Good areas to live w/kids in London

[IguanoMum]

Are there any child-friendly areas in zones 1 or 2?

wandsworth - its not called nappy valley for nothing! although not sure it's zone 2 though, it might be zone3

I love Ealing but is zone 3 but only 9 minutes on train to paddington

Fulham - zone 2. Not cheap though!

Yeah, I'm currently in Wandsworth, near Northcote, and find it's too far from everything, plus no tube. I also got a bit fed up of the whole Nappy Valley thing, and just seeing mums with young kids (sorry, I know it's a great place, I just don't feel it's right for us).

I am thinking more of the NW, or the West, I know zones 1&2 are more expensive, but Wandsworth isn't cheap either and we're willing to sacrifice space and maybe pay a bit more.

Fulham sounds fine, but for the price, I feel I can get something similar even more central. I also try to avoid the District line, as it's usually closed during weekends.

Areas we are considering:

St Johns Wood
Swiss Cottage
Chalk Farm
Mayda Vale
Kilburn
Edgware Road
Notting Hill
Shepherds Bush
Barons Court
South Kensington
Earls Court
Fulham

I am also curious about Muswell Hill and The Crouch End, since I have read in another post there are many good schools there.

Oh, but the transport seem to be bad too. OK, scratch that.0

Tufnell Park ?
Good primary schools, on tube line and lots of bus routes. Secondaries not bad either.
Leafy with Waitrose on Holloway Road and Heath nearby

It depends if you want state or private schools really?

Agree re nappy valley btw...

putney if you can afford it.

Our part of SE London is well catered for with good state and private schools.

Only thing is, it's nappy valley here too!

Queens Park nice - nicer than Kilburn...

NW London is great but the schools aren't fabulous. Swiss Cottage/St Johns Wood/Primrose Hill have the best primaries and they are building a new secondary in Swiss Cottage which should really improve things. Crouch End is lovely but zone 3 and no tube which to my mind makes it a bit of a no-no. What about Queen's Park? Gorgeous park and a bit nappy valley but with a more exciting vibe

Found a great flat near Primrose Hill! Affordable! With private garden!!! ;-)))) i'M SO HAPPY!!!!! :-D

Near Primrose Hill and affordable? Wow!

Lovely area. Enjoy it!

Where near Primrose Hill? Sounds amazing!

It's in the part between Primrose Hill and Mornington Crescent - really, really nice! Like I said, we're giving up space for location, but still, it's fairly good sized (for London anyway).

Now I need to get down and do a research on nurseries and primaries in the area. OMG, I feel sooo excited! :-)

State primaries in the area arent great to be honest - there is a lovely nursery in primrose hill that my ex-neighbour's dd used to go to (used to live between primrose hill and belsize park - moved to queens park for primary school and more space).

Are you loaded?

You'll have to be for most of those areas! Seriously loaded, too, unless you want to live in a studio flat.

Queen's Park and Kilburn are old faves of mine. I have lived in both areas and like them a lot. Kilburn is 'rougher' than QP, QP 'blander' than Kilburn. Neither are remotely comparable to South Ken or Earl's Court . You might want to narrow down your options a bit.

Yule - am currently in kilburn as we're renovating our hovel in queens park and agree that kilburn is rougher - but all the asian shops on kilburn high road are brilliant for sourcing anything you might possibly need at 9pm on a weekday night

I agree, dinky. I actually prefer Kilburn to QP - good shops, good pubs, bit of life going on - but can see why people prefer QP. It's a bit quieter and centred around the park.

kensal Rise, OP? It's turning into buggy central round there, although again, it's a rough-with-the-smooth type area in many respects.

even on a sunny day kilburn is a sh+thole.

Can i ask why zones 1 and 2? Is it commuting time or other factors?

Yes, commuting, and also that I like to go walking to places. I just can't stand being all day in public transport, it makes me want to jump in the railway in Anna Karenina's style. ;-)

We've already found a wonderful flat and I'm so happy. Thanks to everyone for your replies.

Great and goodluck