Moving to South East of England from Scotland

[uprootedmum]

We're moving from Scotland to the South East of England (for my DH's job and for being nearer airports to visit family in Quebec more often).

We have 3 children still in primary schools (11, 9 and 7 yrs old) and we need to find a place to live with good state secondary school as private schools are not an option for us. We're planning to move in June 2012 and my DS would start secondary in September 2012.

Our 11yrs DS is bright but dyslexic and has ADHD and would struggle to pass any entry test in a very oversubscribed school, let alone the fact that we are very late for tests...

My DH will need to commute 2-3 days a week max to central London. Also, we need a place where there is a Swimming Club nearby as all 3 children swim competitively.

I looked at places like either Sutton/Dulwich or Guilford or Reading/Maindenhead but not quite sure where to look and if there will be any hopes of getting into a school once you buy the house (or can we secure a place before the house is bought?..).

Any help is most welcome and thank you and sorry for the length of this....

Uprootedmum, both your chosen areas have some grammar schools. If you want to avoid that but live in the same area, you could move to Croydon or Surrey. I don't know much about Sutton, but if you choose Kingston and think it unlikely that your DCSs will get into selective schools, you would do well to check the admissions criteria for your non-selective options. Some have very small catchments, while others are in neighbouring Richmond!

Just one more point, your eldest DC is 11. Dependent on when they turn 12, they could start in either Y7 or Y8 in September.

Thanks CecilyP for that but I don't understand why it would be better to be in an area where there is no grammar school. Is it because the more able children have been diverted from the other schools and that would bring the level of the comprehensive schools down? I see that Richmond doesn't have any grammar school so that might be an option....

I live in a village in North Hampshire called Overton (thats me outed) it is just gorgeous - an hour on the train from Waterloo, outstanding primary feeding into outstanding secondary. No idea about swimming. Is near to Basingstoke (dont let that put you off) and so not far from Reading either. I personally wouldn't want to live in Reading..

Thanks wonderstuff, i'll check that out!

What about Essex.

We live in North Essex (Kelvedon) and is fab - locak school is outstanding and travel into town is good. Local swimming club is apparently great and they ar doing a huge amoutn to thew local pool

Uprooted Mum, have you considered a few miles to the east of Reading? Twyford and its' surrounding villages, such as Hurst, Charvil, Wargrave and Sonning have a much less urban feel to other places mentioned in this thread but have great schools (all Wokingham borough) and is conveniently surrounded by towns and cities (Reading, Maidenhead, Henley, Marlow, Wokingham, Bracknell.....) The primary schools are all of a very high standard and the secondary school is rated as outstanding by OFSTED. Also you can have a crack at the super selectives in Reading form here if desired! Good luck

Thanks again MadameCastafiore and putyourshoesonnow! I will have a look at those places as well. On the swimming club matter, I've contacted a few and already had a response from one in Richmond and they have a waiting list so doesn't look too good on that side... Still doing lots of search. Trying to find council without any Grammar Schools but not easy. I'm trying to find out if Surrey have grammar schools as I thought of maybe Epsom? They have a swimming club and the commute is alright for my DH. I still need to check their schools though...

hi uprooted, I live in Sutton, as far as secondary schools go you will be needing to move onto the doorstep of the one you want, competition is quite high for the mixed comps and you wouldn't be guaranteed a place for september. That said, it's not a bad place to live, one of the greener london boroughs, lots of parks although they are rebuilding the local pool right now so not a local swimming club, but Epsom really isn't that far. I used to swim for Epsom District many, many, many years ago!

In Reading you only sit 11+ if you want to try for the Grammars.

In Tilehurst is Little Heath school- rated Ofsted Oustanding on last 2 or more reports. You DO have to live in the catchment though as it is oversubscribed - but the catchment covers a wide variety of roads and properties. There is the Tilehurst Swimming Club and Reading Swimming Club in town. Little Heath has a very good Learning Support Unit too.

Thanks Milliways, will look into that!

Having moved from Aberdeen many years ago uprootedmum I can recommend Guildford and surrounding areas to you. DH used to regularly get the train into London, different offices and usually in around 45mins to an hour from platform to office so not too bad.

Good luck for wherever you decide.

I would suggest looking in Surrey outside the M25. You will find some good state secondaries (eg. George Abbot, Howard of Effingham, Ashcombe) trains to Waterloo and/ or Victoria and towns with good swimming clubs (Guildford, Leatherhead, Dorking). St Bedes in Redhill is supposed to be good but I think you'd need a church letter to get in. Horsham (Sussex) also has good state secondaries and good rail connections.

Don't underestimate the hassle / time it takes to cross London on the tube - Surrey is the "wrong side" for Euston, people from outside London often assume it's a lot quicker to get around by tube than it is. Waterloo to Euston can be horrible in rush hour. Have you considered places north of London commutable to Kings Cross / Euston?

The most popular Epsom schools (Rosebery and Glyn) are single sex and the catchment areas are getting smaller. The most popular primaries are mainly over-subscribed and have class sizes of 34 from year 3.

In Sutton, the grammars are "super-selective" with relatively few places, not like in full-grammar areas, so if your rationale for ruling out areas with grammars is the impact on other schools, this won't necessarily apply to the same extent.

Re Guildford, the commute is quite long (e.g. 15 mins park-and-ride, 50 mins to Waterloo, 25 mins to Euston).

Custard is right

If I were you I would decided on area to live in based on the commute to work and schools, and swimming would be lower down the list. There are a number of good clubs in Surrey (Guildford City is the best), but as someone else pointed out the commute to Euston would be awful. Look at the train lines that come into Euston and where they originate/pass through. Commuting through London is a complete pain in the a**e and to be avoided if at all possible!

Guildford does have a lot of good schools and is 30-35 mins into Waterloo

uprooted mum, haven't read the whole thread, but I did notice what you said about 15 minute tube journeys.

Please get properly aquainted with travel time in London, before you decide. If you are on the wrong side of the city, it can easily take 2 or 3 hours to cross.

I live in London, and recently went training in London. It had taken me longer to cross London than it had taken other delegates to travel in from Birmingham.

In general, assume that if it is within 2 miles, it is faster to walk than get a bus.

In general, if it is above 32 miles, assume a speed of something like 5 miles and hour by bus; tube may be faster, but at certain times of the day there is no garantee of being able to get on a tube. Train is faster, but you have to be sure you can get where you are going by train, gett ing a direct train to within a few miles of where your DH wants to be could leave him with a further hour or two travel, and not pleasant travel either. Standing, and squashed! at best!

sorry, that should say above 2 or 3 miles, not 23 miles!

Hi uprootedmum, I'm not sure if you've ruled it out at this stage, but I'd definitely recommend Guildford as a place to bring up kids. I grew up here myself and have recently moved back after a decade or so to start my own family, so how's that for an endorsement?!

The state schools are great and the commute is about 35 minutes to Waterloo. As others have pointed out, getting across London can be a faff, but at least Euston is on the Northern line...

Right: sales pitch over. I know nothing about swimming clubs, but any questions about the other stuff, feel free to ask

Guildford swimming, someone mentioned Guildford city is one of the best in the South at present. If not quite at those Stella heights, Wey Valley ( both Guildford and Godalming) is also possible, and produces very good swimmers. There are a number of good pools around including the one at the Sports Park, which I think is being used for Olympic preparation.
If you live in the town, my DH used to do door to door in the city in 1 hour, if he timed it right. If you are working near Euston, you can use Euston square station, which is bit far with luggage but perfectly do-able without.
The schools are very good.

Hi everyone and thanks so much for all those tips. At the moment, there is a new possibility that DH would be based in central Reading instead of central London (near Euston station) and we should know within the next few weeks. Once we know, I'll get back to active search of areas, whether around Reading or around London. Last week, we spent 4 days around London areas and Reading to have a look around in the car just to get a feel of areas... That's a start and I will surely be needing more help once the decision has been made about where DH is to be based.

For Reading, we drove around Caversham, Emmer Green, and some northern and western villages which all looked very very pretty and pleasant. We also drove around the south west of London (Surrey) and Surbiton, Epsom and Sutton. We also drove through Dulwich but somehow it didn't feel right (it's absolutely gorgeous but probably far too expensive given the look of it). We really liked Surbiton and it's town centre...

If you have relatives & friends in Scotland (or north of London), then it's so much easier to visit them if you move to somewhere on the north side of London.

You don't want to spend time stuck on the M25!

Berkhamsted, Bishops Stortford and all round that area are lovely and much cheaper than St Albans. You can pop back to family via M1 or from Luton or Stanstead airports. Check out fast train connections into Euston and other stations.

The south London suburbs are a nightmare to drive through and there are very few underground connections south of the river (something to do with the clay).

Forgot to add, don't be lured by posters saying "Only 40 minutes from London" and picturing idyllic rural scenes!

Check exactly how long it would take to walk to the station from wherever the latest housing development is - you can be sure it won't be nearby, since there will already be an existing town there. You could easily add a 25 minute walk from the station to home.

Don't count on parking at the station either - charges can be several thousand pounds a year, if you're lucky enough to find a space. Locals will have already made sure that there are yellow lines on the nearby roads, to stop commuters clogging up the streets.

Once you get to London, check exactly how long it takes to walk from the platform to the tube, then tube journey then another walk to the office.

Commuting can easily take 2 hours each way. I don't want to sound negative, but really check this out carefully, especially if moving to a new edge of town development.