Apologies, I haven't been back to this thread in a few days. Thank you so much for your helpful posts Bike Writer, ChicagoGal and Smurfalicious.

We've had snow, ice and stinking colds for the last week so I'm going back to the bike shop on Tuesday, when the girl salesperson will be in, who suggested looking at non-wsd frames. I've had a look at the bikes she suggested, and am quite taken with this one and this one and possibly this one. On the Giant side, I love the Revel 0 but it's a little bit out of budget, so the Revel 1 could be a possibility.

The owner of the bike shop does his own fits, and I'm happy to trust his judgement. I'm more than happy to stick to rim brakes too for this bike if need be, I think they are fine for my level of riding.

It's all very exciting! My toddler has started her settling sessions at nursery, which means I'll have a morning a week available for riding from the New Year, and four mornings a week from Easter (I have to take one out for shopping and housework). YAY!