Petts Wood for Young Families

[Abemama]

We are currently considering a move to Petts Wood in the next year but have some hesitations and so would really appreciate people's views on the areas. We currently live in zone 2 in SE London which has lots of baby groups, activities, plethora of nurseries etc.
For us the pros are:

• close to family
• bigger houses
• better school options

The cons are:

• slightly longer commute
• there don't seem to be many full time nurseries within the area itself (walking distance from the station). The only one seems to be Rainbow Day and then a load of pre-schools (which are inconvenient as we both work full time).
• I'm worried that the lack of nurseries might mean it's harder to get a place?
• Crofton looks like a great school but apparently it is very large and sometimes it can be difficult to get the support you need because of this
• The coffee shops/restaurants seem to be a bit hit and miss and there aren't any places to get brunch etc with friends.

Would really appreciate some advice/good experiences!

I'm not in PW but nearby. Does it have to be Petts Wood? Where do you need to commute into? PW is nice enough, but not exactly 'buzzy'. Beckenham would fit your bill more for brunch etc.

We need to commute into the City and Canary Wharf.

So we are looking at Petts Wood for the commute, the schools and being close to family.

We did look at Beckenham but it slightly more expensive and the commute might be slightly more difficult.

Bromley North / Sundridge Park? A couple of stops up the line from Petts Wood. Great primaries and you'll be in catchment for Bullers and Bullers Boys for secondary?

We used a nursery near another train station, parked there and then got the train in. Maybe a childminder might work? I’ve heard good things about Rainbows but it has a long waiting list. There is another nursery just past Crofton school.

Lots of varied child activities. Spoilt for choice!

Crofton is an amazing school. My children are thriving, but be careful of catchment. I think it only went out 0.5 miles this year. Any problems we’ve had have been swiftly dealt with.

There are 2 train lines so if one is not running, you have the bonus of the other.

Lots of nice restaurants and cafes. Try the Walnuts for starters.

There is a new nursery opening on Queensway one minute from the station and another well established nursery opposite Crofton School near Mo’s fish n chip shop.

I am biased having lived in PW all my life. I think it is a great place to bring up children and commute to London.

I love Brunch in a variety of places from the cheap at Wetherspoons to mid range Maz Cafe or Elliot’s and more expensive at Semosh or Cyprianis.

Best coffee shop is Cow and Bean in Station Square, it is quite small but very lovely. Elliot’s is lovely too and dog friendly. Lovely range of independent restaurants from the Tapas place to Pizza, Indian, Turkish, Indian, Chinese and Mediterranean.

lots of clubs for children from Baby Ballet, Football, Brownie packs, dance, Kumon, tennis, cricket etc.

Crofton is a large school but it splits the infant school and juniors to make it feel less large. The large size gives it more options with music and languages that many other schools can’t afford to offer. They get good results in numbers going to the grammars.

Definitely look at SE18. We do a City/CW commute. Absolutely love it, wonderful community and great primary schools.
I found Petts Wood a bit white suburbia for my liking.

Awesome green space too

Thanks all - your responses have been really helpful!

Thanks for the suggestions on nurseries too. Has anyone tried the preschools too?
Is there a lot of traffic at drop off for nursery and school? I've heard that the areas around Crofton school can get quite full with traffic.

I've also heard that it can be quite tricky to get good childminders?

How do people cope with wraparound care after school?

On the baby front, are there any mums groups/baby activities for mat leave during the day?

And is there any ethnic diversity? Worried we might be one of/the only diverse family at school.

Lots and lots of questions - sorry!

there are a number of churches that do mums and baby groups including https://christchurchpettswood.org.uk/children-youth/ I think there is a local Sweaty Mamas too.

If you walk to Crofton it isn’t a problem, but a good number do park outside the school for pick up and roads can get busy. There is a lollipop person on Towncourt Lane. There are lots of different entrances which spreads the volume of pupils from Jersey Drive at one end to Derwent at the other.

the school have a breakfast club. There are also a range of local childminders, I don’t know how easy it is to get a space. A nursery called Twixus do a drop off and pick up from the school. It is handy for those with a pre-school child and a school aged child as you just had one drop off and pick up. http://www.twixus.co.uk/

Pre-Schools at the memorial hall, Willett Rec and at Eynsford Rec are all popular. Ones further afield include Farrington’s school which whilst a private school has a pre-reception year which operates a bit like a pre-school and they accept childcare vouchers.

Slightly delayed reply but I moved from Dulwich to Petts Wood in 2017 and really struggled with it - the lack of buzz, no decent brunch choices or cafes etc. It is very suburban. But i was spoilt in Dulwich! I think if you have family near by and older children it would be fine but I didn't enjoy it whilst on maternity leave as there isnt much for babies. I subsequently moved to Shortlands (ie between beckenham & bromley) & loved it. Lots to do, lots of young families etc. As others have said look closely at primary catchments, & definitely look at secondary catchments

Thanks so much@Nickisli1 - that is really helpful.
how are you finding Shortlands? What are the primary and secondary school options like?