Moving to kent

[missy75]

Hi all
I'm new to Mumsnet and this is my first post!
Looks like a great website with helpful members.

My partner and I are hoping to start a family soon (1-2 years). We live in the north west at the moment, but my family is from London.

I would prefer to move to the areas just outside London, like Kent.

I'm a lawyer and my partner works in Finance.

We would be applying for jobs in Central London mostly, and I hope to work part-time down the line with children.

I am wondering if anyone knows much about Kent? I have done some research via Google, but nothing that is really standing out.

I'm trying to find our the following:
Which areas in Kent have good access to London (for work and family) e.g. trains, motorway.
Which areas are good for families e.g family centered areas, good schools.
Which areas are safe i.e. low crime rate.

It sounds like I'm asking for a lot from Kent lol. But we just wanted to make an informed decision.

Thank you all for your help!

X

Whitstable is lovely and on a direct route to London on the train in just over an hour. Good schools and lots of family things to do. Plus there are good schools in the town and 1/2 hour on the bus.

Personally I would avoid the Medway towns of Chatham, Rochester etc although nearer to London they are not great towns

Good luck

West Kent - Tunbridge Wells area might be worth looking at. DH grew up there.

Another vote for West Kent. It ticks all your requirements and then some. Parts of NW Kent are also lovely. Either way you can get into central London in less than 40mins. I personally would not choose to commute into London further out than this.

Try Tonbridge. It's a stop or two up the line from Tunbridge Wells and has more frequent London trains. It's 40 minutes to London Bridge / Cannon St. Decent schools and not as expensive as TW - not as pretty either though.

Another vote for Tonbridge.

Sevenoaks/Westerham

Property prices can vary a lot around Kent, much as they do anywhere else I suppose.
You could go about it by suggesting a budget and what you hope to achieve for the money, whether renting or buying and then we could point out areas for you to research.

Have a look at what london station you will need to get to and then look at the trainline stops.... See where you can afford and then research crime statistics and visit the areas you narrow down to.... Kent is fabulous, warm, sunny, easy coast and london access but varies hugely in price and nicety!

We are just in the process of buying a house in Sissinghurst which is just a short drive to Staplehurst station that takes you into London. It's very close to Cranbrook which in my opinion is gorgeous. Lots of lovely villages around and about this area. Good luck with your search.

Absolutely beautiful around there pebbles, you should be very happy.

I don't believe the OP and her DP have jobs in London as yet, so their search area would be enormous, but I can guarantee it's a really lovely part of the country with great access to both the city and the coast or countryside of enormous charm and beauty

We've just moved to medway from London (for my work) and are really enjoying it. The house is lovely and there's lots to do, rochester high street is great. Yes, some areas bit run down etc but isn't that the same everywhere?
Tunbridge wells and surrounds are lovely though :)

I would also second the advice that get the jobs first then work out which trains and what parts of kent they go to.

I would also advise you to rent first especially if you are not familiar with the area as you might end up buying in an area that does not quite fit what you want. It would be a very expensive mistake.