Best area to live for school run in Fulham/Kensington Olympia

[zliyclh]

Not sure if this is the best place to ask but really struggling with this topic recently, so any help would be great.

Basically, we've decided to send ds to a bilingual prep that is based in Fulham but in the future they might move to Kensington Olympia area depending on planning permission. However, we've struggled to find a place nearby that is within our budget (1.3m), 3+ bed , accessible to green spaces and good community. Fulham is like an obvious choice but having visited there 5+ times we are not so much fan of the area (no community feel + parks are a bit of a let down). We like Brook Green but it seems to be beyond our budget. We think about moving to areas like Barnes and Chiswick and rely on public transport, but is District/Piccadily for a reception age boy too much to ask?

Any experience on morning tube school run (pre covid) would be deeply appreciated. Also please let us know if there are any surrounding areas that you would recommend. Thanks a lot!

Have you thought about Battersea? From Clapham Junction you could get a train to West Brompton and then the district line to Fulham. If the school moves to Kensington Olympia there’s a direct train which only takes about ten minutes. I used the latter for years and it was never particularly crowded during morning rush hour.

Thanks a lot @maybeshesawomble! We did visit Battersea but it seems that the properties we like are a bit far away from the station. Also we heard clapham junction in the morning is very busy , not sure if we want to have my son go through that. It's nice to know that the overground is not that busy. May I ask what time you usually travel? Is overground reliable?

How many sq ft are you looking for? That will probably make a significant difference. There’s three beds and then there’s three beds.

You could look at Wandsworth, there are buses that go over the river to Fulham. Out of interest, it’s not the French school is it? We applied (late) for a place at the Battersea one but were offered Fulham. In the end we turned it down in favour of a local pre-prep for the reasons you mention. Specifically I couldn’t be doing with dragging a 4 year old through Clapham junction of a morning and we didn’t want to move to Fulham.

Brackenbury has a great community feel and you might just find something there for your budget, much more community than Brook Green and lots of young families. Slightly cheaper off of the Askew Rd just north. There are actually quite a lot of French families around there. Barnes if fab but I wouldn't live south of the river if I had a school run on the other side. You should look at the streets north of Bishop's Park too as the prices start to drop (but less community than Brackenbury/Askew Rd).

@mobear at least 1100 I would think. We are actually ok with flat with access to communal garden but a lot of flats we've seen in W14, W8, SW5 are basement flats

@LakeShoreD thanks! Do you mean Putney and Wandsworth town?
It's actually a Chinese billingual school. Glad that you are on the same page, so you think a 4-yr old running in Clapham Junction will be a no-go?

Thanks a lot @Grimbelina, we will definitely take a look there. Do you live in the area? Any streets to avoid/look for when we search a house?

Lovely street:

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/79758498#/

Good value:

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/106243940#/

Both are these in the north west of Brackenbury so closer to Ravencourt Park.

I just pm'd you!

@zliyclh You can buy a 3 bed flat/ house in Fulham/ Parsons Green for £1.3m, you may not be that close to the Tube though and areas around there seem to have very small gardens. Wimbledon seems like the obvious choice to me but no one has mentioned it?

Thanks @mobear! Do you think wimbledon - fulham morning run will be too harsh for a reception age child? I tried it a month ago which was fine but that was in post covid world...

@zliyclh I’m afraid I don’t have any experience but am considering something similar with my DC (now < 1 year so we’re a while off). I have to say I think, dependent on the disposition of your child of course, it’s a part of growing up in London they’re going to have to get used to so I can’t personally see the harm in it. But that may be easier said than done!

Also I imagine investing in a good pram might help (if you’re DC is still using one). We just got a Joolz Aer and it’s amazing.

Sorry, I should also add I wouldn’t commute through Clapham Junction myself so definitely wouldn’t do it with a DC but I think Clapham Junction is a fairly unique proposition and they’re are only a few ‘hubs’ like that around London.

@mobear

Also I imagine investing in a good pram might help (if you’re DC is still using one). We just got a Joolz Aer and it’s amazing.

They are asking about taking a 4 or 5 year old to school on the tube. They're not going to be using a pram

@ChairmansReserve some schools I've looked at start at 3. Which is why I said if you're DC is still using one, obviously - but thanks!

[quote mobear]@ChairmansReserve some schools I've looked at start at 3. Which is why I said if you're DC is still using one, obviously - but thanks![/quote]
And OP has stated 'reception age child' in every one of her posts, including the very first one.

As if anyone would consider putting a school aged child in a pram on the tube. Bizarre.

@ChairmansReserve I find your attacks more bizarre. If it didn't apply to her, she could have disregarded what I said. I didn't tell her she had to put her child in a pram. And I apologise OP for this having slightly hijacked your thread.

No, it's more bizarre to be recommending specific brands of pram to someone who has repeatedly said the child concerned is FOUR years old.

I'm sorry you feel the need to get your kicks this way @ChairmansReserve. If you're implying I work for Joolz, that is even more bizarre. I was only trying to be helpful. You, however, are not.

Did you look at Putney? A bit further but you should get what you want there.

A lot of kids go to school on the bus so worth checking what the bus routes are like to his school and working back from there?

Parsons Green would be ideal
www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/107616836#/

@mobear thanks for your message! I totally understand what you mean, appreciate the help!

Thanks a lot @TheFunBus , we visited east Putney once but less impressed with the area as it seems to be very busy traffic. Is there any particular part of Putney you'd recommend pls?