Where to live in London (or out of London)?

[gottasmile]

Hi,
I'm currently in Canada and will be moving to London with dh and 2 dc this summer.
I've found out a lot about finding a school for ds from mumsnet, now I was wondering if anyone had any advice on where to live??

My dh will be working near Victoria station, so we were thinking either somewhere near Pimlico station, or somewhere in Surrey (direct train line to Victoria)

Can anyone recommend somewhere in Surrey? There are so many towns, when you don't know the area, it's hard to work out where the really lovely places are. (I've googled different areas, but it's still hard to tell!!)

Thanks!!

gottasmile I"m originally from W Sussex but now live in Australia!

Thanks for that great information Mangoandlime!! It sounds gorgeous!! I can't wait to come and live in England!! (I have lived in London, but that was before the dc so a completely different experience)

I hope you're enjoying Australia Ozziegirly!!
(And coping with the very warm weather!)

Kingswood and Tadworth are both lovely with lots of green space and some fab pubs but not the best commute, both on slow and not particularly frequent train lines.

Walton on the Hill is a nice village just next to Tadworth if you're happy to be a drive from the station.

Thanks for the info about the slow train lines Ewe. Will keep that in mind.

I think dh would prefer to be close to the station, just to lessen the commute time.
Thanks again!

Richmond is also directly connected to Victoria with the District tube line, so you wouldn't necessarily have to change trains. Just in case you were still vaguely considering it. It really is a great place for kids. I grew up here, the schools are fantastic and there is so much to do. And it's so so easy to get into central London with all the extra stuff there is there for families and children. We love living in Richmond!

Richmond is still in the back of my mind. I do love it. It really is the piano and whether we could find a house with a room big enough for it. My friend's kids went to a great school in Richmond and I love it.... I might contact an agent and see what they think...
Thanks for your post!

A pleasure. If you do end up in Richmond, I'd be happy to come and meet you for a coffee or something if you feel like you want to meet new people (I'm always up for it!)

It's definitely worth asking an agent or two - St Margarets and Twickenham are also lovely and slightly cheaper than Richmond. Dexters is a good one for properties at the cheaper end of the market, not sure what your budget is. Also, look at Kew and North Sheen.

Thanks Horton, I'll definitely look you up if we end up near you! I'll have a look at all the places you mentioned, the more places I look at the more idea I'll have of what's suitable for us and dh's beloved piano!

richmond is lovely - guildford is also great- check out Oxted too- bit smaller but very pleasant with good schools.

good luck with it all

thanks! I'll check it out for sure.