Where would you live within a commuting distance to London?

[Merinda]

My DH and I have lived in London for 10 years, he does not work due to illness, I work full time in the city in a very demanding job with long hours and lots of travel (but not very highly paid). We have been renting for all these years as it is hard to save up for a deposit on one salary in London.
We now have a baby boy, and are really under pressure to find somewhere else to live, partially because London is just becoming too expensive for us, but also because we need to think about primary schools etc as well as consider buying a property.
Trouble is, I do not have a clue where we should look. We are both not from here, do not know the area so would not even know where to start.

I also wonder if our requirements are unrealistic: I need to be within reasonable commuting distance to central London because of my job, and need to feel safe as I travel late at night. We need to find an area with good schools, preferably free (cannot afford private schooling and a mortgage) and parks/playgrounds. Also, need to be realistic about property prices as we cannot afford a high deposit, but want a reasonably nice/safe area to live in.

Are there places like that? What would be your suggestions? Would really appreciate some help... Thank you

It all depends on what your idea of a reasonable commute is, and which station you need to be near in London.

Pick the London stations that work best for you and then look at the towns along the train line - you'll soon find that the balance is distance vs. price.

If you want to come into London Bridge, then look at towns like Harpenden - not a long commute, but very family friendly and cheaper than the next stop down the line, St Albans. Still very pricey, though.

How about Leighton buzzard area, Euston 35 mins non stop. Nice villages and good schools cedars upper or just over the border into Bucks are Grammar schools.

Royston? 35 minutes to Kings cross, huge heath area (not sure about schools).

Thank you very much for the suggestions!
I will start my research. The trouble with defining the London station is that I travel from client to client, so sometimes go north to Manchester, sometimes fly out of Heathrow or go West to Swindon. These are just examples, and this is why living in central London was so convenient.
Which is also why it is such a headache for me to figure out which way to go.

Grantham.

Cheap housing.
Grammar schools
On the A1
On the main east coast line.

I used to live in Bucks (Aston Clinton/ Wendover area), I loved it. Can't remember train times but IIRC Wendover line goes to Marylebone, Tring (up the hill) to Euston.

Come to Wickford in Essex - or any of the other stations on the Liverpool Street to Southend Victoria line.

I was slightly obsessed with www.commuterguide.co.uk which gives descriptions of all the commuter towns and villages, travel times, and quality of trainline. It may help you.

We ended up staying in London - South East - which is the most affordable corner - and surprisingly green.

culturemulcher, I would really like not to commute for more than 30 minutes, which will probably make the total commute 1 hour door to door if going into central London. I have had experience of very long commute from London to a client (2.5 hrs each way), and this is not an experience I would like to repeat...
I am, of course, aware that property prices get lower the further you go, but I am just hoping that I will find that point on the map where everything works out (am I being realistic?).
ALso, safety is a big concern for me, had several unpleasant experiences when travelling by train alone late. Which is why prefer larger stations to the small unmanned ones

Whether or not you are being realistic all hinges on the budget...

Bishops stortfordm

Ah such a shame, you could have had my house . We moved out of the SE to where house prices are incredibly cheap but it's 15 mins to station for the hour commute into London. Trouble is a lot of people who've escaped London want exactly you do.

Confuseddd, which part of SE? (I have convinced myself that I cannot afford any London postcodes...)
Thank you very much for the link - adding to my list!

So what's your budget and your housing wishlist?

Housing wishlist is 3 bedroom as close to the train station as possible (but in a decent area).
Struggling with the budget a bit as we do not have a large deposit. Grandma promised to help, but not sure yet. I am looking at up to 450,000, but that would be a massive stretch. Considering that banks do not offer interest only mortgages anymore... I cannot pay out massively more than we pay in rent here. And I need to factor in the additional travel costs etc etc

Try Bromley. Fast train to London, good schools, ten mins down the road to countryside. And one or two nice shops. No, I don't live there. But I think I would.

Oh I am sure you could get a London postcode for 450k!

You could get a 3 bed house for £250K round here, 5 min shuttle bus to the station and 35 min commute to Liverpool Street. Oh and the new airport (with it's dedicated station) at Southend is about 25 mins in the opposite direction if it helps with your work travel at all?

Well, 450k at this point is wishful thinking... I am just not sure that in London I can get 3 beds, station nearby, green spaces and good free schools...
But again, I am pretty ignorant about what's out there.

piprabbit, it certainly sounds interesting, thank you!

Bishops Stortford is 40 min direct to Liverpool street

Plenty of housing up to 450k a choice of excellent schools and loads of green space including Hatfield forest

10 mins on bus to stansted.

M11 tp Cambridge

How about Carshalton Beeches, trains to London Bridge or Victoria. In the London Borough of Sutton so great schools, loads of parks houses not ridiculous, close(ish) to Gatwick...

Chelmsford is (I think) 25mins to Liverpool Street, lots of green. Not sure about the schools (my family live there, no children!!) My sister lives in Hockley, which is green & not a long commute. Schools seem ok (again, don't know about them in depth!!). Essex is popular with people who want to get out of London, but still need easy access x

Leigh on Sea or Chalkwell, again in Essex. Might be too far for centre of town but only forty five minutes out from Fenchurch Street/Tower Hill, City. Very family towns with sea side (kind of) Good primary schools, (grammar school area though) lots of commuters...Stansted and Southend airports...You'd get a lovely place for 350.

You could easily get a 3-bed in London for that budget in a good area. How about Ruislip? Nice areas with lots of parks, the lido, good high street, great schools and good transport links.

Or if you want to head a bit further out anything on the Chiltern line that heads into Marylebone. There are lots of new housing developements and you could get a 4 bed with garden for that budget.