What it's like to live in Bodmin

Housing in Cornwall is mostly owner-occupied at 66.2%, with 19.7% private rented and 12.8% social rented - below the England average of 17.1%. That makes social tenancies here worth holding on to.

Average weekly social rents in the Cornwall area for 2024/25 were £82 for a one bed, £94 for two and £106 for three, though your own rent depends on your landlord and property.

The main social landlords are Cornwall Council, LiveWest, Coastline Housing, Ocean Housing and Westward Housing Group. At the end of March 2025 there were 23,731 households on Cornwall's housing register; it is not a straight queue, and mutual exchange is a separate route that does not depend on it.

There is a good cluster of primary schools close in: St Petroc's C of E Primary is about a third of a mile away, with Beacon Academy and Beacon Nursery, North Cornwall Academy and St Mary's Catholic Primary all under a mile. Worth checking catchments and places before you commit to a swap.

For days out with children, Lanhydrock and the Priory Duck Pond are both a few minutes from the centre, with Pendower Meadow, Berryfields park and Fair Park also close. Bodmin Library is about a mile away.

Across the wider Cornwall area under-16s make up 16.3% of the population, a little below the England average, and over-65s 25.3%, so this is an older county overall.

Bodmin is easy enough on foot if you live near the middle. Shops, the Moot, the cinema and the bus stops at Mount Folly are all clustered within a few hundred metres of each other.

Buses use Mount Folly and The Shire House in the centre, which is the main hub for getting around town and out to the rest of Cornwall. For mainline trains you want Bodmin Parkway, about three miles out, so you will need a bus, a lift or a car to reach it. Bodmin General and Colesloggett Halt are the heritage railway rather than a commuter link.

A car makes the moor, the coast and out-of-town jobs far simpler, but plenty of daily life here can be done without one.

The Capitol Cinema is right in the centre, which is rare for a town this size and saves a trek. Pubs and bars are well represented too, with The Weavers, Hole In The Wall, The White Hart Inn, Rhubarb @ No.4 and Pots all within a couple of hundred metres.

If you like being active, there are several gyms in and around the centre, including Snap Fitness Bodmin and Cornwall Athletic Development.

Community life has real anchors here: St Petroc's Parish Centre, Bodmin Moot, The Ark, The Old Library and Kinsman Community Hub all run within walking distance of the middle of town. Add the parks and the moor beyond, and free days out are not hard to find.

Across the Cornwall council area, 53.3% of adults are in work, below the England figure of 57.4%, while unemployment is lower at 2.6% against 3.5%. In August 2026, 3% of 16- to 64-year-olds claimed unemployment-related benefits, compared with 4% nationally.

Cornwall's economy leans on seasonal and tourism-linked work, so hours can vary through the year. Bodmin's inland, central position is a practical advantage: health services, shops and schools in town are local employers, and the A30 corridor and Bodmin Parkway open up work further afield if you drive or commute.

Check travel times carefully before accepting a swap if your job is fixed elsewhere.