Kensal Rise/Queens Park

[househunter2]

hi all, I am new to mumsnet so hope this works. My husband and I are looking to move house. We have been looking at Balham but are now looking at QP/Kensal Rise. We can't afford QP so are looking near Kensal Rise station. Kensal Rise is a good location for both sets of in-laws. Can someone tell me what it is like around there? Is it safe? Are the primary schools good? What are the green spaces like? what are the locals like?

We don't have children yet but are looking for a forever home. We both have elderly parents so would like somewhere where they feel safe and enjoy too.

Thank you!

Hi there,

I live in Queens Park and love the area. It's relatively safe and lots of good supermarkets and other useful shops nearby.

Like any area there are good schools and bad schools. There's also a lot of faith schools so if your children are baptised then you stand a better chance of getting into an excellent school.

Transport links are excellent with both the Bakerloo line and Overground.

Have you also looked at the Brondesbury Park area?

Thank you @roses2. We can't afford Brondesbury Park so are looking at streets near Kensal Rise station. We wondered how the area around there was. We do love Queens Park but can't afford it

The schools aren't great. We were just talking about this yesterday. I love that area, by the way. I came to London over 20 years ago and always lived around Kensal Rise/Queens Park and surrounding areas. But honestly, the schools aren't brilliant. There are better areas for schools. You want to look by borough. Brent isn't great. Neither is Hounslow. But there are areas like Chiswick within Hounslow where there are some fantastic schools. Borough of Richmond, London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and the Royal Borough of Greenwich have excellent primary and secondary schools. You might want to really consider those areas.

I'd actually disagree with the schools not being great.

Princess Frederica school is one of the best in the country although it is faith based.

The Ark Franklin Academy also has good SATS results and great facilities.

Thanks all. What about the area around Kensal Rise. Is it safe?

Personally- and I love Kensal Rise for nostalgic reasons- I would not buy there. I wouldn't raise kids there if I had other choices. From a safety point of view, yes, there are burglaries and muggings. It can and does happen. This is London though and it happens.
Where do the in-laws live?

Brent is a shitty borough, tbh. And that counts for a lot. Don't underestimate the borough you're buying into. It's easy to not look beyond the immediate area. But you have to look at the borough as a whole and it's not a good one.