Relocating to Kent?

[Bippidee]

We are thinking of relocating from central London to Kent.

We have a 17mo and currently expecting DC2 in September.

Areas we are looking at are Tonbridge and environs. Any suggestions / advice? Budget would be 600k max.

I've seen some lovely houses for less than this around Cranbrook which I know is a pretty town with decent facilities.

We live in Tunbridge Wells, £600k would buy you a decent four bed house with a bit of a garden in a 'nice' area. We have lived in Sevenoaks and Tonbridge too.

Sevenoaks is lovely but a bit cliquey (sorry if anyone else lives there :)) and very expensive. I loved it, my husband didn't. We've had more children and now can't afford it. My older children went to primary school there and the schools were really good. Tonbridge is much more of a mix, I loved our house but not the town so much. We now live in TW and really like it. The shops are fab for all things, the schools are good, there is loads to do for us and the children. My husband used to commute into London Bridge - it was a bit of a schlep to the station for him from our house but broadly a good commute. Starting this far down the track he always got a seat. There is also a way of getting a much reduced ticket which is not illegal :)

Bear in mind if you are moving here you are in the 11+ heartlands. Your children are little now but it will come around and it is fierce. Tutoring and a lot of competitiveness should be expected. That said the grammar schools are fantastic but getting there is really stressful.

I don't know anything about Cranbrook as it's that bit further out. HTH :)

Thanks Marrou, that is really helpful.

Do you need to commute into London?
If you do then Tonbridge is a very good option. Fast trains every 10mins into London.

Tunbridge wells is lovely. Much longer travel into London (1 hour vs 35mins from Tonbridge).

You will find plenty of great houses within your budget.

We moved to TW from London - and echo Marrou - it's fabulous, although you do need to be careful if you are looking at state primaries as the 'catchments' are tiny and shrinking.

Secondaries are good even if you don't pass the 11+ - if you are religious though you do get extra choices as the CofE secondary is very strict on churchgoing.....although perhaps more flexible now SKA is operational and sought after.

Tonbridge is looked down on a bit by TW and Sevenoaks residents - I don't really know why as there are lovely parks, the river, schools, the castle, and the centre is up for a massive redevelopment over the next few years. There is an issue with flooding in parts of the town though so do look at that when you are looking at houses. The trains are more plentiful from Tonbridge than TW and it's more reasonable than Sevenoaks, which I agree is a bit cliquey and samey (lots of City professionals boring on about their cars/holidays/houses at any party we've ever been to ). That said, the commute is brilliantly quick and they have a Waitrose - something we're still waiting for desperately in TW!!

Cranbrook is a different sort of life really - much more rural and fewer opportunities for doing stuff with the children on your doorstep; you'd be in the car far more I imagine, but it is a lovely village. Cranbrook School is excellent (a state boarding school) and I believe is going to start taking children from 11, rather than 13, to tie in with the other state schools in the area. There is still the small matter of having to pass the entrance but that is the same for the comp/grammar schools in the rest of Kent anyway....and do not underestimate the competitive nature of the parenting and tutoring that goes on here .

With £600k you'd get a decent house in Tonbridge or TW....