Find me a new area in Greater London to live! :0)

[TransatlanticCityGirl]

Really hoping someone can give me some tips on possible areas to consider settling down in. I'm originally from Canada and moved to London 12 years ago, and for the last 11 years I've lived in Rotherhithe (near Canada Water station - no coincidence, that!) :)

My husband is from Hornchurch and there is no way I could see myself living there.

Criteria for a new area:

• Easy commute to Liverpool Street Station / St. Paul's, and good transport links generally for someone who dislikes driving.
• Good schools for our DD (she's only 10 month old - we're planning ahead) and good selection of family activities, e.g. things I can do with baby no. 2 if there ever is one)
• Nice moderately priced area (large 4-5 bed houses with a garden for a 6-figure budget)
• I don't care how big the season ticket cost is as long as the trains are frequent and reliable.
• Suits a city girl at heart! (Wide open country = no thanks)
• Preferably also easy commute to Canary Wharf just in case of future job change!
• If 'The Only Way is Essex' could have been filmed there it's probably not for me

Suggestions? Ideas? All I've come up with so far is Blackheath (a bit too pricey for what you get), and Gidea Park (too close to Hornchurch).

no, admittedly i haven't been for a while.

Have been to the others though and, in the OP's shoes, I'd be looking at Essex

I live in Camberwell. It's not the nicest part of London to be sure but describing it as 'very dodgy' is a bit dramatic. My neighbours include two high court judges, a Mayfair art gallery owner and a TV presenter. In the next street are a well known comedienne and an iconic seventies actress. I doubt any of them would choose to live here if it was as dodgy as you suggest. The houses in my street and the next couple of streets along sell for £1m+.

Blimey, never thought I'd find myself defending Camberwell on here! Admittedly I am very keen to move out, as anyone who has read my threads on here may have noticed, but I would feel the same way wherever I lived in London.

Just to clarify, I don't find central Lewisham scary, just ugly - I used to quite often come home late from work and it was often quicker to get a train to Lewisham and then get a bus up the hill than to wait hours for the Blackheath train. I never felt threatened wandering through Lewisham alone, just grateful not to live there! It's a shame though because there is some lovely property around there - really attractive houses. St Johns is nice, and very close to Lewisham centre so convenient for transport and the housing stock there is lovely.

Nothing beats Greenwich though - I love it there. We had a very short timescale to find a place to live when we were relocating to London and we found a nicer place in Blackheath, so went with that - but if we ever move back, it will be Greenwich all the way.

Rhubarbgarden - I know the area you are describing - around Love Walk?
There are some lovely houses but, sorry, Camberwell in general has an 'edge' to it and one or two nice roads does not a safe neighbourhood make.