Relocating to Surrey ( sutton/cheam, purley, south croydon in general )

[Yufnkc]

Hi all

I would really appreciate some insight into particular area i've mentioned. We currently live in Merton, Mitcham Eastfields with our 2 DD 4 and 2. Eldest is at a local state nursery which is underperforming in all key areas, many of the children in her class don't speak English as a first language and she often tells me that some of the other children don't speak.

the main reason for a move would be better schools and we have had our eye on sutton high school, we are leaning towards independent schooling only because sutton high is commutable from where we area and the state schools near us arent great.
If we were to move i would ideally like to have at least one option of both a good state and independent.

Ive been reading a lot of posts on sutton and whilst the schools are great the area isnt rated highly in general as a nice place to live which is making me reconsider everything!!!

Growing up i never heard good things about croydon, it had a rough reputation and sutton just seemed forgotten, i vaguely remember skipping school to hang out there as i was less likely to get noticed!!

would love to hear from people who currently live there so i can try and figure what im doing with schools and life lol!

Reigate is lovely not the greatest commute!

OP you havent mentioned what you want from a house or budget either

@SoupDragon arf!

.

New malden, Worcester Park, Cheam all have great primaries - all have access to good state private and grammar schools for secondary. The first two are a bit more diverse and NM and possibly WP now attract quite a lot of people migrating out of central London.

All on mainline.

@bendingspoons griity is fine with me i grew up in tooting and as much as it has its cons ive really seen it change and i just love having conveniences, not really looking for boutique shops and village life. unfortunately what I want and what is best now that I have two little ones entering the world of education are so different!

i think ive pretty much ruled out south croydon as you said @Chatty987 south croydon and purley does feel like no mans land it still takes forever to get into london, ive heard first hand from a local friend that the rail lines are awful slow and multiple cancellations.

Will keep looking but thank you all it has definitely helped me narrow my search

Hello Quartz , thank you for all your tips about the stoneleigh area. We have just put an offer on a house in this area , although the house is around 15 minutes walk to the train station and around 25 minutes to Worcester park, more towards Kingston road and hogsmill reservat. We have never lived so subarbian and I must stay we are very apprehensive that it might feel very isolating. We sold our house in mitcham and were seeking an area with good schools ( our DD is 2.5 y old and another one due in June ) and green spaces. But also I'm quite sociable, so would be great to have some cafes or pubs , or at least one pub nearby, as moving away from friends feels a bit daunting. My partner works from home , and I currently commute to Roehampton university. Therefore was wondering if stoneleigh is a family area , perhaps if there are any kids / baby activities , and if there is a sense of community . Thank you

We used to live in the South Croydon/Sanderstead area it is was lovely for toddlers. My friends who are still there seem happy with the primary schools too.

We moved before primary school because Croydon high street didn't seem a very safe place for the DC to hang out as they got older. DH (from East London) agreed he'd rather raise the DC out of London so they could have more freedom.