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

Since you have mentioned both Swindon and Heathrow then I would go for the west of London rather than east or southeast. North is always going to be more expensive.

Ruislip an excellent suggestion.

You don't need to spend that much, come to Hemel Hempstead (Boxmoor area is the nicest and where the mainline station is - 28 minutes to Euston - safe station, never had any problems with walking and travelling to there in 15 years. lovely house for £350k

or Berkhamsted, 5 minutes further away but 5 times as posh hence much more expensive but lovely properties like this one next to the station There are many lovely houses within your budget within 5 minutes walk of the station.

In Boxmoor the school are great, primary and secondary. The state schools are good enough in Berko but a lot of the children do go to the massive private school.

Try Dover House area in SW15 (Putney/Barnes). - you can gt a 3 bed house for £450k, it's very green, good transport links, zone 2, excellent for Heathrow and for schools. It's lovely, wish I could afford to live there!

Wow, thank you very much for all the suggestions! I have a list now that I can start with!

Raynes Park fits the bill. YOu could get a three bed for around 400K and it has good primary schools. Just outside wimbledon and lots of green space....

Does anyone know Gerrards Cross? Someone mentioned it to me as a nice location...

Gerrards Cross is nice, IMO.

Harrow is very good value, good transport links, good schools, very green.

Thanks again, this has been really helpful.

If you're still wondering there are a couple of useful websites for finding out commute times etc lifeafterlondon.com/topic/helpful-website-for-commuting-if-youre-looking-to-move/

Gerard's Cross is very nice, but I doubt there is much accommodation in your budget range (was all million+ houses when I worked there years ago). It is also in Buckinghamshire, which means Grammar school territory.

You could look Guildford, Woking or Maidenhead direction. Good access to Heathrow, and maybe able to get cross country trains North.

Milton Keynes? Further along the train line that LaurieFairyCake mentions, but you can get the fast train - 35mins to Euston. Manchester, Birmingham the other way on the trains. On the M1 which opens up driving possibilities. Near Luton, for Euro flights, Heathrow fine early or late, but Gatwick bit of a faff.
Also great for kids and SAH Parents, loads to do.

I don't live here any more but I have commuted it in the past. As mentioned up-thread, the killer is the journey at the London end, so maybe have think over the past few months to see where you've been most, so as to narrow down with mainline stations or tube lines would be best?

Station busy, and lots of parking. Even super-late there was always a pile of people walking to cars so I never felt un-safe.

Oh, and Milton Keynes is in Bucks, (good schools etc), but the cheaper end - waaay cheaper than Gerrards Cross and surroundings! £450 would buy you a lot of lovliness.

I moved out of london to Oxfordshire for a variety of reasons; but if I wanted to be within spitting distance of London then I would move to Ruislip or nearby Eastcote for the reasons mentioned before.

@Alurkatsoftplay Do you live in Leigh on sea?