Nice places to live in South East England with kids.

[PhenomeNOM]

I currently live in Islington (London) with my hubby and two daughters aged 3 and 7.
We live in a small 2 bed. flat without garden/balcony and want to extend our family. So, we want to move to a bigger house e.g. 3 bed.+ garden, unfortunately house prices in London are too expensive for our taste. My husband works in Fitzrovia (central London) and I work in Shepperton (outside London). We would like to live in a nice villages with a train station and good schools. Also, hubby and I don't mind commuting everyday. Our budget is £370,000 for a 3 bed and good sized garden. So, where would be best to live? Kent? Surrey? Berkshire? Sussex? Stay in London? Thanks for helping!

[Flingmoo]

Brighton will be too expensive for that budget but Eastbourne is nice and affordable. A bit of a long commute to London but I know plenty of people who do it. Some say it's dull here but I think it's lovely for families, you've got the sea, nice parks, and plenty of scenic spots locally. And Brighton is only a quick jaunt up the A27 if you want to go somewhere a bit more "cool" for the day...

We bought a brand new build 4 bed detached house with garden and garage here for £300k in January, it's good value.

I realise you said villages though. There are some nice villages around in East Sussex though which may be a little cheaper than West Sussex or neighbouring Kent. However you will find s lot of them no longer have train stations so maybe not so good for the commute...

[Croix]

Harpenden!

[cheapandcheerful]

We just bought a 3-bed semi in Brighton with a big garden that backs onto the downs... £280k

[Annietheacrobat]

How long would you be willing to spend commuting?

[Queazy]

Have you thought about Hersham or Walton on Thames? I don't live there myself but not far from Sheppeton and I think you'd find something there. Good train links too.

[CharlesRyder]

Taplow (for Crossrail). In catchment for Bucks grammar schools.

[livegoldrings]

Horsham is nice. A medium town, quite child friendly I think and the surrounding countryside is lovely.

[tigger42]

We currently live in small 2 bed flat in Chiswick, Chiswick is lovely but need to buy a house for about 550k in south/south east England in a town with good commute to London. Any recommendations please, place with amenities and activities so prefer a nice town. Is Haywards Heath boring?

[Takeitonthechin]

Wye.... lovely rural village