Raising teens in London - good areas?

[Citylifemum]

I listed a question in another section but users suggested I try asking on this forum.

I've one young child, a boy, and TTC. We live in London and will remain here due to our jobs and because we like everything it has to offer, the diversity and the variety. At the moment the area we live in was great pre-kids but isn't very suitable for family life.

I am looking ahead to teenage years / secondary school and aware of the rise in problems young people face as I work with young people in a support sector. Like all parents I want to do my best to support my DC to stay safe and thrive.

I'm wondering if we would do well to choose the area we want to live in now whilst DS is still small, and make a go of it in a new area with a view to staying there until DC have left home. My concerns are finding good Co-Ed secondary schools (not Catholic) and it being a good safe area for teenagers (as far as possible). Obviously I know that nowhere is untouched by violence, gangs or drugs etc. but some areas are better than others.

We are fortunate enough to have a pretty healthy budget for a home so lots of London would be available to us but as a newish mum it's the first time I've looked round London areas through a family lens.

What are other peoples experiences of raising children / teens in London and areas which tick most of the boxes?

Schools change - what is good now may not been good once your kid is that age!

Well we have to move as the current area isn't family friendly at all, so we need to make a choice even if we end up moving again when DC in Year 5.

God I am SO jealous. We left Greenwich for the South West beach dream..

I want the beach dream! can't leave the family support network though particularly as they get older.

I think Alexandra Palace can be hit and miss, you have great schools and a nice community but it's a fair walk to Bounds Green or Alexandra Park Station if you're planning to be in the catchment for Rhodes or APS. Saying that, Bounds Green primary and Heartlands are both really good schools too.
It's an amazing community, tons for kids to do, you have NLPAC, Colourstrings, the scouts ground by the tube and Haringey does lots for the kids in half terms and summers. Tons of sports clubs incl Haringey Aquatics. There's a pretty big summer exodus to Cornwall and Corfu there though. It's lovely to drive there in August, no traffic at all.

Well @Citylifemum - we are from the SW so we should have known better but the kids are so miserable now since leaving London. No amount of dreary mizzle beaches and opportunities to surf / sailing is going to help.

Stuff / indoor things have shut down, open seasonally or only open until Saturday lunchtimes! "Stuff" closes at 4pm on weekdays...

Opportunities for older kids are slim to none.

Jobs: best salary I can get within a 200 mile radius is £20k less than my SE salary. (It didn't matter when we moved but I was made redundant from a fully remote role!)

It's gone from a life full of buzz and opportunity. To bleak groundhog dayish.

😭 can't even afford Bristol either! Which is the perfect inbetween.

Good god I don’t think OP wants to be anywhere near Hackney, she’s looking for somewhere her son will be safe hanging out! I know there are some lovely looking roads but they are very close to some stabby roads and teenage boys wander.

OP I don’t know any London areas I’d be happy to raise a child in unfortunately. I grew up in a nice safe leafy area of London and yet was robbed / groped / harassed numerous times. Much prefer the commuter belt.

Just want to add that the salaries here are usually below £25k.

😳

This is a really good point. This rules out some areas of south london possibly...

Well actually, don't rule it out! I now I live in South London (Dulwich area) and we live right by the train station.
This is why I reiterated Tube OR Train.
Love the trains, transport links are brilliant in SE London despite no 'tube'. Also don't forget, a lot of SE London also have the Overground.

And I second/third/tenth?! lots of PP's who are recommending Dulwich, Herne Hill etc.

When I was mugged as a teen in that affluent neighbourhood, it was North.. so don't rule out SOuth London.

@chronictonic I have lived in south london but was reliant on trains (overland as opposed to overground) and found the continual disruption through strikes, adverse weather, engineering and timetable changes a total pain.

@ZeldaB whilst you might have a point about the specific Hackney question, I think it's a bit extreme to say nowhere in London could work. Millions of young people thrive here!

Ah @Fridayispizzaday that sounds really hard. The redundancy too. Sorry to hear it. I hope you'll find an exciting promotion in Bristol very soon 🙏

I live in Victoria Park Village (Lauriston, to give it it's proper title). I don't have any kids but if I did, I wouldn't bring them up here. Nice place for adults. Not so much teens. Schooling options are very patchy. Knife crime is an issue, much as we'd like to ignore it.

What type of person are you OP? Creative or more lawyer/banker type? Do you prefer middle class centralist area or left wing arty area?

There are plenty of good comps in London - From Mossbourne in Hackney, to Greycoat, Fortismere, Charter, Harris Academy, Kingsdale, Graveney, Holland Park, West London Free School - they all have a very different feel… ethos/amount of work etc can massively differ too.

I've not being mugged & DH grew up in a rough part of SE London & was fine. I certainly know knife crime & targeting kids for phones etc has increased a lot though.

I have lived in south london but was reliant on trains (overland as opposed to overground) and found the continual disruption through strikes, adverse weather, engineering and timetable changes a total pain.

some lines are better then others. Southern is shit.

The advantage of going West is it's earmarked for Crossrail 2 although it will take decades.

Try Wanstead. Good primary and secondary schools, both private and state. Excellent transport links, open spaces to rival Hampstead but without the dogging. Good sports facilities within reasonable distance. Lovely high street with independent shops.

East Finchley is a fantastic place for a family. The tube is here, we have a cinema, a local free newspaper - The Archer - and one of the best FB community groups I have ever known. We also have a yearly community festival. A good high street, parks and Muswell Hill is at the other end of Fortis Green Road. Schools are great too. East Finchley feels like a village but is in London.

We live in the Herne Hill - Dulwich - West Norwood area and are planning on staying. Children are older primary, currently. In terms of safety, I know it's different with teens and you need to be strict about them not walking home alone at night, but I have lived in this area for 20 years (since graduation) and have never been mugged/followed/attacked or anything. Very few friends have either. Obviously bad things can happen anywhere but I think London has an advantage on many other places that it is well lit and fairly busy all the time.

I grew up in a small town and my friends and I found ourselves in many less than ideal situations, mainly around getting into cars with people we shouldn't, and generally hanging around because there was nothing to do. My parents also devoted their lives to being unpaid taxi drivers as there was no public transport.

I have never had that mucb of a problem wIth it but we are lucky to be in a spot where we straddle 2-3 different stations all served by different lines and routes etc. So if one is down there are lots of other options. And countless buses.
Whereas I have lived in areas served by the tube but that one line being the only option other than a bus so if line down or tube strike, similar issues.

Notting Hill/Holland park?
we have friends at Holland Park who are happy. Lots of kids do go private around there too and are lots of options.

I was brought up in Tottenham and had a great education there in the 70’s, I’ve been back a few times and the area still seems ok.
I’ve heard that parts of Walthamstow is supposed to be a nice area now for families & has decent schools.

I moved to Hillingdon when I got married and had 3 sons. They had a great education and most of the schools in that area are highly rated, they then went onto to good Universities.
There are 3 tube lines into Hillingdon, the central, metropolitan and Piccadilly lines.
Good road links with the A40/M40 and the M25.
I like the area as you’re close to the countryside but can get into London on the tube in about 50 minutes.

OP can you share where you are wanting to move from, so that we don't recommend similar? It's all down to personal experience.

I just want to say that bad things happen everywhere.

I've been mugged in Shoreditch and in Exeter.

Both times during my lunch break on a lovely sunny day.

The London chap was a kid who shouted sorry. The Exeter chap was a man who told me to go fuck myself. Both times were awful.

Bad people are everywhere. Obviously there are places to avoid! x

Also do you drive? I've found south London lifestyles more car dependent. I'm in zone 2 North now and could easily manage without a car due to the transport links. Ours really only gets used for trips out of London.