Advice on Moving to Surrey-Which Town?

[JugglingMama]

Hi there

My partner is working in Sutton and we are having to move from Brighton to places near where he works. So far, Ashtead, Banstead, Dorking (and poss Wimbledon) are in the mix..I dont know these areas apart from a quick drive through and the train journey times for him! Really dont want to make a choice based on that. I have a 2 year old son, so somewhere with a good nursery, parks and toddler groups etc would be great. Any advice??
thx

Dear JugglingMama

Lots to consider. Will you be in the location long term? If so you'll need to consider secondary schools. Are you keen to enjoy a similar urban vibe to that which you can enjoy in Brighton, or are you keener or something more suburban, or rural?

Cards on the table. I live in Ashtead and have been there for 14 years and was in Epsom for 5 years before that. I work in Sutton. Here's my advice, for what it's worth.

If you'd really like to live in the country or with very easy access to the country, go for Dorking. Nice town, right on the North Downs and Surrey Hills, lovely for walking and cycling with the kids. Far enough away from 11+ boroughs for very few to bother so the main secondary (Ashcombe) well regarded and well used.

If you'd like to feel you are really part of London then go for Wimbledon. Property expensive and I'm not sure what the non-selective secondaries are like. Very nice though.

Banstead. Hmm. I've got a bit of a thing about Banstead. Banstead village a nice little shopping centre - but Banstead station a good hike from this centre. The houses near the station handsome enough, but it's just acres of suburb without a real centre of its own. Handy for big Asda! And no trains run from Banstead on a Sunday. The secondary school serving Banstead does not seem to be well liked - but I have no personal experience of it so check the latest OFSTED.

Both Ashtead and Epsom nice places to live, with good schools at primary and secondary level, easy access to both London and the countryside, a good range of housing of all sorts. I wouldn't bother with Epsom Downs - a bloody nuisance of a place to live, especially if you are trying to get to Sutton by train. With a toddler you want to be within a buggy push of anywhere you want to go, and this is certainly the everyday reality living in either Epsom or Ashtead.

Hope this helps. Please PM me if you want more info.

Great advice there, Lambbone, thank you for that. We are looking into moving from Surbiton to Epsom or nearby for easier access to Sutton for my son's secondary. Are there good state primaries in Ashtead? I also need to get to the A24 and my DH into London. I've been looking for houses on various property websites - seems quite mixed from what I can make it. I'm surprised how little green there seems to be in some areas (I mean on the street views rather than being near parks).

My kids went to The Greville which was lovely - but my youngest is now in year 9 so I'm a bit out of date. There's also West Ashtead which I believe is well liked.And there's St Peter's, an RC school whose address is officially Leatherhead but feels more like Ashtead. All these schools send pupils to the selective secondary schools in the neighbouring boroughs as well as to the local schools. If your children are younger you might also consider the infant-only schools, which are Barnett Wood and St Giles (which is C of E aided). Both good. I offended an acquaintance of mine some years ago, whose children were at St Giles, by saying "Oh yes that's the state school for people who don't like state schools" Hit a nerve I think as her kids never went to state schools after Y2 But it is rather well-to-do.
As for green in Ashtead - I suppose the verges in some of the roads are not very heavily treed. But access to the common or to the network of paths over to Stane Street and beyond is so good that the place feels very open.

Thanks again. We need to start looking properly at some stage. I worked in Epsom for 6 months but, you know how it is, work and home, you don't get to know much about the area. I only know Ashtead cricket ground and the surrounding area when looking for the cricket ground - nice and leafy!

My younger two are nursery and Y1, so we have a few good years ahead for primary schools. We would be looking at state only options. My son is starting at Sutton Grammar, so it's really about getting somewhere closer for him. ATM he'd be doing one hour on the bus from where we are, so obviously want the move to be worthwhile from that p.o.v.

Thanks for taking the time, much appreciated. Really good to hear schools are generally good.

Oh yes, I thought the same about Epsom Downs and Banstead, probably not quite worth it as too far from good trains.

Good luck with the moves Cristina and JugglingMama!

Thanks, Lambbone. Just went to Sutton this morning, had a little look around. I don't know how it's supposed to be very bad in the evenings, but it looked perfectly decent, clean and tidy this morning. Nice houses too. Also went a bit around Cheam, nice but you'd be driving for a pint of milk. DH is put off by Ashtead as last train back from London leaves Waterloo at 11.30. He said we'd never get into London again in the evenings. We have lists of about 11 places to consider.

Hi CristinaTheAstonishing! just wondering which town did you finally choose?

We decided to stay in Brighton for now! Angling to get back to Ireland then in a year or two... Hope CTA your move went well!

Hi all. We are hoping to exchange next week for a house in Cheam. I think I was confused previously as to what bits are Cheam (I have a feeling I got it mixed up with Ewell). We discovered South Cheam which is good for shops, buses etc. New house is lovely and near playing fields.

JM - I probably commute a similar distance to your DH, just in the opposite direction.

Hiya - we live in Carshalton Beeches (different area to Carshalton) and its really lovely. Quite a small area overall but most people know each other due to excellent local school (primary!). Its quite pricey house wise but the area is lovely so essentially you get what you pay for. Excellent train links to london and best of all you are still within Sutton Borough - well renowned for its grammar schools! also really central - easy driving to Sutton, Kingston, Croydon for shopping, but planty of resturants within walking distance.

Just jumping into this thread to ask how you how you are finding Cheam?
We are moving there soon and don't know anyone there.
Would love to hear how you and the kids have settled in

Hi All,

We are currently thinking of moving to the new Noble park development in Epsom.

Have a 3 year old so the reason is schooling

Any views on the area?

Hi Jenny. I don't know Noble Park. Have you made a decision yet or are you still looking?

Moving to Ashstead in a matter of weeks and my eldest will be going to St Giles school. I would love to hear more on schools in Ashstead and things to do for kids under 5.

Hi, we currently live in SW London and love it but need more space and good primary and secondary schools. Really like the sound of Coulsdon but don't know much about the area. I would really appreciate some info on local schools, and just generally,...is this a good area to bring up a family?
I'm just a little concerned about Croydon being so close and with kids soon to be teenage boys would worry about going out etc... Should I worry?

take a look at www.lifeafterlondon.com lots of useful advice

Iambbone what do you mean "If you'd like to feel you are really part of London then go for Wimbledon". Sutton, Carshalton, Wallington, Belmont and Cheam are all "part of London" too, they are all within the city limits!

Hi,

We have lived in some wonderful places in the world. We have more recently lived in Kew and Wimbledon, but I have to say that Sutton is the most convenient, friendliest and cost effective place to live for so many reasons. It is also one of the safest(ranked second or third last year) boroughs in London.

The town centre has it all! Shops and restaurants galore all on a long pedestrianised strip(no fear of getting run over!). There is a free tram which will take you and kids up and down the pedestrianised strip if your legs get too weary and then there is the library right there too.

The town centre is earmarked to have a revamp this year with Sainsbury's being added to it's numerous supermarkets along the strip( M & S ,Asda & Morrisons already present for food shopping). The station is also having a revamp so should look quite flash by the end of the year.

There are many good schools in and near Sutton. For us, one of the best things is being so close to central London with Sutton's great transport links but also being able to notice the fresh air out here.

In our search to find a nice place to settle, we stumbled upon Sutton and so glad that we did!

Hi,
I have 2 children, one of them is 9 and the other 13. My 13 year old is at tiffin girls and we are looking at maybe moving into esher. For my hubby, my daughter and me the commute is great. My yunger daughter said that she would move shools if we moved. Is Esher a nice area to live and which primary schools are good in Esher? Our budget is £1.3m so finding a house isn't the problem. Please reply quickly, thank you.

sorry i meant younger x

You might get more info on the Surrey local board rather than Sutton. Good luck with the move. We've moved out from W'don too.