South East London?

[Skimummy]

So we are in the process of looking to move from our 2 bed apartment to a house with garden (isn't everyone?!). We started off looking in Greenwich, which is nice but property is hard to come by lately and what you get for what you pay is not brilliant. So we are now looking more around South East London and considering somewhere like Brockley - Zone 2 and on the East London Line, which is ideal for our commutes to the City and Canary Wharf. There are some fantastic houses in the area (especially around Telegraph Hill) and we went on a small visit yesterday and it seemed lovely.

Anyway, I have probably out-researched and am now getting concerned about schooling, crime, safety etc etc. Is Brockley a bad idea? Would we be better off looking further out along the ELL in, say, Forest Hill or Honor Oak Park?

I should say, we currently live in East London so not adverse to an area other people consider 'undesirable' but we are in a very 'nice' part.

I would really appreciate any - honest - advice!

[BoBoo]

I really like Brockley - it's got some nice places to eat and a few nice bars. I know Forest Hill has a super-active NCT so there are loads of families round there and would be very easy to meet other mums. They're not all that far from each other, Brockley pretty much runs right into Honor Oak Park. Why don't you draw a search area on Rightmove that covers them all and then just see what houses come up within your budget and then you can also see from the property maps what schools are near.

[Skimummy]

Thanks BoBoo!

I have been very active on Rightmove lately!! I think we are going to view a few places next weekend and then we might venture further along into Honor Oak Park and Forest Hill as well. I am really keen to find somewhere with a bit of a 'community' feel, which those places seem to have.

Ideally we would love somewhere that had some nice cafes and independent shops but we may be living in a dreamland!

Thanks again!

[BoBoo]

I think all three have those to a certain extent although the usefulness of the facilities probably varies. And some very child friendly places - Brockley Mess, The Orchard, the Honor Oak. The Horniman museum is right in Forest Hill.

I suppose it kind of depends how old your kids are, what you want for them and what you want for yourselves. I have friends who are totally hung up on schools and have moved areas more or less on that basis, but I've always wanted somewhere with a little bit of life to it as well otherwise what's the point of being in London?

[nbazz]

I agree with BoBoo, Brockley is a lovely area and certainly good if you have young kids. There are lots of young families in the area and some good schools. Private nursery places are in short supply and while there are two very good secondary schools in the area, places are hard to come by.

In the last two years since we moved here, a lot of new places have cropped up - all indepdendent, including Brockley Mess and The Orchard, as mentioned, but also The Talbot, Browns of Brockley, The Broca, El's Kitchen. The parks are lovely and there's a great new playground. Crime is just like anywhere in centralish London I suppose. Not experienced any myself.

The sense of community is really strong - Brockley MAX festival, Open Studio events and loads of fetes, markets and other community-run things throughout the year. All the planting by the station was done by local groups.

The East London Line is amazing and I recommend you read Brockley Central to get a sense of the area - it's got loads of information and chat and I've found it really useful since I arrived.

brockleycentral.blogspot.com

[CornishKK]

Have you seen this thread?

I live in Honor Oak and would highly recommend it, it's very green and definitely has a community feel. I've lived in Canary Wharf, Angel, Clapham etc and am much happier in HOP.

You could have a look at this site for Forest Hill chat - SE23.com

[Stokey38]

Hello, we moved last year from Stoke Newington to Forest Hill and really like it. Moved for same reasons as you, really wanted a house and could afford nothing more than a two bedroom place north of the river. Great schools, Horniman and ELL is brilliant and apparantley will be linking up to Highbury by end of February. On the downside it's not as 'buzzy' as somewhere like Stoke Newington and lacks shops and bars but East Dulwich is nearby and also easy enough to get to places like Shoreditch. Great for young children and as far as crime goes am sure it's pretty similar to most other parts of London. Sense of community is great, in fact more so than anywhere else I have lived in London (have been here for nearly 20 years now). Honor Oak also nice and there seems to be new shops and cafes opening in FH so hopefully things on the up.

[Skimummy]

Thanks all - brilliant feedback and much appreciated!

nbazz - thanks for the Brockley Central link. I think that will occupy some of my time today...also good to hear about nursery and schools. My DD is 2.5 so not too worried about secondary school yet! Love the sound of all the community events and we had a lovely lunch in the Hill Station on Saturday which I would happily do every weekend!!

Thanks also CornishKK and Stokey38 for Forest Hill advice. I have heard great things about the Horniman and will definitely look around there as well.

Not too concerned about things being buzzy but really after somewhere where we can go to the park on the weekend, have a nice lunch and do short trips (say, Dulwich) for a bit of shopping. Sounds like we might be looking in the right place. Meeting some like-minded families would be a huge bonus.

Very excited about all this. I was concerned people were going to come back and say "avoid" and my dreams of a lovely house would be shattered!!

[Limelight]

Not quite on your list but have you thought about Hither Green? We moved here from Greenwich 7 years ago and have never regretted it. Fab transport links, great facilities (except for a lack of pubs), very near to Blackheath, very family friendly, great community, really interesting housing choices. It's a lovely place.

Limelight x

Ps I love Brockley too though!

[lindsell]

Brockley/telegraph hill are lovely, hilly fields and telegraph hill park's are great, increasing number of cafes etc, ELL is great for transport also Nunhead station (edge of telegraph hilll) has thameslink trains to blackfriars/farringdon/kings cross and trains to victoria. Crofton Park is also on the same line and houses tend to be cheaper crofton park/honor oak end than in brockley. Great community feel with plenty of arts stuff (eg Brockley max and telegraph hill festivals) and lots of lovely mums around and activities for babies/young children - def would recommend area

PM me if you want for more local info - will be outing myself if put too
much detail here

[taffetacat]

We lived in Blackheath pre DC but its a bit expensive. If we hadn't moved further out, I would have considered:

• Brockley
  
• Hither Green
  
• Lee
  
• Dulwich ( but again v expensive )

[PlentyOfParsnips]

SE18 is very cheap, green and hilly. Transport is not marvellous but we now have DLR and are getting crossrail. You can get a 3 bed house with off-street parking for less than £200k.

[nbazz]

@Skimummy a pleasure, good luck, whatever you choose to do.

[Skimummy]

Thanks again everyone - really helpful. Now if I can just get some viewings organised...

lindsell thanks for the PM offer - I may just do that if we progress further!

[nbazz]

By the way, I agree that Hither Green is another option worth thinking about. Lots of young families around there and a nice little park and some nice streets, although not much to do unless you want to walk to Blackheath (which is a bit of a trek).