St Albans - cottonmill area

[UnripeAvo]

Hey! I’m looking to buy a 3 bed house in St Albans, and have seen a few affordable options in cottonmill (around grindcobbe road).

I’ve seen a few posts mentioning it’s not a good part of town, but I quite enjoyed the walk through Verulam park so feel like I’m missing something. Are there pockets to avoid? Or is the area just relatively rough overall? the local council reports suggest its ward Sopwell is the most deprived area in St Albans.

Background:
first time buyer
budget 650k
work in city of london
connection to Luton is a plus (to fly home to hubbys family)
no kids yet but keen for good schools

thanks in adv! X

I don’t live there but I know people who do and love it. It’s definitely on the up. There has been a big expansion of the nearby retail park and it has a brand new community hub due entirely to strong group of local women tirelessly lobbying the council. It’s not as sought after as other parts of St Albans but the price reflects that. It’s walkable to town and has great road connections. There is also Sopwell House hotel/spa round the corner. The most deprived area data is misleading, St Albans is hugely affluent so it’s not comparable with the most deprived areas of nearby towns like Welwyn or Hatfield.

I live in St Albans, moved here from London 10 years ago. Cottonmill is one of the less desirable parts of St Albans as it doesn’t quite fit into the middle class/yummy mummy mould. It’s a bit rougher than other parts and you’re more likely to see anti-social behaviour but it’s still St Albans so you won’t be getting mugged on the way home.

Cottonmill, Cell Barnes, Jersey Farm and the Batchwood/Green Lane area are more working class whereas the rest of St Albans is more affluent and seems to have been taken over by London blow ins.

@Fakingit101 means those areas have some council housing, many are privately owned now of course. Jersey Farm is hardly working class, it’s a huge development that was built in the 80’s with its own shops etc. It has its far share of big detached ‘executive’ homes. It’s just a bit further out, hence the snobbery. Great schools nearby though.

Mandeville primary in Cottonmill is part of the Spiral partnership I believe. Marlborough secondary is well regarded.

No area of St Albans is deprived in my view. Just hope you
Like traffic The park is lovely

@HeBeaverandSheBeaver true that no part is deprived but I drove through Dellfield once and it definitely had Beirut vibes - burned out cars on the road, other cars in the process of being dismantled etc

@QueefofSheena St Albans is hugely affluent so it’s not comparable with the most deprived areas of nearby towns like Welwyn or Hatfield.

Without high jacking the thread can I ask what parts of Welwyn Garden City would you say are to be avoided? Thanks x

Knella rd area in WGC is a bit rough but again. WGC isn't considered a rough area.

Thank you for replying everyone :)
@Fakingit101 i noticed camp road and fleetville is not on your list. They are also affordable and within budget, not sure how they compare to cottonmill?

I would definitely include Camp Road in the list - my DH refused to live there as it’s close to a traveller site. Prejudice against travellers is seemingly the last acceptable form of racism. Perhaps not so much Fleetville.

I grew up on rough council estates in London and can therefore be a bit snobby about where I live for fear of moving backwards rather than forwards. Places I would look at:

Sopwell conservation area (ie the roads between Pageant Road and Belmont Hill)
Clarence Park
Bernards Heath
Marshalswick
City Centre (Victoria Street to Sandpit Lane, the Cathedral side of Verulamium Park, between High St and the City Hospital but not Batchwood or Townsend)

None of the areas are on budget though.

Fleetville is popular and becoming very trendy, good sought after primary. Have a look at London Colney away from the top of the high Street. The money goes further and it’s getting increasingly popular with a lot of redevelopment going on. I’d also look at the roads around the Camp.

@Fakingit101 where is the traveller site near Camp Road? I’ve lived around there for more than a decade and never seen it. I just checked on the Herts website that lists sites and can’t see it either, nearest seems to be Colney heath or Park
Street.

@UnripeAvo I think Cottonmill is nice. But more mixed in terms of population and income levels, but I’m not sure that’s a bad thing.

fleetville is great, but you won’t get much for £650,000 there and it is increasingly similar in Camp (where 4 bed houses can go for £1m plus). But both areas are hugely popular with people moving out from London to have families. So there is a lot of young families and good schools. And they are close to the station.

Cottonmill is also really handy for the Abbey Flyer, trains into Watford Junction which gets you into Euston. Also Westminster Lodge nearby which has a swimming pool and a theatre.

I don't know now, but my grandparents lived in Cottonmill Lane and I have so many happy memories of roaming the fields and river there in summer holidays, it was a great place to be a child! It never felt rough or dangerous back then (,80s). I don't recall it being close to town though, but I guess as a child I wasn't interested in that so much.

Brill thanks all!

@Fakingit101 I’m also grew up in inner city London, so totally get that. I think moving to those areas means borrowing a lot more, or downsizing! Hoping cottonmill isn’t so bad that I need to do either of those things!

@QueefofSheena thank you, think London Colney may be too far for a daily commute. Will defo browse more around the camp.

Fleetville an Camp Road area, not rough at all. Neither is Jersey Farm, though a large estate a bit isolated from main area of town. Cottonmill probably the least affluent end of the city and you may see more antisocial behaviour than other areas. New Greens may be worth a look, Marshalswick and Bernards Heath too

@UnripeAvo how are you planning to get into the City? If it’s from St Albans City station you will be a fair way away in Cottonmill as it’s the other end of town, so you’d need to bus, drive or cycle.

@Bumbleby thanks for this. We had walked down Hatfield road up to the Morrisons, and felt like it was a lot of chicken shops! I’ll venture beyond that point this weekend as I think I maybe was put off too quickly!

@QueefofSheena yes fair point, it’s about 22mins walk on maps from a property we’re interested in, probably much quicker at my pace so feels ok for a commute!

If the house is in Cottonmill just be aware it’s all uphill on the way. I live in Snorbs, just not in Cottonmill. I wouldn’t fancy that walk in all weathers.

The chicken shops in Hatfield Road don’t tell the real story, Fleetville is very popular with young families. There’s a lovely park with a cafe, Fleetville Larder for ‘posh’ cheese etc and good schools.

Cheers again @QueefofSheena for all the info.

I wandered around today and agree there’s a good mix of residents, but felt safe. 18min leisurely walk to the station. (Just in case someone relies on this thread in the future). :)

That’s great @UnripeAvo hope it all goes smoothly and you get the house you are after.

Hi, did you buy a house in this area eventually? :)
I am with the same thoughts now