Hackbridge /Wallington. Dish the dirt!

[Moomin12345]

So I'm considering a move to Hackbridge or Wallington (basically the same area). However, there are a few things that concern me:

1. The giant sewage treatment plant nearby. How often will it smell? I've googled it and they seem to have addressed the issue, but it's still a worry.
2. the newly built incinerator at the Croydon landfill. I know that the pollution should be blowing mainly towards Croydon (East) but the air quality in Wallington /Hackbridge will probably also suffer.
3. the river and flood risk.
4. the general barren quality of the area.

Who lives there and has any views on the above? Do you like the place? Why (not)?

I’m not far away. Not a fan of Hackbridge as there doesn’t seem to be anything there, no real centre etc Lots of new developments, though.

Wallington has much more to it (I mean Wallington proper not the bit in Hackbridge called Wallington).

What sort of property are you after? Any lifestyle needs? Children?

Oh, and commuting? The trains from the two stations go slightly different ways.

My only lifestyle needs are : big rooms in the house as I'm fed up with small spaces, no more than 0.5 mile from a station going into Central London, medium/large garden. I work long hours on weekdays so I'm not too fussed about entertainment and shopping. I can always do that in Central London or online.

If it's just about a spacious roof over your head and a good commute, then Hackbridge is better as its zone 4 and you can go to either Victoria or take the Thameslink up to Blackfriars, City Thameslink, X Cross etc. Wallington is in zone 5 and would only be better if you need London Bridge.
Hackbridge has plenty of 3-bed terraces/semis with good gardens too. If by spacious rooms/large garden you mean a big detached with 100ft+ deep garden, then they don't really exist in Hackbridge but there are plenty in Wallington.
In terms of the sewage plant, it can definitely be smelled in Beddington on some days but I've never smelled it in Hackbridge or Wallington town centre and would be very surprised if the smell ever travelled that far.

I live in Wallington and have done for 25 years! . If you read the local fb page it's full of marauding teenagers and a dump. It's not true! It has a decent high street. Housing is slightly cheaper than sutton / carshalton. It's not far from Croydon so you can easily get a bus there to pick up trains to Gatwick / Brighton. It tries to have some community stuff- there was a music festival this weekend. You can also get buses to morden to pick up the tube.

I personally would not live in hackbridge. There is a lot of development going on (prices for new builds seem very high!). I agree that it seems characterless there. It does however have quicker trains!

If I was moving I would probably pick to live on the carshalton side of Wallington as then you can also walk and pick up carshalton trains which include Thames link.

Carshalton ponds is also lovely. And lots of green space in general in the area.

Don't know if you have / will have children but schools are good in Wallington / carshalton although there are a few Black hole areas.

Feel free to let me know roads / areas you are thinking of and budgets and I can try and advise more!

Wallington is very different between the bottom end which runs into hackbridge and the top end!

@Toomanycats99
Seems a bit pointless for the OP to come out to Wallington if they don't want to use any amenities and just want a spacious property with a garden near a station.

But yes, to anyone else interested in the areas, Wallington has good amenities for families, good schools, music festival, farmer's market, greenery and my favourite garden centre ;) and lovely period properties that are relatively affordable.

@Toomanycats99, why wouldn't you live in Hackbridge? Is it just its lack of character? I was thinking I could take the bus and go to the centre of Wallington on Saturdays to shop or eat out. It takes 10-15 minutes, so it shouldn't be a horrendous inconvenience. On weekdays I'm too knackered to be bothered with evening entertainment.

Just lack of character and lack of a proper town centre I guess. I also think it looks a bit more built up and packed in than Wallington - although I guess that could just be the roads I see from the main road as I suppose that's what I think of as hackbridge!

They have recently opened a sainburys In the new development but other than that it's just a few little shops from what I remember seeing.

Wallington has a library, couple of proper size supermarkets. Just a bit more to it and I feel I can wander in do all my bits & pieces without needing a car.

OP, just do what feels right for you. I like walking places and have everything on my doorstep but I'm a SAHM so I'm around every day.

If you aren't around much and you feel like commute times are the priority and you aren't fussed about being a 2-min walk from amenities, then Hackbridge will the right choice for you. If you want to go somewhere at weekends, it won't take long to get to one of the surrounding areas for shopping/swimming/whatever else.

I live between Wallington and Hackbridge, I agree Hackbridge lacks character and shops the new developments are bringing several shops including a new supermarket and coffee shop. The area is zone 4 and takes around 25 mins to get to Central London. There is also a tram stop a short walk or bus ride which gets you to Wimbledon or Croydon in about 15 mins. There is also buses to Sutton, Wallington and Tooting from Hackbridge.

The new developments are really going to improve the area, and there are some signs of gentrification such as the pub offering gastro food .

In regards to smell it happened very rarely and never in recent times. The incinerator is closer to Croydon and Mitcham.

My advice would be to look around the Hackbridge or Carshalton stations. The Carshalton/Wallington/Hackbridge areas all sort of merge so saying that say Carshalton is significantly different to Wallington is ridiculous as both high streets are about half a kilometre apart.

These two are both near the stations.

www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/51012953

www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/51797777?search_identifier=dd2cff98b64b235a01180d710d0e9f0e

The Carshalton/Wallington/Hackbridge areas all sort of merge so saying that say Carshalton is significantly different to Wallington is ridiculous as both high streets are about half a kilometre apart

Don't know about that... Carshalton Village is gorgeous and I do go there to just walk around, have a coffee or lunch etc. I doubt anyone would ever go to enjoy Wallington High Street for its visual appeal and in Hackbridge there isn't anywhere to go. And South Wallington or Carshalton Beeches are a different world to Hackbridge altogether.

What i mean is Carshalton and Wallington are very near each other to the point where its hard to distinguish where one stops and starts. You can live in Carshalton and be a 5 min walk from Wallington town centre.

You are right about Hackbridge being a world a way from south wallington and The beeches. The north of the Borough is closer to Central London and more built up.

Thanks everyone! :) I can see that Hackbridge is definitely not one of the nicest areas around Carshalton/Wallington, but I'd be able to get a lot more space for my money, so I'm very tempted. I'll drive around and explore a bit more.

Hello,
I'm considering Wallington to move and I've seen nice properties near Mellows Park.
Can someone give me some insights about the area? To me it looks nice and safe but I'm a bit worried about the smell and related pollution coming from the incinerator...
Thanks

Used to work there and visit a lot of houses. Wallington is nice, Hackbridge is er, less so. Never noticed a smell. The Beeches is indeed a different world to both.

Yes the Beeches is nice but not affordable at all. That's good to hear that Wallington is nice. Is there any area you would avoid in Wallington?