Bloemfontein - Life and Work Options

My husband and I have been trying to decide where in SA we would like to live. We are now 99.9% sure that we want to be in Bloemfontein. We have family there but I would like to get other peoples' more objective opinions on the place.

I can't seem to find much on this or others blogs or forums. So it would be great to know if anyone on here lives in/lived in Bloemfontein.

The key things I'm interested in are:

1) Are there many expats living there (irrelevant of where they come from)?

2) What are the work opportunities like? I would be happy to do anything but my background is in HR, Employee Benefits, Pensions, Trustee secretarial work (I would consider starting my own business). Is fluent Afrikaans 'a must' for work?

3) Does anyone know of good churches there? I would prefer an English, modern(ish) church. I have conversational Afrikaans, but I am not confident enough to attend an Afrikaans church yet.

4) Is the city socially forward thinking? ie. Is it in anyway contemporary/cosmopolitan with things such as boutiques, health food shops, pilates & yoga class etc? I know its not Cape Town and part of the reason we want to go is that we hope it will have a more friendly local 'country' feel but some modern lifestyle options would be nice!

5) What would be considered the better neighbourhoods to live in?

6) Where is the best place in Bloem to run a client facing business which would allow for signage to be read by pedestrians/motorists, parking, and easy access from the main commercial hub.