Anyone live in Richmond (London)

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What's it like to live there with kids? What's the commute like - does it get rammed? Is the plane noise bad or not too bad? Is there much to do with children? Is it friendly/community feel? I know it's expensive! Be good to hear views of people who have moved there with kids!

How old are your kids? Where are you commuting to? Which bit of Richmond are you thinking of living in? There are multiple answers to all these questions!

I'm interested in Richmond proper - south and east of the station or over towards st Margaret's. Commuting to cannon st so prob district line (is it busy coming back and is it delayed a lot?) And primary and toddler age. Maybe baby in future. Plan to stay throughout.

Perfect for families, if you can afford the housing. Plane noise varies hugely depending on if you are flight path in (horrendous and daily) or out (on rotation so not so bad).

St Margarets gets a lot of plane noise. You cant sleep with the windows open in the summer. Public transport links also aren't great. Buses are ok but a bit of a trek to the district line.

It does have a nice small village feel though.

Richmond proper is lovely but very expensive. Have you considered Acton near the district line? It's more affordable, transport links are much better and there is less plane noise.

Have you considered Acton near the district line? It's more affordable, transport links are much better and there is less plane noise

The less plane noise is relevant, but price not. The OP might be fucking minted and good luck to her.

Personally having stayed with my fucking minted friend there, the plane noise was awful.

How about North Kingston or Ham/Petersham. Minutes away from Richmond but not under flight path (except very occassional Sunday when they change - once in a blue moon). 24hr bus to Richmond for train/ tube or 24hr bus to Kingston. All the lovely things still on door step - richmond park, bushy park, river, shopping.

Richmond is beautiful and a lovely place to live. The plane noise, however, is MENTAL. When we moved away, I swore we would NEVER live under a flight path ever again. We have lived in two places since where there was a small amount of occasional plane noise and it reminded me of the horror of the planes. I did love living there though..

It woke me at 6am and it was just awful

Richmond proper is very very expensive. I live in the neighbouring postcode near North Sheen and closer to Kew. Much less plane noise. The main thing to think about in the borough is school catchment. They are TINY.
It’s a lovely place though. Very very family friendly. Loads to do with kids.

I live there plane noise doesn’t bother me but probably because our alarms go off about when the planes start!

We live in St Mags and it’s lovely.
Trains are Ok get rammed further in.
Around Twickenham station is also ok

I was a live in nanny in Richmond for a while, my bedroom was a loft conversion and the noise from the planes was horrendous, I could never have my windows open. I would never go and live there again even if I had the money to buy in London. I liked the area itself though.

Regardless of where you are in Richmond, it's hard to avoid plane noise! St Margaret's is gorgeous if you can afford it - and the walk into Richmond proper is lovely.

Petersham is also lovely (where I am so I'm biased!) - planes can be annoying but don't impact our sleep and we are in a loft with windows open in Summer.

Schools are generally quite good from what I hear. I have a toddler and another due at the end of the year. We moved here last Summer - Have found there is loads to do with little ones and found playgroups incredibly friendly and accessible. The high street is painfully busy at the weekend but weekdays a great place to shop.

I commute on the district and quite like it - as long as you get there a good 5 mins before the train leaves you'll get a seat and have a decent journey. There's delays yes but I don't think the district as as awful as it once was for these!

The plane noise doesn't bother me. We are directly under one of the flight paths and I really don't notice it. However, full disclosure, I have lived under this flight path since I was a small child so maybe I have just learnt to block it out.

Schools are all good at primary level and mostly good at secondary level. Think carefully about catchments if there are schools you prefer. If you are not too fussy then in fact all the schools are good, even the less popular ones.

There is lots to do with children.

I would recommend it as a place to live but would also take a look at Kew if you are after that villagey feel - it's a lot more friendly than Richmond proper IMO. St Margaret's also villagey but transport is less good if you want the District line.

District line is rammed, yes.

Thanks everyone. Hmmm the plane noise seems a bit annoying. I think it may bother me too much. Where is the best bit in Richmond to avoid it? We liked Teddington but the commute too long.
Apart from the noise, is it generally quite welcoming/easy going?
Maybe Wimbledon would be better. It just felt more suburban there and I like the idea of being near the river and a nice town centre.

Oh and yes to Petersham but same issue as Teddington and the commute.

Will look at Kew. For some reason I thought the plane noise was worse there than Richmond.

You can't really avoid plane noise in Richmond. It is everywhere. Kew also has plane noise. You would probably get used to it. DH did. Concorde used to wake him up in the mornings for about six months when we lived in central Richmond but that doesn't exist any more. And by the time it didn't exist he'd learnt to ignore it.

I lived between Richmond and Twickenham for 8 years or so, you definitely get used to plane noise. I found it odd not to have it once I moved away! St Margarets was my favourite place ever to live as a nanny, so much stuff going on for kids. Good community feel, nice shops. If it was affordable I'd still be there.

It’s a great area to live with kids. Very friendly community feel, loads to do and all within walking distance. There’s lots of green space - Kew Gardens, Richmond Park, Richmond Green, Marble Hill park etc and lovely walks along the river.

Commuting to Cannon Street is quickest if you get the normal train to Waterloo, the Waterloo and city line to Bank and walk from there. The tube is also a great back up for if the train isn’t running for any reason which is pretty rare.

There is some plane noise but it really varies, literally from street to street. You can look up flight paths online but planes seem to fly in over Kew Gardens, Richmond Green and then down over the A316. The further away from there the less noise. So Richmond Hill area, East Twickenham and the bit of St Margaret’s around Marble Hill Park are okay for noise in my opinion.

Not sure about specific roads in Kew but Kew Gardens has bad plane noise. Something about wide open spaces not having buildings to absorb the noise as well as planes directly overhead according to DH.

Teddington also has a lovely family feel and nice restaurants and Petersham/Ham are quiet and villagey but both have less good transport options.

I would suggest having a drive and walk around the area and see what you think.

Provided you have a hefty budget then it’s a great place . Downside is quite a lot of expats in Richmond proper who can be transient

I live in Richmond. It is a wonderful place to live. You get used to plane noise. Our bedroom is in the attic and we sleep soundly with the windows open.

Hi, any new comments in this post regarding Ham live please ? I’m thinking in moving around there , deciding between Teddington and Ham . Any help please .

We are thinking of moving to Richmond and looking up on Richmond Hill. It’s not possible to judge plane noise now because there are so few planes - any recent wisdom that anyone could share?

Imo the planes are worst in Kew.
Richmond hill I think is ok

Plane noise is bad. Very crowded High st and by the river. But it does look great, and commuting is ok.