Petts Wood or Beckenham?

[Lovetodream]

We’re looking to move possibly next year situation permitting from SE London. I have one DC who will be in Y2 next September and another 2 year old so good primary schools and secondary/grammar for the future are a priority. I’ve narrowed down Petts Wood and Beckenham that tick these boxes but can’t decide which one to go for?

Beckenham is on the edge of the inner/outer suburbs and Petts Wood is very leafy suburbia so they’re v different. Doesn’t one instinctively appeal over the other?

PW is more secluded and quiet compared to Beckenham (which has a nice busy High St, busier parks).

I've lived in both. As PPs have said, Beckenham has a much more urban London feel. Big high street, nice parks, quite built up.

Petts Wood is much greener, on the edge of countryside, small high street, a bit more of a villagey feel.

Both areas have a different feel. Beckenham is more hip, it has great parks and bigger nightlife but as it sprawls and has different parts it sometimes suffers from lack of community feel (coming from family who live in Beckenham) they love it there and wouldn’t dream of moving to Petts Wood as they see Petts Wood as too boring but I love PW for it’s sense of community, local shops etc. It doesn’t have the nightclubs that Beckenham has but then I am very happy that they are not on my doorstep, when I was younger they were a safe train ride away. There are nice restaurants and bars in PW but they are not so lively as Beckenham. Many central London Theatres are easier to access from Petts Wood due to the variety of train destinations.

Thank you for the feedback . We don’t have any energy for nightlife with 2 young DC , at the moment the priority is good schools and a local community connect which appears to be stronger in PW.

Petts Wood is quick to get to a main road and m25 where's Beckenham always has a half hour drive before you start getting out of London.

I think Petts Wood definitely has more of a community feel than Beckenham. It's much more villagey, lots of countryside.

I can't help much schools wise, but I know both areas are well served by primary schools.

Both great places for families, think it depends probably on what sort of vibe/facilities/transport would suit you, housing stock is more varied in Beckenham schools are very good & quite a bit on offer for young families & the parks are lovely, I’m in Beckenham if you want any information on roads etc.

If it’s all about schools, then you’ll get access to grammars from both locations. In terms of checking the non-selective catchments, you can go onto the website below as a good starting point for choosing a location.

www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/

I've lived near Pw and wouldn't want to live there. Calling it a village is an interesting take. It's just lots of houses, not particularly inspiring houses, station, a supermarket and some pubs. It's not like what I would imagine a village to be ( you know village green, canal / lake with ducks, cricket, tea rooms, pottery shop, quirky independents )

I'd prefer Beckenham, even with little ones. But a previous poster said I actually lived in Bromley, Shortlands area not since having kids because I cannot afford to live there and have moved a long way further out, to get not even a big house, but a lot more for my still cost me loads each month mortgage money. But I grew up living within different parts of the Borough of Bromley and most of my adult life.

And both PW & Beckenham are in the borough of Bromley.

Also Bromley Borough isn't in a grammar borough as far as I understand because there are only two selective schools one for boys ( St Olaves) and one for girls ( Newstead Wood) that cream off the brightest children via the 11+ exam and seem to call themselves Grammars to confuse things, but they are both in Orpington. Easy commute from PW for the girls on bus, as near Orpington station , and even the boys although it's a good walk from Orpington Station. There are other very good schools.

Anyway have you visited ? Beckenham has Waitrose, PW has Morrisons

Petts Wood is much much smaller. As a previous poster has said Beckenham stretches out much further. Many estate agents try and stretch Beckenham even further as well to what I would call Clock House and Penge. Though in fairness New Beckenham station exists.

If you are open minded to both perhaps just judge on what houses come up in a nice road. I was brought up in Beckenham when it was quite villagey. It’s certainly changed a lot since then. In normal times the High Street is very busy at pub/bar closing time and the big chain bars feature in the High Street. The same can’t be said of Petts Wood that is definitely much quieter as it’s not such a destination for an evening out.

There are some lovely areas of Beckenham with very expensive properties, then again there are some more run of the mill roads. But ultimately I would agree with the person who said up thread that it has a more urban feel.

What’s the budget as this could determine quite a lot.

I agree with the secondary schools @Inpensity as it appears as only Derrick Wood being a reputable one that restricts our options to the Crofton area. Private secondary will be the absolute last resort should 11 plus not work out or if we aren’t in catchment for a good state, but again as a previous poster said a lot can change in few years . I’m not keen on moving again for secondaries again on 5 years time. To be honest PW didn’t seem too different from where we live in the neighbouring borough but with definitely bigger houses.
Coming to Beckenham, we intend to drive around the area to get a feel as never been there before so have no idea which areas to avoid? We have a budget for 650-700k if you or that could reasonably fit on our budget In Beckenham that would be a starting point?

Petts Wood for secondary certainly isn't straightforward but then it also has lots of options partly due to great transport links which makes journeys short plus also on the cusp of various grammar regions. I know children who go to Darrick Wood, Chis & Sid, Townley, Newstead, St Olaves, Weald of Kent grammar, Coopers, Chislehurst School for girls, Ravenswood, The Brit School. Also private schools: Eltham College, Bromley High, JAGS, Babingtons, Farringtons, Whitgift, Colfes, Alleyns, Dulwich College.

For grammar you have three bites at the exams, for local grammars you have Newstead or Olaves. For Bexley you are usually in distance for most of the grammars and always Chislehurst & Sidcup grammar. For Kent for girls you just need a pass for Weald of Kent which has been in distance for recent years and for Kent grammars based on score you have Dartford Boys and Dartford Girls, both of which have a private coach stopping at PW. Then again for girls you have Tonbridge grammar.

For comprehensives as someone else has mentioned there is Darrick Wood (co-ed) which is generally only in catchment in recent years at the Crofton end of Petts Wood. Bullers girls (and more recently the new boys school) has been in catchment on and off and seems very random. For boys Ravens Wood is popular and well respected. For girls for comprehensives it is a slight challenge if you don't make the grammars or Darrick. Coopers (co-ed) and Chislehurst School for Girls haven't been top picks for a good while.

DD is at Newstead and has found that some of her friends who got into the school chose to move to Petts Wood after their younger siblings qualified for the school are now very happy and have access to lots of amenities. Before that it was lovely that we could be the hub for DD's friends and get to know them as apart from Orpington itself it was one of the few points that girls on the Beckenham and on the London Bridge lines converge.

@Lovetodream you would certainly find something in that price range don’t think any areas to avoid really, it’s generally a safe area also must admit my road has come into its own with the Covid WA support group everyone has been so helpful & it has really upped the community spirit it’s been the one bright spot, in recent times.