Wanstead vs South Woodford - advice needed!

[lambinapram]

We are thinking of moving to either Wanstead or South Woodford this year. We need to be on the central line for work. My Daughter is 2 so we need to take schools into consideration (preferably secondary school as well). She is baptised but we are non practicing catholics. We would have around 450K to spend, but could stretch a bit further than that. We would be looking at a 3+ bed house with possibility to extend in the future.

Does any one have any thoughts/experiences with these areas? I've had a look on rightmove & been to visit both areas but obviously its not the same as living there on a day to day basis. Thanks for any advice you can give!

I live near both. I think Snaresbrook Primary is an excellent school and accessible from parts of Wanstead and South Woodford. Wanstead has a slightly more village-y feel, smaller shops. The only secondary is Wanstead High which is quite good. A lot of parents from our area move briefly to Wanstead to get their kids into Wanstead High School! S Woodford has Waitrose and Sainsbury's. Personally, I would go for the house/ access to tube station/ garden etc. as the areas are not hugely different and I think the schools are much of a muchness.

Thanks Merry, that's useful. Looking on rightmove it seems wanstead is more expensive, but it could be there is not so much on the market.

Wanstead is nicer I think (we live near, but not so nice :) )
South Woodford is a bit more Essex than Wanstead.

Wanstead is generally nicer, roomier, and more expensive. Depending where you live, there are twice as many tube trains, as half go to one end of the High Street, and half to the other, and only the Snaresbrook ones go to South Woodford. It is handy when coming home.

Thanks, thats helpful. I didn't think about fact there are two tube stations!

Also if any one has experience of primary school admissions I would be interested in hearing about it.

I think the nicest bit of Wanstead is over by the golf course (only served by Wanstead station), but priiiiicey and don't know what schools are local to that area. Don't know much about admissions, sorry. Friends in S Woodford whose child goes to Snaresbrook. It's about 5 min walk for them.

Had a quick look over at Rightmove. They seem to be trying to sell Bushwood, Leytonstone as Wanstead!!! Beware of that. If it says Wanstead E11, it is likely to be Leytonstone. Aldersbrook is nice.

Have a l

Have a look at the redbridge council website for admission stats

But Wanstead (certainly including the High Street and roads off it, and Christchurch Green) is E11

The local postcodes I know in Wanstead all begin E11 2..

If you put E11 into some address finders they default to Leytonstone, where the mail office is, near the station.

You might like to check on a map to see where Leytonstone begins, I'd say at the Green Man roundabout. Hollybush Hill and New Wanstead up to the High Stone I'd call Wanstead. Hermon Hill is Wanstead but Chigwell Road is South Woodford which is E18. It's a continuation of the same road.

Parts of Snaresbrook are E11, but running up Snaresbrook Road, by the time you get to Forest School it's E17 which is usually Walthamstow. It's in the forest but I think the boundary is after you pass Eagle Pond.

Northumberland Avenue (where the nuclear bunker used to be) is Wanstead.

Aldersbrook Road and Wanstead Flats (despite the name) I would say are not Wanstead.

Not sure about Blakehall Road.

pigletJohn

The E11 boundry extends past Eagle Pond. I used to live just off Snaresbrook Road (near Forest School) and we were still E11 1. Can't tell you exactly where it extends to mind but it's not far off.

I agree that Wanstead is nicer, more villagey. And the fact that the two tube stations serve it is a bonus. So if one of the lines has engineering works or signal failure, you can use the other easily. (Hainult via Newbury Park for Wanstead or the Epping service for Snaresbrook.

The school is postally E17, they like to say "Snaresbrook, London E17" to avoid the embarrassment of saying "Walow"

Well that's it then. The boundry must run right between where our flat was and the distance it would take me to throw a stone at the school's window not that I ever tried to see if it would reach

Oh wow, see lived here all these years (and even a brief stint in E11), but didn't know Wanstead came under E11. That must be a huge postal code area reaching all the way to Forest Gate and Leyton. Many of the houses I saw on Rightmove claiming to be 'Wanstead' were actually on Bushwood estate (which is also nice, but not Wanstead). I don't see how Northumberland Ave is Wanstead, but Aldersbrook isn't. I thought Northumberland Ave was in Aldersbrook!

Good Luck OP! I still think I would go for the right house/ garden/ school over Wanstead/ South Woodford differentiation. You can walk between them, so no biggie.

I have lived in the area for 13 years.

I think it's increasingly a myth that Wanstead is 'nicer' than So Woodford. It was like that when I first moved here but in terms of stores/ restaurants/ etc Wanstead high street in recent years TO ME anyway has started to feel more empty/barren than So Woodford. I guess there are still some funkier cafe type places (but it's NOT Stoke Newington!!) but for the day to day grocery shopping, etc So Woodford has the Waitrose and Sainsburys. I can do everything I need - buy a birthday present, get a dress, get a haircut, buy children's shoes- on Woodford High Road!!! There is a fabulous bookstore in Woodford Green too.

I guess I agree that So Woodford is slightly more 'Essex' in some respects although both Wanstead and So Woodford have their very high percentage of nail bars.

The state schools are betterish So Woodford (Churchfields) although Nightengale is supposedly on the up and up. If you want to go private, there are also good ones out our way (Forest is in Wanstead though.)

It's a good area, I would recommend it. You won't go far wrong educating your children here and it is VERY convenient for the city to work. It's a very 'sensible' place to live - houses aren't stupidly priced, good schools, decent services. Not Notting Hill or Islington but - so what?

yes, Wanstead High street is pretty useless. There's a couple of small supermarts now, and a good fish and chip shop, but very little else of any use.

And you can spend a fortune at Judith's on a dress 'for that special occasion' !!

Fan of the Larder though.

Thanks all, very useful advice!!

ooh yes, the fish and chips is THE BEST. And also Oxfam book shop.

some property in Wanstead is now cheaper than Leyton. Wanstead High School in not that good, below average. It only got a 3 in the last ofsted and has a lot of bullying. Some of it from the teachers. Norlington Boys school in Leytonstone is one of the top schools in the country and Connaught Girls school is better than Wanstead. Wanstead is quite nice, but Leytonstone is trendier. Forest Gate is also more expensive and even trendier!

How quickly London neighbourhoods change! I don't think Wanstead was ever going to be 'trendy' though - no bad thing!

I have to say I'm not sure you will find any 3 bed houses in either of those areas for £450k. Maybe a 3 bed flat. This is a nice location: , or [[http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-51262897.html?backListLink=%2Fproperty-for-sale%2Fmap.html%3FlocationIdentifier%3DREGION%255E70383%26insId%3D1%26maxPrice%3D500000%26includeSSTC%3Dtrue%26_includeSSTC%3Don%23_includeSSTC%3Don%26auction%3Dfalse%26includeSSTC%3Dtrue%26locationIdentifier%3DSTATION%255E8345%26maxPrice%3D500000%26minBedrooms%3D3%26previousSearchLocation%3DSnaresbrook%2520Station%26radius%3D1.0%26searchLocation%3DSnaresbrook%2520Station%26searchType%3DSALE%26useLocationIdentifier%3Dfalse%26box%3D0.01196%2C0.04067%2C51.58661%2C51.59578%26popupPropertyId%3D51262897&fromMap=true this one]], though not much garden and a bit near the north circular.