Moving to London...advice on where to live and schools?

[janet75]

Hi
We are relocating to the London early in the new year and I am trying to research where we should live and information on the UK schooling system.

We have a 4yr old and 1yr old so want to live somewhere that is suitable for families but not too far from Canary Wharf. We've been looking along the Jubilee line and Greenwich Blackheath. I would really appreciate some comments on the areas and what life is like with Kids.

Also would like some info on the best way to select schools my eldest, turns 5 in August 09. Here (Australia) he would not start formal schooling until January 2010 but from the limited information I have been able to find on UK schooling I think that your education system starts a year earlier?

Also I am a little confused over the classes of schools public, private, independant? And how to choose between them?

Any comments would be much appreciated!

Thanks,
Janet

hi i am SW London so can't really comment on Blackheath etc... but with regards to schools children start school the September in the year they turn 5, so your eldest would have started school this September 2008. Sept 09 (s)he will be entering year 1, where the other children will already have had one year of school.

The class of schools:
public, private and independent are all the same thing! Public schools are the old fashioned high-brow typically boarding schools. Private and independent mean you pay.

"Free" schools are typically known as "state". The main differentiation there is Church and non-church.

Hope that helps a bit!

Thanks that helps a lot.

Still keen to find out about locations and where is good to bring up young children thats also handy to Canary Wharf / appropriate tube / dlr?

Janet

Message withdrawn

Greenwich and Blackheath both very nice - Greenwich nearer to Canary Wharf but Blackheath more family oriented. Some of the best independent schools in the area are in Dulwich which also isn't far. Can't comment on individual schools but generally speaking catchment areas are very, very small.

Assuming your dh is relocating to Canary Wharf, is this with a major firm/bank? Are they helping you with relocation info/expenses? I think you need to start pumping them for info as you have quite a lot of ground to cover.

Start looking at properties on www.rightmove.co.uk and www.primelocation.com

If he is 5 in Aug then he would have started school this Sept in Reception class for 4-5 year olds. That means you will need to find a school with a place for him in a Recption class, as you won't be applying in for the first year of his school life. His school year would have already started iyswim. If you move here after Sept 09 then he will go straight into Year 1.

I only know about state (free) schools. Popular ones are likely to be full and often have waiting lists. You will probably only be allowed to join a waiting list after you have moved into your permanent residence. You can check out inspection reports on state schools by looking on the ofsted website.

here

Thanks for the advice. i'll be looking at the transport website and searching out the independent schools advisory board straight away, certainly is a lot of ground to cover!

Are there certain times when schools take new students throughout the year or if they have space will they take him whenever we arrive? I'll have to get onto the relocation people, they haven't been too helpful as yet.

I'm also trying to get an idea of what life is like in say Blackheath v's Notting Hill and similar areas to bring up children. We want to live in an area that has it all I guess, good for kids but good for cafe's restaurants etc too

thanks again!

Janet, just a word of warning ref state (free!) schools. My DH and I are both british, our children are british and we have owned property in the UK for 20 odd years. We pay all our bills, taxes etc but for the last 3 years we've been abroad for my husbands work. (he works for a british company, paid in sterling into uk bank account etc) we are planning to return to UK next year and have looked into DS into a local state college for A levels but are being told that we are not eligible for free education as not in the UK the previous 3 years and will therefore have to pay for him to go to a state school! we are looking into this as it sounds unbelievable but have been told it by several different people. Hopefully for you, it will be because he will be over 16 and perhaps it is only free if under 16. Hope that is the case for you but it might be worth looking into it (or being careful what you put on application forms!) Good luck

You mention Canary Wharf as being important which is also accessible from NE or East London (or the 'burbs therein!) on the Jubilee or the Docklands Light Railway. I don't know if you have considered those options as well? I can't speak for Greenwich or Blackheath as I have lived all my life on the other side of London but there are some nice villagey-type areas around here, albeit pricey. This might change of course with the current financial doings. What is the maximum amount of commute that is feasible for your DH?

Wow, thanks for the hint. I am not sure what type of school we'll try and send our son too yet, its all rather daunting. I have him booed into a private school here is Australia, but now our plans have changed all the research is starting again.

To a degree the schooling situation will determine where we live.......any more advice will be much appreciated on location and schooling.

Thanks!

my friend used to live in Blackheath. It is a very lovely town with a village feel and very popular. Lovely restaurants, cafes, bars. Very expensive though (as all nice areas with easy reach of central london are). I think it is the nicest part (along with Greenwich) of SE London. But born in West London and living in SW, i know very little of SE. Infact watching a TV programme last night which showed Brick Lane in the east end i was commenting to dh just how diverse London is. I am London born and bred yet have no knowledge and would feel very out of place in whole parts of it. An amazing city.

What sort of life do you expect ( walk to school? drive or local shops? urban professionals? suburban PTA mums? are you planning to work? how long will you stay?)

As others have said the jubilee line is probably the most efficient tube line in greater London.
My DH did the commute from St John's wood to canary wharf for years ( about 20-25mn)
And you can easily connect in bond street from holland road/notting hill if that's the sort of area you fancy.
Good connection in Westminster from the district line and south west london too.

Most parts of central London have lovely parks nearby. And there are lots of areas with a very villagey feel.
So really the bottom line is what's your budget and what sort of housing you expect ( relocation to a small flat in chelsea might be a shock if you are used to tropical living with a garden)

Private schools in London have notoriously long waiting lists. You really need your relocation agent on the case NOW.

Are you considering the IB curriculum?
This again depends on your situation. Are you settling in the UK for a long time or are you embarking on an expat trail that may lead you elsewhere?

Southbank international school has a good reputation with campuses in Hampstead (that's north london with easy access to jubilee line along the Finchley road) & kensington (access to jubilee line via westminster and district line)

I live in Blackheath with a 4yo and a 1yo - moved here from a few miles away about a year ago. DS is in the nursery of the best primary school in the area, moving up to reception in January. DH works in Canary Wharf.

I'd be happy to talk to you about what I know... but sounds like you're probably best finding out if you're eligible for state schooling before digging too deep! (There are lots of private schools around here too afaik)

BTW in the Borough of Lewisham (where Blackheath is) your ds would start in reception this January 09, same as mine. Not all boroughs are the same though, some only have a single intake in September - or as his birthday is near the boundary (1st Sep) you could try to get him into the next school year?

Thanks. I really like to idea of Blackheath / Greenwich I think as it seems to have the benefits of being close to the city but also is family friendly. I am also most interested in finding an area that we are going to be able to meet other similar people as we will be leaving all of our friends etc.

Is this area a friendly environment where I will be able to meet others in the community and develop friendships?

Re the schools I think that I would have to pay for state schooling if I am able to use it at all as i'll be new to the country but am still trying to clarify this.

Is there a website you can suggest that I can find out about all the schools in the area, or are you able to give me the names of the ones that have a good reputation?

Thanks again!

well I am totally biased because I grew up in Blackheath, but I honestly do think it is one of the loveliest areas in London, and very family oriented.

sorry I can't give any more up to date info, but there are mumsnetters around in those areas, so keep trying. but for state primaries, unless things have changed massively, All Saints, on Blackheath itself is THE school (My nieces went/go there) and also Brooklands is good. John Ball, in the village, is another one to look at. There's also a lovely Montessori nursery school in the centre of the village.

Mumoverseas - where have you heard this about paying for state schools if you're British? We are in NZ but planning to return at some stage. Would we really have to pay for the DCs education if we returned? What if you are new immigrants? You don't have to pay for education if you have valid visas????

Well... We opted to live at Canada Water and there were several options for school there. Alfred Salter, St Joseph's...

(I had a small issue with the 24 letter alphabet in SE London: whatever happened to those T's and H's?)

The Jubilee line stops there. There is a 24 hour Tesco in a mall with BHS, Mothercare, Adams etc etc.

FWIW: We are Canadian and didn't pay for any of the 4 state schools that our children attended while we were in London.

Blackheath and Greenwich are beautiful but likely to be more pricey.

I almost miss London thinking about it.

Feel free to ask specific questions.

We also lived in Central London and LOVED All Soul's School but things are always in flux in London so that could easily have changed.

I have just read the post about starting directly in Year One and I would have to caution you that this spelled academic DISASTER for our bright and articulate Montessori-preschool educated-son. This was also the case the following year for another North American friend's son.

I would not recommend it to anyone. In both cases, the Year One teachers actually told us that they could not teach a child to read or write because that was all taught in Reception.

It all balances out in the end but the UK schools have a heavy academic focus in the early years and this can be a real challenge to those from different education systems.

Thanks, I was unsure what the reception year actually covered. Our son goes to pre-school but in Australia it isn't until formal school that reading and writing are taught (child 5 - 6 years old).

We will be arriving in February so I am hoping (fingers crossed) that we can get him into reception as soon as we arrive.

What are your thought on living in London (Notting hill, Maida Vale etc) v's Blackheath, Greenwich or the like? The most important things for us are schooling, meeting new friends, family friendly cafes etc?

I am not too familiar with either Notting Hill or Maida Vale so I will let someone in-the-know reply.

I loved living in Canada Water because there was always plenty to do and many families to do them with. It was also possible to have a small garden rather than live in a flat even on our limited (DH was a student) budget.

Arriving in February would give your DH a leg-up (so to speak) because he would be able to join a reception class. I cannot stress how different the early education is though as they really do start learning to read and write at 4 in reception.

Well in my experience, lots of family-oriented people tend to live a bit further out of town, having:

1. Been priced out of nice inner-city living and wanting somewhere spacious
2. Wanting a bit more space, not have a nightmare driving anywhere
3. Escaping some of the 'grittier' elements of city living

So it's very family friendly in places like Richmond, Chiswick, Crystal Palace, parts of Croydon, Greenwich, Blackheath, Surbiton, Wimbledon and places on the Thameslink line or lines into Euston/Kings Cross up North.

Prosperous inner-London parts e.g. Maida Vale, Notting Hill, Hampstead, Primrose Hill etc are a bit too full of media-darling types and young well-off trendies for my personal taste. Don't get me wrong, you can have a perfectly nice lifestyle their if you can afford it. Also if you are really into making the most of Central London, you'd get a lot out of it for a couple of years. I'm probably a bit jaded , but quite like the pace and price of 0208-land and beyond.

For sanity's sake, pick an area and research it rather than dotting around North, East, South and West though.

Don't write off an overland commute into London Bridge or Waterloo or one of the North Central stations, it's often faster than a Zone 2/3/4 tube journey

lifestyle there !

Oh - Crouch End and Muswell Hill are family-central, but a small challenge for parking and public transport.

If you're considering Notting Hill, then also have a look at Maida Vale. It's about a 10 min walk away, but much more green and leafy and safer. Lots of my friends in Maida Vale worked in CW, so the commute must be doable. Look at places on the huge garden squares where your childern can run out and play safely - pretty much unique in London.

Janet75, you will find it hard to get a balanced view on Blackheath vs Notting Hill/Maid Vale as London is very divided and most people are either East or West or North or South. If you ask somone from the West about Blackheath they will tell you it's scary and rough, but they have probably never been there! You will probably get equally usless impressions about the west from people in the East. And don't get me started on the North South BS!!

Yep, second that Bubbaluv, London is ridiculously tribal! I've lived North and South (because I'm a freak/turn-coat, obviously). South has won me over with more plentiful parking and cheaper/bigger places to live though; however, total PITA trying to get anywhere North of London; less so to get to Kent