[4] Bitterne is not mentioned in the Domesday Book but first appears in a late 11th century entry in the Bishop of Winchester's register as Byterne.

[5] Although this new junction on an important communications route would eventually stimulate the growth of Bitterne Village, an account of 1826 mentions only the estate houses and not any hamlet or collection of cottages.

During the 1950s, Bitterne underwent extensive renovation, with the destruction of Victorian cottage housing areas to be replaced with flats and estates on the old farm land.

During the 1980s, work was carried out to bypass the bottleneck of the main high street by looping the A3024 from the top of Lances Hill eastwards through some of the poorer housing to a new junction with the Hedge End road and demolishing the old post office and United Reformed Church.

[1] As of May 2021, the three councillors representing the ward are Terry Streets, Elliot Prior and Matthew Magee (Conservatives).

As with many city suburbs the boundaries of Bitterne itself are not well defined; however the ward (which includes neighbouring Thornhill) comprises an area of 2.47 square kilometres (0.95 sq mi).

[1] The area is entirely suburban in nature, and located 3.5 kilometres (2.2 mi) northeast of the Bargate in Southampton City Centre.

Bitterne also had the highest proportion of the population affected by a long-term health problem or disability that limits day-to-day activities.

In addition to the permanent stores in the shopping precinct, Bitterne hosts a weekly street market, which was approved by the city council in 2009 following a successful pilot which began in October 2008.

[13] There is an active local history society[14] which has published a number of books and runs a charity shop and museum on Peartree Avenue.

As a result, Bitterne is well served by a number of bus routes with operators including Bluestar and Xelabus.

As well as the sixth form at Bitterne Park School, the nearby Itchen College offers a range of further education courses.

Primary School Secondary School/Sixth Form College Bitterne's parish church is dedicated to the Holy Saviour and its spire is a local landmark.

The Christ the King Roman Catholic Church is another local landmark on the main A3024 road, located between the health centre and library.