Eltham, SE London - How's this Area to live

[Tiramisuo]

We recently started looking at properties in Eltham and liked a few Edwardian terraced houses around the roads closer to Deansfield Primary School. I'd love to hear any experiences of living there from anyone. Thank you!

We live in this area. Feels pretty safe for London. Primary schools are v good, state secondary maybe less so especially for boys as some go to the grammar schools and girls to Eltham Hill. Not that diverse- black families tend to stay away still (I'm assuming since Stephen Lawrence) but some Eastern European, Indian and Asian families on my road. Oxleas Woods are one of the best things in London. The Edwardian housing is beautiful we have one of the mid sized houses and I love it.

Thank you so much! Truly appreciated!

It's now inside the ULEZ zone in case that matters to you, and the train strikes are a pain although you can get buses to the Elizabeth line or N Greenwich, they don't always stop on strike days.

Re diversity I have been shocked at some London schools events my DC were in at how segregated London seems to be now. Many schools seem to be all black or all white. It wasn't like that in the 90s when I was at school. For example I travel through Sidcup regularly and it seems like CTK 6th form is 100% black and Hurst school is 100% white boys. I keep trying to spot exceptions but haven't found any yet.

@LimeKoala, be aware that posters may be replying to the original poster of this thread. The area you are thinking about is a different area to the area posted by the original poster of this thread. The estate I mentioned is called the Coldharbour estate and the main road through it is William Barefoot Drive. The local safer neighbourhood team will have stats on local crime. Quite a few of the council properties have been bought but there are pockets of anti social behaviour. There is a green/sports fields by Chapel Farm Rd so it might be worth checking out what that is like in the evenings and school holidays/weekends. As I said it's on the edge so should be fine.

If you're thinking of Colfe's then New Eltham or Sidcup areas are on a direct train line also or Lee SE12 within walking distance and a bit cheaper if you buy up Burnt Ash Hill near the Crown pub. There are some nice roads there.

@Turmerictolly well spotted, my mistake. Thank you very much, that is really helpful!

Hi, i just moved here 2 years ago and I am having a toddler too, I love our life here. Let me tell you what I like about Eltham:

1, Easy to access city life (important for professionals like both of us). Very convenient for our families and friends to visit London when they stay with us

• one direct train to London Bridge, Victoria Station, Canon street, Charing Cross
• direct bus to Greenwich & O2 (big plus for us as we love going to concerts, O2 is also a good venue for entertainment & outlet shopping)

2, Lots of open spaces (important for kids)
We live opposite a park and we have a back garden so my son has a lot of exposure to the nature.

3, Amenities
Highstreet is 15 mins from us. We often go to Sainbury’s there for groceries. I also like some restaurants there like Vietmart, American Legends… There’s a new oriental shop close to Sainsbury’s which I like.

We also live close to 2 smaller supermarkets (2 min walk), so convenient.
i cant imagine living far from the basics!

Eltham centre is great, you have swimming pool, gym, library & and a small children play area ALL in one place.

4, Strong community
People are friendly and help each other out. The neighbours adjacent to us are all expats from other countries so we are like minded people. I find this area very family-friendly.
Also, the FB group of Eltham is so active with lots of useful content.

5, Good schools
Lots of good primary schools here and we are in catchment for some grammar schools.
This area is among very few places in London with that many grammar schools (when I say very few, i mean top 3 - I did the research)

6, Easy to access to many interesting places

• Bluewater within a short drive. Parking is free there!
• Chislehurst, Blackheath, Bromley etc… not too far (15-20 min drive) so you dont need to live there to benefit from those areas. If you live in those areas, you will miss some benefits that I mentioned above, especially proximity to amenities & city centre
• Convenient to drive to France, go to Canterbury, etc..

The only thing I dont like Eltham is it is not well regarded by some people yet despite the obvious benefits of living here. But I believe it’s changing with more expats moving here (I know some families moving here from Germany, the US, Dubai in the last 2 years)

I think your experience will depend a lot on the exact location you choose to live here and your priorities. I go often to my friends’ houses in many “nicer” areas but I would not move there as there is always something missing (too far from train station, further from city center, no supermarket within 3-5 min walk etc….)

@LimeKoala - Hello- did you end up buying on Chapel Farm road? I have liked a property on that road and not sure how close it will be social housing estate? If you can share your experience it'd be wonderful.