Talk to me about Carshalton

[Newname500]

Hello wise mumsnetters.

After what feels like years going round in circles about to where to live to get more space (currently in a 2 bed flat in SE15) DH and I have landed on Carshalton.

On paper it ticks all our boxes - a good choice of commutes to central London, easy to get back to friends in Tooting/Furzedown and Clapham, good primary and secondary state schools (we have DC4 and one on the way), nice houses with big gardens, and a nice looking centre with a strong community feel.

Is this actually how it is? Or too good to be true? Our budget is 750k and we want 3 or 4 bed, happy to do some work but would need to be over time so needs to be immediately liveable.

What are the best roads? Where to avoid? I know Carshalton Beeches is the nicer area but what roads about nearer Carshalton station? The connections from there are better for us. Any state secondary blackspots?

There's something on in Coleridge Ave in Poets Estate at the moment that looks nice - any views on that road?

I love living in Zone 2 but we just can't afford the space we want here so looking further out the burbs, which i never thought I'd do. Feeling a bit nervy about leaving the ease, creativity and buzz of inner London, so keen to hear the positives of the area :-)

Sorry for all the questions and thank you in advance for any insight Carshalton/Sutton residents can shed!

Hopeful bump!

I think you have pretty much summed up the positives and negatives in your op.

You can get something Like this but it is less edgy than where you currently live.

South of carshalton station in general nicer than north.

Thanks @PurpleBrocadePeacock thats a nice house!

Any views on the Poets Estate and Coleridge Ave? Its the other side of the train tracks so not sure if different vibe?

I don’t know that road in particular but there are some roads around there which are nice.

It is best to arrange more than one viewing on a Saturday to get a feel for the different places. One of our priorities was a quiet road and this is hard to know unless you visit.

Yes, it really is that good. It’s the kind of area where you can go for a walk late at night and not feel nervous.

Lovely nearby parks, decent-sized houses and gardens, busy local high streets, sought after schools, and the commute is perfectly do-able.

I have lived in inner London in an area that is now eye-wateringly expensive and, much as I loved that house, I would not go back even if I could afford it.

Do come and see for yourselves.

Name changed for this as giving away my location! We are on the Poets Estate right near Coleridge and I love it. We moved here about 5 years ago. We chat to lots of the neighbours, mostly families with school age children and retired people. Trains way better than Carshalton Beeches but Beeches is walkable if you need that line. You are also far enough out to usually get a seat and can take a bus to Morden if needed.

Victor Seymour and St Mary's are both good schools. Secondary you have Greenshaw, Carshalton Boys/Girls and the grammar schools, plus St Philomena's if Catholic. Some of these schools are less popular than the uber popular schools elsewhere in the borough but they are still decent schools and improving.

You can walk to Carshalton and Sutton. Sutton is being redeveloped and has a decent range of shops, alongside some grittier parts! You are in easy reach of Westcroft Leisure Centre, lots of parks, Ecology Centre. Some nice pubs/restaurants e.g. the Sun, Ginger Italian. My only gripe is less choice if eating out but Wimbledon isn't far and there are more options appearing e.g. a newish sushi place in Sutton. We eat out far less now with kids anyway! Lots of kids activities nearby.

Happy to answer any specific questions if you want.

I know two friends in CB who struggled with secondary options as they didn't think their dc were suited for grammar. One moved to WP/Cheam to access an excellent state secondary & the other went catholic so may be worth checking your options.

Thanks all this is such helpful information. It does indeed seem to be a great option and we are hoping to head there this weekend to view a couple of houses and spend the day in the area.

@wallpower that's my fear - do you know which side of CB they were on? Is it the Wallington side? Obviously great to have the grammar option but Im very keen to have good state school options too, so want to make sure we don't end up somewhere out of catchment for that.

@CarshaltonMum thanks for the info! And good to know the Poets estate is a a good shout, on paper the location does look very convenient.
Schools wise, It seems that the Sutton side of CB and Carshalton are the best bets for state secondaries? I know that secondaries can change fast but it's good to know they are improving.
I had a look at Victor Seymour - as it's only an infant school, where do they go once they leave year 2? I couldn't figure it out from the website!

My nerves mainly come from feeling cut off/bored, as I'm so used to being surrounded by hustle and bustle and people (but this is also starting to get too much, hence the hankering for more peace and quiet). A strong community vibe is really important to me, but so is a decent amount of diversity - we are a mixed race family and obviously fit right in in SE15, but hopefully Carshalton (as it's still London) is pretty diverse to?

Good to hear that Sutton is on the up too. I'/ve never been but a lot of mumsnet posters seem to take quite a dim view of it. Definitely need to check it out for myself.

I don't know re sides I'm afraid.

One ended up in Cheam high because they moved to WP & one stayed & went down the catholic route. The one in WP also had the choice of another good school beginning with G can't remember the name & also the option of Tiffin from memory.

I know Sutton ish as went to school in Wimbledon & had a few school friends from there. It's improved a bit re the town centre & places like Cheam village have always been nice. Think it's pretty diverse too.
CB is very leafy & pretty but it's a bit too country for me if that makes sense (yes I know it's not country but from my perspective). I prefer the area my friend is in WP & NM because of the high street & closer to Kingston/Wimbledon.
If crossrail 2 does go ahead that side is included.
One thing good about Sutton is it's very green & safe.

My nerves mainly come from feeling cut off/bored, as I'm so used to being surrounded by hustle and bustle and people (but this is also starting to get too much, hence the hankering for more peace and quiet).

completely get this, I love a buzz but sometimes find it too much.
If I was you you need to find a house that is close to transport links, shop & green space so you can walk to anything you need.

Re diversity one of my friends mentioned is Asian & grew up in there. There's also a big Korean community in New Malden, some good food options!

Thanks @wallpower , some helpful insight there. New Malden etc doesn't work as well for us commute wise. We were originally looking at Beckenham but now appear to be priced out...so have shifted our focus West a bit.
Just had a look at some of the sutton town centre regeneration plans which look exciting.

@Newname500 dont mention the regeneration plans to anyone from Sutton - we are all pretty pissed off about them. Anyhow, yes its safe, good schools, green and cheap. If I were hedging my bets about schools then you should be more towards Central Sutton than Carshalton so you can access Glenthorne (banding system anyway), Greenshaw and the Harris. The secondaries in Carshalton itself arent well thought of if you arent catholic.

But yes it is a bit too good to be true which is why prices have gone up a lot recently - well that and the fact that the area is very attractive to families from Hong Kong.

Thanks @omnishambles and sorry to hear you're not pleased about the regeneration plans. Do you mind if I ask why?

No, I dont mind. Because we already have a perfectly good library, adult education centre etc without replacing shops with them. The high street has improved massively over the last five years with new shops, restaurants, even a music venue and the shopping centre is well loved. The worry is that we will lose some of the anchor stores because of this - i.e. Primark etc and not replace it with anything that we really want.

@Newname500 Victor Seymour feeds in to Harris Juniors. Harris doesn't have such a good reputation but it is a decent (and improving) school. My kids will go there and I have friends with kids already there.

IMO the schools in Sutton are basically all good (in the general sense, rather than Ofsted ratings). People work hard to get into the most popular ones but the less popular ones are still generally ok.

For seconday you have:

• Grammar schools - some love them, some hate them
• St Phils - popular but you need to be Catholic
• Glenthorne (probably the one Wallpower means) and Cheam High which are super popular and broadly comprehensive, although Glenthorne has a complicated admissions policy where if you score highly enough in the banding test you are likely to get in from further away. Harris Belmont is probably in with these popular schools now. All of these are too far away from Carshalton apart from what I mentioned before.
• Greenshaw - mixed 'comprehensive' although some selective places. Poets Estate likely to just be in catchment but varies
• Carshalton Girls (now in a trust with the girls grammars.) Less popular but decent IMO. Carshalton Boys similar and has a new sports programme.
• Oaks Park used to be Stanley Park. Has had a weak rep but improving I think - this is closer to Beeches although some go from Poets area

People worry about Carshalton Boys and Girls and Oaks Park, which puts them off the area. I honestly think they will be much better in a few years (already more popular).

@CarshaltonMum thanks so much that's so helpful. Yes everything I can find online rates Greenshaw and Glenthorne (and obviously the grammars) but very little mention of the other comps if you're out of catchment of those.

We are viewing some houses this weekend to get a feel for the area - looking forward to it!

The Sutton.gov website is very helpful in terms of admissions. There is a distance calculator and you can see how far out each school admitted in the last 3 years. Although it is only how far they offered on offer day, and presumably they offer extra off the waiting list later. We are literally around the corner and would have got into Greenshaw most years on admissions day, so I hope we would be fine if we choose that school.

Good luck viewing. I hope you find something that is right for you!

Agree with this. Carshalton Boys & Carshalton girls aren’t the best. Glenthorne, Greenshaw and the new Harris better options if you stick towards the Sutton end of Carshalton. Oaks Park if you’re more deep in Carshalton Beeches, or Wallington. Not had the best rep, but is on the up, for sure. Woodcote High is good also if you wanted to look at Wallington as an option. There’s not a lot in Carshalton Beeches except the best bakery in the world (Stennings)! The doughnuts are exceptional!

Is Poets Estate a desirable area of Sutton? I keep seeing it namedropped on Rightmove listings in Sutton but there isn't much information about it online e.g. what are the actual streets within Poet's Estate, why is it good to be in Poet's Estate, etc.

The Poets Estate is the area roughly between Coleridge Avenue and Byron Avenue, where the roads are named after poets. It's quite desirable due to the housing stock (3/4 bed semi or detached houses from 1930s with decent sized gardens) and fairly quiet roads. There are people on our road who have lived there for 50+ years, in some cases moving out of their childhood home into another house on the street. It's pretty much all residential though, nothing particularly exciting. There are other similar areas around e.g. in Carshalton Beeches, although the transport links are probably a bit better from the Poets Estate. The only issue is admissions for primary schools can be a bit tricky if you are the Sutton end of the area.