Eltham Park SE9

[bubblesduck]

Hello, we are considering moving to the Eltham Park area - we have a toddler and the location seems to tick the boxes in terms of schools/station (commute to the City)/parks etc.

Are there any particular roads that are more or less "desirable"? Well Hall Rd and Rochester Rd seem very busy with traffic whilst the others seem ok but I've only been in the weekend so not sure how peak times/school runs are like.

Also, the Edwardian houses look lovely on the outside and I read that the Corbett houses are generally well built but are there any maintenance issues that are common complaints (damp/leaks etc)? How is the sound proofing in those builds, especially in the terraced houses?

We are also considering New Eltham which seems a bit quieter but also further from amenities and we love being able to walk to places rather than driving everywhere.

We're just giving this thread a bump for the OP.

We moved to Eltham 4 years ago and love it. We're in one of the 1930s semis close to the woods and Deansfield primary school. We're close to Rochester way but not on it so it's lovely and quiet.

I love it here. One of my DC is still I a very good local primary and the other is now in a Bexley grammar school.

The house is really well built. No problems with it structurally and we never hear the attached neighbours. Happy to answer any questions.

Thanks! How's the traffic on the roads in the area? Does it get busy during school runs? I'm surprised the whole area isn't a 20mph zone but then again it's not central London where that seems more common.

How's the community feel? I have neighbours who barely speak to each other so looking for a more friendly vibe!

Rochester way is busy and the A2 is crazy busy at peak times but local traffic is fine and most of it is 20mph! Certainly all around the schools it is.

A lot of the primaries have a pretty small catchment so most so walk. The Greenwich website has an interactive map which shows you the circles of furthest admitted children. Gordon and Deansfield are pretty small for example.

In terms of community I think it's friendly. We know our neighbours well enough (ie we say hi, chat a bit and will do each other favours but not intrusively friendly). I also know assorted neighbours across the street and up and down the road. My road is a funny mix of elderly neighbours who raised families here and newer people like us, with kids in school.

It's a place where you can't walk down the high street without seeing a familiar face but not so small that everyone knows everyone's business. I have a good network of school mums to swap favours with and the same at some of their various activities (football, karate, scouts, swimming etc).

Eltham Park is a lovely area with a nice community and a good primary and a very good secondary plus access to the grammars. There’s a small but nice park and the traffic is generally ok and flows well. Well Hall Rd and Rochester Way are the busiest roads in the area and Dobell Rd is a rat run. The ‘Glen’ roads are probably the most desirable - large double fronted houses fairly close to the station.

Just looked up the 'Glen' roads - they hadn't appeared in any of my searches - now I realise that's because they are way out of our budget (!!), but they do look lovely indeed!

Good to hear that the primaries are good and there's a nice local network. Do families tend to stick around once DCs get to secondary age or do they tend to move out? Which schools are well regarded for secondary? It's a long while yet for us but trying to gauge if we should stretch for a "forever" type home or go for something smaller if we're likely to move again for secondary.

We made the move to Eltham a few years ago. Children are across primary and secondary. Secondary I would say the options are more limited. Mine is in grammar school and we are really pleased. Really great primary options - St Mary's, Deansfield. We decided to look around the Riefield / Crown woods triangle so as to position ourselves better for Bexley grammar catchment area.

Thanks all for the feedback.

Can anyone explain to me the defining features that differ between the "Corbett", "Bilton", Edwardian and 1930s properties? I see these in a lot of the property descriptions but I have 0 architectural (or historical...) knowledge.

Families tend to stick around as the primaries are very good and the secondary options are varied. St Thomas More is currently one of the top performing secondaries and there’s a very big comp called Leigh Academy (I think). There are also the grammar options but the closer to New Eltham or Bexley Borough you get, the better.

If your budget doesn’t stretch to Eltham Park, I’d consider the area between New Eltham and Eltham rather than the Well Hall area. However, Eltham station has two lines into Central London whereas New Eltham only has one line. New Eltham has fast trains to London Bridge (16 mins) at peak times.

Chat GPT is your friend here.

What is your budget, and how many beds do you need? As you have a toddler, probably the first question is, do you have a preference for a particular type of primary school? If you look at the Greenwich interactive offers map for primary schools and see where you need to live for each school. There will be areas / streets where you are not close enough to any of the closest schools to get a place, so you need to be very careful, as your dc could end up at an undersubscribed primary a bus journey (or two) away. Applying for primary school comes round much more quickly than you think it will!

In terms of Eltham Park - Unless you are going private, or are a long-standing practising catholic / Cof E attendee (who can meet all the reqts for application), it is probably best to look in the few streets immediately around either Gordon or Deansfield, but make sure any property is well within recent years’ offer areas. The offer areas are quite small.

So look and see what some of the housing options are in your budget, and are also comfortably within the historical offer areas for the local primary schools, then overlay on that the offer areas for secondary schools (as unless you will be upsizing in 5 years, it is best not to have to move again for secondary schools! Also bear in mind the entry requirements for the Voluntary Aided Schools.

Also, the grammar school offer areas have been steadily shrinking year on year. Chis and Sid / Beth’s / Townley still offer to a large chunk of Eltham (check historic distances though), but Bexley Grammar offer area has shrunk to reach only the edge of Eltham. Eltham Hill (girls, non selective) is fantastic. And there are other good secondary schools.

It is a fantastic place to live - lots to do, but still very leafy and calm. When we moved here our house and car insurance went down significantly (it seems to be a low-crime part of the borough). Great schools, at both primary and secondary, and access to schools in neighbouring borough. There have been quite a few families move across the borough from Greenwich to Eltham, as you get much more for your money, close to good facilities, and there are so many more schools nearby (especially at secondary) compared to Greenwich.

Tbh I’m not sure if the CofE school takes non-church attendees, and if they do, what proportion of the intake is it / what is the typical distance from school for the non-church places. Might be worth finding out, in case that can go in the list of possibles as well (if you live eg next to it)..

Secondary options are good and don't forget that numbers are falling so distances are likely to rise a bit

I have in DS in a grammar school. Other DS is in year 5 and not likely to go grammar route but I'm not worried. We looked at Leigh Academy (previously known as Stationers Crown Woods) and Harris Falconwood before so will consider them this time too along with Thomas Tallis in the unlikely event that the entry circle expands a bit!