Anyone know Bromley or Chilslehurst - Good places to live?

[nogoes]

May be relocating to the Bromley area in the next couple of years. Is it a good place to live? Which area is nicer out of the two? I like the look of West Wickham but it seems to be too pricy. Does anyone know what the primary schools are like and are there any areas to avoid?

Many thanks,

Nogoes

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thell lives in Chislehurst, I'll email her about your thread.

Thanks

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I think Chislehurst is probably better for commuting up to London Bridge/city (if relevant) and a nicer area too... I would suggest looking at Beckenham and Bickley too. My old school (Bromley High GPDST) in Bickley used to have an associated primary school; we thought the girls from the nearby state schools were a bit rough, but probably just a culture clash.

Thanks Mumpbump.

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Hi!
I've only lived in Chislehurst for about 9 months, so I don't know the surrounding area that well. All the local primary schools seem to be quite nice.
Chislehurst is actually in two halves - it used to be two separate villages. Our end used to be called 'Prickend' !! now West Chislehurst. It's the end with the proper high street, Sainsbury's, etc., and lots of more affordable housing. The old village, with Royal Parade, has much prettier and much more expensive shops and houses. The station is actually about a mile away, but there are buses. Elmstead Woods station is also a bit of a distance - my DH cycles there, as it's v safe in terms of leaving bikes. Lovely suburban area too.

Bickley seems nice - bit pricey too I think, but not sure. Petts Wood is also a nice spot, with a train station near the main street - MIL says the traffic there used to be bad, but TBH we get it at rush hour too.

I've probably just caused you more confusion!!
But basically from what I gather most of these areas around Bromley are nice, all suffering a bit from traffic congestion but train links are quite good.

PS: The Bromley Borough is quite conservative, although not desperately so as there seems to be quite an active NCT here.
In my limited experience as a teacher here before I got preg, the education authority seems to be quite conservative too - there are selective schools here, and some primary schools seem to have a competitive bent. The LEA caused a furore amongst teachers a few years ago by capping the number of children that could be statemented for Special Educational Needs.
Not that I'm trying to put you off!! After all, I decided to move here Might just be something to bear in mind when you look around.