Where should I move to london as single mother ?

[TianTianMa]

Dear Friends,

I need to move to London because of my job. I am moving with my 5 years old daughter. Where is the best place (affordable accommodation, good commute to UCL, good primary school, and not so bad school run)?

looking for all advice!

islington, industrial and quaint? Quoi? last time I looked it was full of 20 something lawyers. And trendy restaurants and design shops. And a LOT of Guardian readers (actually, most Guardian readers probably think they live in industrial and quaint areas, rather than yuppy precincts, so you may have a point)

(admits to having two strong G&Ts and stands back to await the abuse)

islington, industrial and quaint? Quoi? last time I looked it was full of 20 something lawyers. And trendy restaurants and design shops. And a LOT of Guardian readers (actually, most Guardian readers probably think they live in industrial and quaint areas, rather than yuppy precincts, so you may have a point)

(admits to having two strong G&Ts and stands back to await the abuse)

Hi again (kazookazoo here)

Hey, not all of Lisson Grove is the council estate!

I live 20 secs away from Church Street and find it a great place to live. It is a 'socially deprived area' because of the one estate in one corner but is hugely diverse area in many ways -- and affordable if you want central London!

(the market is fabulous and there are children's fairs there once in awhile too? )

Have never witnessed any kind of antisocial behaviour here barring a youth driving his scooter up and down the street too much? they finally confiscated it.

Nelvana, if I remember rightly the Church street ward was the most deprived ward in London in the 2000 survey and more recently has still made it into the top 2% deprived areas in the UK (they have changed the areas they assess slightly). A number of years ago my DH was in one of the blocks on the Lisson Green estate that was subject to a fatal racist arson attack that burnt out the top floor of one of the blocks which is why they have now been smartened up.
The areas is diverse but also has a high population turnover additionally because of deprivation the schools with the exception of Gateway (which you have to live on top of - about 600m) or Hampton Gurney (where you probably have to live in the church ) are not that good. CCB, PG are below average and the new KSA is an unknown at this stage.
The area has a large Arabic population (which suited DH as he is North African) with a large numbers Arabic shops, halal butchers etc probably also because of the proximity to the Regents Park mosque. Which may or may not be what the OP is looking for.
Although I work nearby I am not sure I would choose to live in Lisson Grove with my kids.

Wanstead/Snaresbrook/South Woodford.

But mostly Wanstead.

Hackney's dead easy to get to UCL - 30 bus goes to the doorstep, or overland (4 mins) to Highbury tube on Victoria line. You could be at work in half an hour.

TianTianMa I would go further out if I were you Pinner and Ruislip (Met line) both 35 mins on tube from Euston Square under an hour door to door (DH works near Euston Sq and we live in Ruislip) -good primaries and secondaries (comps). Or Barnet/Camden again for secondaries. Now I haven't found you your perfect flat yet but here is an idea of what you might get.
In all seriousness though-do you have friends or family in London? Being near to them would be a major help. Hope all goes fabulously well for you and your DD.

I agree with the Borough of Barnet, Finchley is great with loads of green areas and is very reasonable.