Sorry peeps, spiders couldn't give a shit about conkers.
Most critters don't like things like lavender, peppermint oil, neem, tea tree etc - they're toxic to arthropods (actually they're toxic to most beings in sufficient quantity or inappropriate application), however mating season tends to over ride any of the deterrents.
You're seeing more spiders because its autumn and many spiders are now breeding, males out looking for love, running themselves into the ground to find Mrs Right Now I (Probably) Won't Eat You (literally they won't eat or drink in many cases and will cark it of exhaustion before they find their one true love).
I think your spider is Amaurobius ferox, male. Not a baby certainly, he has adult pedipalps (the boxing glove like jobbies in front of his face) but the photo isn't really good enough to tell more than 'its an adult male spider'.)
Spiderlings of most species, at the dispersal stage are absolutely tiny, head of a pin job, you'll barely notice them.
Hoover often. Don't have piles of stuff that the females of many species like to hide under, then you won't attract males (well, you wll unless you regularly lift the floorboards and skirting boards and hoover under those, a step most folk think is too far)...
Pesticides will kill them of course, leaving your home a veritable playground for all sorts of species that will trash your stuff and bite you when it wears off... but if you're scared of spiders that probably over-rides that issue.
If you can stand to, and have them, leave 'cellar spiders' (Pholcus phalangiodes if you want to google it to be sure, often called daddy long legs though this is just an example of how common names lead to misunderstandings as that name is used for opilones and a fly species too) alone - they will eat anything that wanders their way, including spiders vastly bigger than them (they really really like eating other spiders. And if their own numbers get too big they will snack on each other too).
My 'interesting' spider collection here has risen enormously since I started evicting the cellar spiders.
For those really terrified of spiders - move around and stomp.
A lot of our spiders (really, all of them barring the jumping spiders which you've probably never even noticed as ours are small and fairly dull) have really shitty eyesight, seeing just light/dark and movement.
They may appear to run AT you because you represent a big fixed object, your shadow offers what they believe is safety, so they run towards you to hide, not realising you actually represent danger.
Our big house spiders do the 'sprint and stop' thing because they have little stamina and are basically knackered and need to recharge, they're not plotting their next move as such or sizing you up as a potential victim. In a few weeks you may see more of this behaviour as they get dehydrated and fatigued in their almost always fatal hunt for a lady.
It is very very difficult for a spider to bite you - not because their fangs can't penetrate skin, most of the big ones can.
Its because their fangs lie flat against their underside, to use them they need to get above a small target, lift and then stab. Doing so to a large target like a human is like you trying to bite a chunk out of a double decker bus... extremely difficult, the angles are all wrong.
Humans therefore are typically only bitten when the spider is squashed against a person - so shake out duvets and clothing and shoes, and wear gloves if you're going rummaging in leaf litter.
Here endeth the spider lesson. Hang tight as they will all mostly bugger off over the next four weeks and most of the ones you see are destined to die of starvation, and those who survive and get to meet a lady... are getting all the joy of being an Amazon delivery bloke as spider 'sex' is really just them handing over a package of goo. Zero fun, and then death. Be smug you are not a spider?