how bad is west side of Hither Green train station?

[UrbanFamily]

We've got our heart set on a house in Hither Green on lovely street just 2-3 mins SW from Hither Green train station. And close to outstanding schools!

Then I did check out police.uk and I feel depressed by how much crime is going on there!

While we can mitigate against burglary, we can't mitigate against violent crime. But there's so much picture www.police.uk can provide.

I'd love to hear from the locals about how many creepy people they come across, or if there's such a person who's never experienced trouble in the area. The map statistics looks pretty grim, although it's better when narrowing down to area we are likely to roam.

Do youths/gangs roam the area further inward Hither Green from Lewisham/Catford?

[Jaffa123]

I live in Hither Green and haven't (yet!) experienced any crime or witnessed any anti social behaviour like gangs roaming the area etc. I have been living in HG since Sept 2011 and feel very safe. To be honest that police UK and some other websites have heavily criticised as they always show up every crime not only serious ones so i personally find them unreliable.

[UrbanFamily]

My friend loves living in Lee (around the Manor Lane) and feels safe there. But she did advise against living on other side of HG rail.

That's why I wanted to know how much more trouble the 'left' side experiences from Hither Green Lane, as the 'right' side is cut off. I wish there weren't so many run down and boarded up shops on the Springbank Road - why are better businesses not moving in??? So much potential in the area!

[Jaffa123]

Wish I could be of more help to you. I live on the Lee side so generally very happy here. To be honest I have only been to the other side of Hither Green a few times to visit the wonderful cafe of good hope. Yes it's a shame about the boarded shops but like you says there is potential there. When we were looking prices for houses were always slightly cheaper than the Lee side but from what I've seen recently the gap isnt that wide now! Must say a lot about the area I think?

[UrbanFamily]

Thanks Jaffa123, I love the Lee area too! But no schools - can't afford Colfe for 3 children :(((

[DancingLady]

We live on the west side. It's fine - no gangs and no kids causing trouble, much quieter than when we lived in Honor Oak. You do see people drinking on the street at 9am, though - there's a drug/alcohol rehabilitation centre in the area, and that may skew the police.uk statistics. Touch wood, we've never had any trouble. Yes of course Lee is very nice - if you have an extra £150,000 to pay for a house. West side of HG has great cafe - Cafe of Good Hope, brilliant children's shop, Cissy Wears, Brindishe school, HG cinema club, and you're just a 15 minute stroll from Manor House Gardens.

[Mummyandmakeup]

Hiya Urbanfamily, We've lived on the west side of Hither Green for nearly 5 years now. Before that I had lived in Muswell Hill all of my life, and my husband grew up in Surrey. We were both warned off the idea of buying in 'scary' South London, particularly Lewisham area. We currently live just off HG Lane, my road is super quiet on most days, on the not so quiet days its because my neighbours and I are having a good old natter over the garden fence about current affairs. I've had a great time living, bringing up my daughter and starting a business here and (so far) not experienced any crime. Even during the London riots we were totally unaware it was occurring in nearby Lewisham until we watched the news!! I guess the gangs fight amongst themselves as I've never seen anything suspicious?? Our Daughter goes to Brindishe Green School which is ofsted 'outstanding' and the local parks are clean and safe, been using them since my daughter was 3 she's nearly 8 now. In regards to the boarded shops I can understand your concerns there but the reason for this is merely down to business taxes being extortionate in the Lewisham area. I'm currently trying to set up shop in Lewisham but Business taxes might prevent this and I may have to head further into Greenwich or East London to set up shop But as Dancinglady and jaffa123 mentioned Cafe of Good Hope and Cissy Wears are great local West HG shops.

Every part of London has its share of crime, I've been mugged in West End and Bromley so you always have to have your wits about you where ever you are but I wouldn't say HG was any less safer than living in Lee. I hope thats helpful. x

[Bartdudette]

Hi UrbanFamily. Just to add my two cents worth I've lived the west side of Hither Green station for 3 years now and I couldn't recommend it highly enough. It has a great park, quiet residential streets, and the fab cafe and shops the previous posters have mentioned. The nurseries are rated outstanding and there are a lot of community events that centre round the church and park.

I used to work for the police and know that Police.uk distorts a lot of the data that gets published. Violent crime can be anything from someone making threats, or a neighbour dispute, all the way up to GBH. The website doesn't provide the context which helps to represent the true picture of what is going on. I've grown up in a quaint Kent village and I've seen more crime there than I have being a resident in HG!

[glorious]

We live on on the west side and it's absolutely fine. Looks a bit scruffier and you do see the odd odd person begging or drinking but there's never any trouble. The transport links are better here than the east side, heaps of buses.The better shops are on hither green lane and the cafe of good hope is brilliant.

While I'm here I'll make a shameless plug for the new Hither Green and Ladywell local group. Meet ups in the offing if people are interested once we have some members . local.mumsnet.com/lewisham/group-meet-ups/hither-green

[UrbanFamily]

Dear Ladies, I've not seen your messages until just now! Thank you for pitching in!

Well, too late now - we got a home in HG now and we will move in soon. Really excited, I've a good feeling we're going to have great time :)

Mummyandmakeup - We live in North London as well and have been warned off the scary (and deadly boring) SE London :) Interesting insight on business taxes - I've suspected it must be tough for businesses to move into this area for some reason, I'm disappointed that Lewisham sounds like it's not in financial position(?) to drop high taxes? Interested to know what can be done about this problem.

Bartdudette - yes there's a word - context! I suspect nice areas can look worse because locals are more quick to report troubles compared to say, under-reporting rough areas. I wish website explained more what counted as violent crime though.

[glorious]

Yay how exciting! Let us know if you want any tips on places to go etc

[Jaffa123]

Fabulous! Great news UrbanFamily

[missonini]

Hi there ! I came across this conversation whilst looking for advice on HG as I am considering moving there. Nearly a couple years down the line would you say the area has improved? Thanks! :)

[LAGray14]

We moved to the west side of HG last May and are delighted we did so. The houses are spacious, the roads quiet and the people v friendly. We've noticed a difference even in the few months we've been here and our friends in the area say it's improved greatly in the past couple of years. The active community association gives me hope that things will keep improving.

[CollieMad]

It's fine on the west side! Yes there are occasional annoyances, but nothing too bad. Just wanted to say there is a new shop opening on Springbank this week (Springbank Fish and Chips: fish and chips, kebabs and chicken). Ok, so that may not be your thang, but it will come in handy from time to time when you crave a quick fish supper!)They say they are doing a half price promotion on their opening day January 30th.

Also, Mountsfield Park will be brilliant for children when the new children's area is open. (Currently under construction) Plus it has a new community garden which will be wonderful when it has matured a bit.. it's brand new and volunteers are always welcomed, I believe.) Springbank has its own tiny community garden too. Forster Park is within striklng distance, and if you MUST cross the railway, there is tiny little Manor Park with the Quaggy running at one corner and Manor House Gardens with even more to offer.

Good transport rail and bus over here, quiet area, nice big old houses.. Cafe of Good Hope, small electrical repars shop on Springbank, Osbornes which will fix almost anything you can think of.. Decent Co-op and Tesco convenience. What's not to like? :-)

[Sherbie1]

I love it here on the 'west side'. Lovely houses and a great mum and baby community.

[HitherH33]

Stumbled upon this thread when we were looking to move to the area. Can confirm now we are here that it’s absolutely wonderful, seems very safe, quiet and any previous concerns regarding safety are long out of date. Some of the roads closest to the station are particularly nice. The upcoming station development will also be excellent.