and is close to Clevedon and Portishead, both with populations of around 23,000 each.

The Town's pleasant shopping centre is one of the best in the district with a good range of shops and plenty of free car parking, making Nailsea a popular place to shop.  We have excellent primary and secondard schools, achieving outstanding results.  We generally have a well educated population, which provides an excellent talent pool for recruitment.  The town has several thriving industrial estates with a wide range of businesses.  The Town, as the district in general, has a large number of small, home based, businesses. 

Nailsea Town Council has worked closely with the Chamber of Trade and the Town Centre Company, owners of the precinct, over the years to campaign on Nailsea's behalf.  That partnership has helped to build a strong sense optimism for the future.  Nailsea is and will continue to be a good place to do business...

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To join Nailsea Chamber of Trade and Commerce click here.