Hampton school chosen - are these towns too far out ??

[scattycow]

We will be returning to the UK next year, and have chosen a school in Hampton (middlesex), but we have very little knowledge of the surrounding areas.

There are lots of school buses that run as far out as windsor, and it's certainly temping to look at these areas that are on the perimeter of the school bus (think they go just inside the M25) run as I would think you would get more house for your money.

I have come up with these towns ; egham, wraysbury, shepperton, epsom, windsor/datchet, Twickenham (unsure as have only driven along some kind of highway - towards M3? - and it wasnt that appealing)

I think my husband will be working around liverpool st, kids will probably have school stuff on after school, but in school, so taking into account driving to and from school on the odd occassion, and transport links into London - what do you think of my chosen towns ? Any feedback good or bad would be most appreciated.

Personally for Hampton I'd stay well within M25 to avoid nightmarish traffic. Not cheap though.

Agree with liz on staying within m25. What is your budget and how many beds etc do you want?

For dh most trains go to Waterloo so dh can transfer to Liverpool st from there so I don't think that is an issue. The only thing is some lines have slower/less services than others .

Scatty, good luck with your search. There is an earlier thread that has similar queries to yours but I will address your named places directly also.

Datchet - lovely village, great value, HORRENDOUS aircraft noise (we stayed nearly three years and you really need triple glazing to make it bearable). Not much choice of service (lousy GP). Also it has an SL3 (Slough) postcode which is a real issue for the postcode-sensitive, ie, me. Very slow train link to Waterloo.

Egham - nice area, unappealing high street, also badly affected by aircraft noise, area is cut in half by train level crossing which will only get worse as times goes on. Train link also quite slow.

Wraysbury is quite small but some very nice properties, same issues with aircraft and train though I'm afraid.

Shepparton is more mixed, superb properties close to river, but quite a lot of scruffy places, can feel suburban, has a Staines postcode.

Twickenham is on the highway A316 which becomes the M3. It is split between two postcodes (TW1 & TW2) and also two areas (Twickenham and Whitton). Had undergone very rapid price rises. Good schools, great local borough (Richmond), lovely area esp near the Thames, but cramped and overheated right now. Whatever is in your budget range now will be well overbudget in 6 months time. Think £500K for a 3x1 or £650K for a 4x2 semi in the least good part. We lived in Twickenham for three years but got tired of onstreet parking and living in a semi, so moved out of the postcode to a detached house.

Look hard in Hampton itself (TW12) there is more choice and a bit more space than Twickenham, but the market is still quite strong. If you're prepared to drive to Richmond station, there is tube and overground links, very handy indeed. Richmond borough residents get free parking if they have an economical car, a wonderful advantage in the borough. For getting to the school and Liverpool St, this area is the best logistically, although none are great.

Epsom is no where near all your other areas but driving to Hampton from there every day would be a good hour, a horrible drive, and not recommended!

You don't mention Laleham (part of TW18) which is lovely, the same cute village feel as Datchet without the godawful plane noise. Would recommend a look there.

Also Staines, it's suburban but friends with families are very happy there and it's good value. Train link still slow, about 45 mins I think?

Finally Lower Sunbury (TW16) is worth a look. Lovely near the river. Avoid the part of Sunbury north of A308 and the devastatingly ugly Sunbury Cross, but look close to Thames St. Very slow branch line (I think, I don't use trains from Sunbury as the road links are great) though and not in Richmond Borough.

Good luck in your search, it's very difficult from abroad (we did that too - I researched for 18 months before moving!). I have a lived and worked in these areas and wrestled with each move like mad before taking the plunge.

Some excellent advice and local knowledge from Claudia. Pretty much exactly what I would post.

If you are looking at Hampton, Hampton Hill area is nice. I've been told to avoid Dean Road.

Not sure about your budget but if you can afford it, teddington is lovely.

I've also been looking at Walton and Hersham Village but been told crossing the river during rush hour is a nightmare.

At the moment we're in the process of buying in Lower Sunbury. As advised above, sunbury common is very very ugly, and I would avoid anything north of the A316- the upper part of Sunbury, Feltham and Hanworth. All cheap for a reason.

they've just built a new Walton Bridge after 50 years of faffing. Anyone local know if the traffic is improved?

specialsubject Sadly the new walton bridge has not improved the traffic. It's still a bottleneck as only one lane of traffic going each way. It's lovely and smooth to drive across though compared to the old bumpy bridge.

Speaking from experience, and I have a child at school in this area, you need to look at Hampton, Hampton Hill, Sunbury, Teddington. Maybe Upper Halliford (shepperton).

There are people who live over the river (Esher, Molesey) and come over Hampton Court Bridge.... Equally Walton Bridge is also bad but both are manageble if you time it right.

Shepperton is on the edge of too far in rush hour, Egham, wraysbury, laleham, staines and windsor are way too far IMHO.

HOWEVER, for commuting purposes I would look close to Hampton, Walton and Staines for quick commuting to London, you need to judge the two commutes together which should be longer and which shorter. If catching a train it is annoying (and costly) to drive and park as well.

I should just add, on a bad day it can take 40 minutes to get from Sunbury to hampton...

thanks, supersaint. Lived in the area for many years, never believed there would be a new bridge. Pity they didn't think to make it a bigger one!

Sparkle - agree that drive & park is annoying (I wouldn't want to do it but some might tolerate it). Not costly though; parking is free in LBRUT if you have a small car like a Mini or Polo or Fiat 500. It's one of the handiest things about living in that borough.

Sunbury to Hampton is dreadful along the A308 for sure, but I've used lots of alternative routes which are longer in distance but much quicker.

We looked at Molesey as it appears good value ... but after renting a garage in that area I was put off - the housing stock is very patchy and both access points (HC bridge and Walton Bridge) are sticky to say the least. Even at lunchtimes a 30 min delay could occur for no apparent reason, incredibly frustrating.

I was gobsmacked that the new Walton Bridge has the exact same carrying capacity as the old one. Drove over it a couple of weeks ago and thought my eyes were deceiving me. Really sympathise with anyone who bought there 2 or 3 years ago in the hope of getting better access in the future. People who live in Walton tell me that you need to make the northward journey over it before 7.15am in order not to be stuck in the traffic snarl. Gah!

Esher, Hinchley Wood, Thames Ditton are all short of housing stock and prices are being driven relentlessly, crazily upward.

Teddington has pockets of good value: might be worth a lot for OP depending on budget. And it's charming.

Molesey is good value but there are no train stations East or West Molesey which was why it was quickly crossed off the list for us. Esher house prices have gone crazy!

I take it you mean a fee-paying school, first off?

I would not recommend any of your choices TBH. Very long commutes into east London for your DP, and liable to be in the car for ages each day if you can't avail of the school bus service, or you need to do a later pickup than the bus offers etc. Surbiton is not fashionable but it has great services, is close to Hampton, 18 mins from waterloo by train and then w/loo and city line to city. Thames Ditton would also be great for you, although it's a slower train line. East molesey for Hampton ct could also work.

East Molesey does have a station - Hampton Court. It's a lovely village, on the river, with a very friendly feel; and only two miles from Hampton School. If you've got the right budget, it's worth looking at. Teddington would be my first choice in the area, but the houses are generally smaller, and more expensive.

Our children go to school in hampton, we both work in central London. We live in Teddington. Hampton hill is great, as is Twickenham, st Margaret's, or even Kingston? I wouldn't go west, the school run would be a killer.

What about letting your DS get to school and back on his own? The school coaches are fabulous (and a great way to meet the LEH girls), there's the local bus service, or maybe he could ride?

My DS loves the independance he gets from riding and would hate for me to do the school run. He rides whatever the weather

Claudia, I am living in Richmond and it is not correct that you get free parking for a "green" car. You get a free residents' parking permit, but these are zoned. So you park for free outside your front door, but have to pay elsewhere within the borough.

There is a resident scheme boroughwide but that only gives you 30 minutes free.

Friday - sorry, you have been mis informed. A green car DOES give you free parking in the borough. I use it all the time, believe me. You get a plastic LBRUT card with a chip and this goes into the parking meters instead of paying with money. The machine then gives you a ticket up to the maximum time allowed for that zone. In the case of Deer Park, for example, that's all day free parking, great if you want to use the station for commuting. You don't need to have a stupid Geewhiz car either - VW polos, some BMW 1 series, mini D, and lots of others all qualify. It's just not well known or understood evidently.

Anyway this is all a moot point as we don't know OPs budget or wants/needs list!

Thank you all for the responses so far - you have enabled me to reduce my search by 50%. So I have established so far, that the areas closer to the school are the most suitable, for obvious reasons (noise pollution and transport links). I have also established the areas that are a "no-go" - thank you for that info.

the school buses do go quite a way out, but at this stage, i have no idea if he would be on that bus 5 days a week. Its the times when he stays after school (and therefore misses the bus) that concern me. But as we haven't started yet I don't know how often those times will ocurr.

I'm looking at the school bus routes - some I can now rule out,others are definitely "in". But how about these places in Surrey. Are they just a bit too far for school journeys ? Does anyone's DC do this kind of bus journey ??

Ascot and Virginia Water ?? -
Byfleet, Horsell Woking , Ottershaw ??
Oxshott Cobham, Esher ?

Which are "naice" areas, have good amenities, decent transport ? Again they all offer more VFM compared to teddington and Hampton, becasue they are further from London. But Im guessing that there would be less school mates living in the area.

Budget is circa 1m - ideally less, because if the job goes "tits up" we are income less. 1m doesn't get much in teddington these days

Ascot is nice and I believe the Hampton bus actually goes from there doesn't it?

Personally I much prefer the area just outside the western section of the M25 to the area just inside. However, I don't have to commute into London!

Windsor is good for bits and bobs shopping and coffee. Reading is good for 'real' shopping! Ascot gives good access to both. It is also great to be surrounded by the Royal Estate which gives the area a more open, slightly rural feel. Royal Windsor farm shop is fab!!

You will get more for your million I think if you look at Ascot, Winkfield, Old Windsor. I would LOVE to live in a period property in the heart of Windsor and a million quid would just about stretch to that.

The school are very aware of the fact that, becuase they offer coaches to some further out places, many boys cannot get home unless they catch the school coach.

In light of this they finish school a bit later than most - at 4pm - and have a longer lunch break, into which they pack most of their sports activities and training.

My DS has very rarely HAD to stay after school for anything.

but what about matches, parent's evenings and socials , concerts etc . Personally wouldn't opt for that sort of distance. Out of interest why have you determined on this particular school ?

Your million quid and I would probably buy this !!

Matches are on Saturdays and you will have to fetch and carry him to those. Parents evenings do not involve the boys, so they would go home on the coaches as per usual. Socials and concerts happen in the evenings, but are optional.

I agree that being local is better for hanging out with mates etc. but it is not a deal breaker.

Having said all that, we live a 15 minute bike ride away from the school so the logistics of living further out might be lost on me, I just know lots of boys in my DS's class come from far and wide and use the coaches, and it does not negatively impact on their school lives.

The train from Staines to Waterloo is 38 minutes.

There are loads of Hampton boys in the Windsor! Egham, Staines areas.

Anywhere they run a school bus is a feasible place to live.

Honestly why that school in particular? Are you looking for secondary? There are plenty of decent private schools in those of areas of Surrey but no way would I want my child to sit on a coach 5 days a week doing that journey it will take so long! I would ask the school what time the coaches pick up from those places to arrive at school.

West Byfleet and Woodham are nice places and walking distance to the fast mainline service to Waterloo