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Original poster

Hornchurch, Elm Park,Gidea Psrk,Upminster

67 replies

MumOfOneCutie · 11/02/2022 18:44

Hi all,

With my husband and 1yo son, we are considering moving to Hornchurch from South East London...we first wanted to go to Watford but it seems like we can have more for our money in Hornchurch. However it seems that Hornchurch is not as diverse than Watford, am i correct to think that? Any advice on a good area? And good nursery too please? We are working from home for now but still would need to go to central London and Canary Wharf some times, the district line is usual good, right ? I also see that Gidea park is a nice area but might be too close to Romford where I think it's a bit less safe, isn't?
My son is doing swimming lesson too so it's something we would like to pursue at Hornchurch.
Any thoughts on those areas from local mums?
Thank you.

OP posts:
Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 12/02/2022 08:17

@NoToLandfill I just find that so unreal to have to think of primary and even secondary school already, my son is 1yo and doesn't even walk yet lol but you are absolutely right, thank you for remind me school catchment. I have a read on how it's work and had an headache Confusedahah , I look at Localerating website which makes things easier to visualise the catchment area.

Good to know for the traffic, we really preferred to do most thing by foot, like nursery dropping, going yo the park, small shopping. The air quality is good at Havering, so let's keep it that way Wink

By diversity, I mean people from different ethnic, social backgrounds... a real mealting pot like london as we are multicultural/bi-racial family, even if people are welcoming I just want to be sure we won't feel like we don't fit if that makes sense. Especially for my boy at school, I wouldn't like him to be the only non white british kid. But it's seem that it's actually alright at Havering.
He also will speak 3 languages, we hope lol. So having people speaking different languages around him is good to have too.

I also wonder why this area is not more trendy, that why I thought it might not be so diverse. I was looking online for good commuters town and what's came up is mostly St Albans or other Essex towns....Good for us though, more chance to find our dream house ahah Grin

Many thanks again

OP posts:
Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 12/02/2022 08:23

@HeyRememberThatTime thank you very much for those details and the property example.
It is my first thread on Mumsnet and I'm so glad I asked. You are really lovely people to took on your time to advice me. And we know how mums are busy ahah....I will keep you guys posted, finger crossed we'll get the high price on our flat to be able to offer our dream house. Sounds like there is a nice community there.
All of this is so helpful.

Many Many thanks and keep safe all

OP posts:
Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 12/02/2022 09:10

Locrating* for the school catchment sorry

OP posts:
NoToLandfill · 12/02/2022 09:40

Your son definitely will not be the only white child in his class in Upminster!
Plus the local police seem to be ok. They cycle around on mountain bikes. And the local residents association councillors are really engaged and push for what local people actually want.

I honestly think it's classism stopping this area considered by people.

HeyRememberThatTime · 12/02/2022 09:54

Yes it's hard to think about schools when it feels so far off, and of course schools can change, but if you're planning to stay put for a while I think it's worth making sure you have a couple of decent options now and then hopefully at least one of them will still be decent when the time comes.

Oh and as for nurseries, Fledgelings nr Hornchurch station has a good rep, as does Creative Kids (branches in Hornchurch and Emerson Park). I'm sure there are plenty of others.

HeyRememberThatTime · 12/02/2022 09:56

Gidea Park and Emerson Park I mean

Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 12/02/2022 10:13

Well noted Smile
BTW any thought on Upminster Bridge? There are some nice houses ,a nice kind of park and Hacton primary school nearby.
We are leaving soon to visit all this with your advises in mind

OP posts:
HeyRememberThatTime · 12/02/2022 10:24

Yes Upminster Bridge is a good option, a short walk from either Hornchurch or Upminster centres. Hacton is very good as is Branfill, I have friends with children at both and they're all very happy.

NoToLandfill · 12/02/2022 14:39

If you want him in a popular nursery I'd advise having a tour and putting his name down.

HeyRememberThatTime · 12/02/2022 20:00

How did you get on today, @mumofonecutie? Was there anywhere you could see yourselves living?

Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 12/02/2022 20:32

@HeyRememberThatTime, that was really nice, I was pleasantly surprised by Upminster, my husband really preferred Hornchurch and I get what people says about Elm Park. We didn't have enough time to go to Gidea Park but we will come back anyway, we need to see the arra at night as well ...We are giving up an Watford
and we will be looking around Hornchurch and Upminster for sure. We would prefer to be closer to the town center of Hornchurch but that mean being away from the station,
it's a compromise we need to think about. Upminster will be handy to have the train and the town center but the parks are not as nice as in Hornchurch and propertymore expensive. So it will depend on the house we can find, school catchment as well. But we are narrowing down our search thanks to you all. I hope you enjoyed your Saturday with this sunny weather 😊

OP posts:
CellophaneFlower · 12/02/2022 22:22

If you're nearer Hornchurch High Street, you're max 10 mins on a bus to Romford station anyway. And there are 3+ very regular buses that go there Smile

Chestofdraws · 12/02/2022 22:27

I’d negotiate and you might get this, maybe with a little stretch,

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/117350438#/?channel=RES_BUY

Starseeking · 12/02/2022 22:34

@HeyRememberThatTime

With your budget and criteria, I'd be looking at this one: www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/117369044?utm_campaign=property-details&utm_content=buying&utm_medium=sharing&utm_source=copytoclipboard#/&channel=RES_BUY

Not the biggest but I think he location makes up for it.

The noise from the train sidings must be horrific from that property; it would give me pause for thought.

I don't know anything about those areas OP, however I do have a friend who raves about Gidda Park and how fabulous it is. I haven't been able to visit her at home yet, however she has very high standards, so I'm inclined to believe it's a great area.

AwkwardPaws27 · 13/02/2022 11:30

[quote Chestofdraws]I’d negotiate and you might get this, maybe with a little stretch,

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/117350438#/?channel=RES_BUY[/quote]
I doubt you'd get it for less unfortunately - like many areas houses are selling quickly here & seem to be going for asking or even above asking.
A family member has just SSTC in Gidea Park and they did one day of viewings. There was so much interest the agents didn't do any further viewings after that and just asked for best and final offers.

Chestofdraws · 13/02/2022 11:49

Worth a try though…

Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 13/02/2022 12:02

Thank you for the property examples. We will proceed step by step, so selling our flat first, having a offer at least, and then see really how much we can put on the table....I agree, the property market is so fast I doubt we could offer less than the asking price on some houses. Even for us as sellers we won't go low and already know that it can sell quickly......I can't wait to really start looking for a house, just annoying that is far from us to go do the viewings and then to move with a 1yo and a cat that hates her carrier bag ConfusedGrin

OP posts:
NoToLandfill · 13/02/2022 13:16

Ah yes houses are selling very fast. They sell on the first day of viewings. And your offer won't be accepted unless you are in a position to move. It's harsh! You need to be friends with the estate agents and get on their call lists for when houses go on the market.

Soooo much nicer than Watford, it will be worth the move

Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 13/02/2022 14:18

Yeah definitely better choice than Watford, I'm glad I came across an article on Havering...We are currently in South East London, really like where we are but really out of budget to get a house....for example our neighbours just put their house on the market for £1.4milions, just found out, I'm still in shock ahah...but their house is so beautiful. We have a maisonette, conversion flat, so half of what they have but I doubt we will get half of this price ahah....anyway thank you all, I'll keep you updated, not sure how long it will take though

OP posts:
HornchurchClaire · 13/02/2022 14:52

Just reading this thread. I have sent you a direct message @MumOfOneCutie. Please feel free to reach out directly as happy to share my experiences and thoughts of Hornchurch, Romford Gidea Park etc. Claire x

NoToLandfill · 13/02/2022 21:12

Yay let's do a hornchurch Mumsnet meet up when you move!

Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 13/02/2022 21:35

That would be great, I'll keep you all postedSmile

OP posts:
areyouhavingagiraffe · 14/02/2022 10:51

Hi Op, I've been looking in those areas for nearly a year. For some reason, I was obsessed with Gidea Park, loads of people telling me how lovely it is. I have seen so many houses in RM2. Last month, I had an offer accepted on a probate property in RM2. I spent the weekend wandering around the area, round the station, on Main Road and then a bus into Romford. I live near Ilford at the moment, so I know Romford pretty well, but not Gidea Park. Anyway, I pulled out my offer, I just don't think Gidea Park was for me, I didn't understand why people rate it so much. Main Road was a ghost town!!!!!!!!!! Perhaps it is the schools (?), but I don't have kids so this doesn't impact me. I have decided to stop looking in Gidea Park, and am focussing on Hornchurch, which I think has such a lovely High Street.

Original poster
MumOfOneCutie · 14/02/2022 11:07

@areyouhavingagiraffe thank you for this feedback. I haven't visited GP but for what I see on Google street view it seems to be indeed quite 'dead' . We have a 1yo but still would prefer to be closer to a nice town centre . Especially being most of the time at home, when we are out we want to see a bit of life, without having to take the car or walk too much. We don't have a lot of time for lunch for example. So yes I understand what you mean, we will still go have a look but seems to be pretty sure to go either in Hornchurch or Upminster if we can afford it.Smile

OP posts:
CellophaneFlower · 14/02/2022 18:25

I think the thing with Gidea Park is just that it's an affluent part of an area. It's not a town, therefore doesn't have a High Street, or much in particular going on, that's all in the town, Romford. It's like Emerson Park is to Hornchurch. Sought after and ridiculously expensive, but at the end of the day it's just a small part of Hornchurch with large, detatched houses.