Leavesdon Park / Watford - Where to relocate to ? What do Need toknow about the area?

[Gammon]

Right DH after being out of work for nearly a year has been offered a job at BT based at Leaveson in Watford.

I,m not sure about going but it is a job - where should i start looking for a school and a house?

My kids are 5 and 3 so will be in yr 1 and reception. Would liek a smalle friendly school as this is going to be a MAJOR trauma for them DS is slight aspergers and we would be leaving 2 sets of grandparents within 20 mins away.

In terms of wants wOuld like a nice period old house with a long big garden so i can keep chickens and grow veg as i currently do.

We love to eat out so within walking distance of some places to eat.

Is such a move possible. Poor Kids, poor me but DH is trhrilled to get the job.

bump

thanks for reading

Try looking Kings Langley or Abbotts Langley. They are a simple commute to Leavesden, and much more rural than going in the 'other directions' from Leavesden, towards St Albans or Watford.

Kings Langley has a few restaurants, pubs etc.

If you don't mind a slightly longer commute and prefer villages you could include Chipperfield and Sarratt. With these places, property doesn't seem to come onto the market very often, but both of them have local schools. They will be more expensive than Kings Langley though because they are a little more 'picture postcard' with quick links to M25, London etc.

Unfortunately I don't have much info on the local schools, so hopefully someone else can help you out there.

Rightmove.com is probably a good place to start checking out houses.

Oh, and congratulations on your DH getting the job!

Bushey is very nice and close to Leavesden, has a nice primary and thinking towards the future is close to both Watford grammar for girls and boys, both excellent schools.

Forgot to add, when I was looking to move to this area I took Oxhey off my list of places to look at when I discovered it was a BNP stronghold.

Lots of lovely villages in St Albans(where I live) but it would be more of a commute for your DH.

Both Abbotts Langley and Kings Langley have good restaurants on the high street and great schools.

garden backs on to railway line - maybe not long enough?

bit nicer looking?

nice garden and detached

large semi, large garden, needing lots of work, much more in the country

What's the budget?

Sarratt and Chipperfield lovely but lots of money needed for a decent house with a large garden

Great thanks everyone for replies. Rightmove houses look okay.

Love the look of Sarrat and Chippenham - DHs commute would tke hime to the M25 for one junction - it says 25 mins but how long in reality ?

Thanks for the heads up about Oxhey - crossed that off my list too.

We are going down tomorrow to have a look so will be driving around and looking at all these areas., ecited and nervous.

Budget is 450K

It is so much more expensive!

Do you hear the plans from Heathrow? in these areas?

Eastbury Farm School in Northwood is very good, houses expensive in immediate vicinity but cheaper in Northwood itself

No real plane noise. Going one junction won't take long - he won't go on the motorway, he'll go under it and take the winding road up through Abbotts langley - take him about ten minutes from Chipperfield and Kings Langley.

I drove past this lovely bungalow yesterday It's on the road between Chipperfield and Kings Langley (not walking distance from either 'village' though)

this is a semi in Sarratt - a really lovely village and with a great garden

They look lovely but it has to be within walking distance is the semi in Sarratt within walking distance?

So difficult when you dont know an area.

WHich are the best schools in the areas? and are there any to completley avoid?

The semi in Sarratt is just off the village green. It's a small village though - not that many amenities, lovely pubs though.

link to school

The schools in these areas are great honestly. There are plenty of private/public schools if you want to pay though - lots of good prep. schools.

You would need to be able to drive though as Sarratt is more of a commuting place, really quiet during the day. Ocado/sainsburys/Tesco/Asda all deliver.

Kings Langley/Abbotts Langley much more bustley. Chipperfield quiet too.

Also consider Bovingdon - has a lot more shops in the village. There is nothing on the market with character that I can see though

I live in Hemel Hempstead - a much larger town about 5 minutes from Kings Langley. You will get more for your money here. The Boxmoor part (where I live) has lots of villagey amenities - great primary and secondary schools and lots of green space.

here is a house you can afford that I would love

It's very close to the station and you have to cross the canal to get into the village 'proper' but it's a nice walk.

this one is closer to the villagey part - just round the corner from the primary school

LFC - that first house is beautiful

I am in love with the greenhouse and th house it looks great.

thanks so much for your help - I am offlinenow - have to clean up etc

back later this evening

Just to confirm the commute if driving from Chipperfield / Bovingdon / Sarratt, it's mostly on small country lanes until you join the A41 at Hunton Bridge, from which point you can see the old airfiled hangars at Leavesden (now used for the James Bond film sets!), the A41 is the main drag into Watford and towards the M1 into London so it will get busy at rush hour. The point being he'd only be on that road for half a mile, and there are some back roads as well.

Sarratt is one of those villages where the local primary school has close links with the church, plays cricket on the village playing fields in summer etc. The old butchers shop and antiques shop are now private houses (as is the orginial Victorian school... the one I attended ) but here is a mini-market type village shop, garage & a couple of pubs, as LFC says.

Once you've had a look at properties, I'd be happy to let you know how long it would take to drive to Leavesden.

BTW, I've just looked at the link to the cottage in Boxmoor. Looks like a solid bargain for a house that pretty with 4 bedrooms...

Further to one of the earlier postings - Oxhey is completely different from South Oxhey.
Oxhey is an affluent village (with no BNP representation, they have 3 Lib Dem ouncillors, a Lib Dem Elected Mayor and Conservative MP) within the boundaries of Watford Borough.

....South Oxhey is a few miles away and within Three Rivers.

Hi
Just came across your message as we are looking to move and were interested in what people thought about Leavesdon. We've seen a nice 3 bedroom house there on a fairly new estate. House is amazing and within budget, but we were just unsure about the area. Obviously we can check schools etc, but there doesn't seem to be much in walking distance and it does seem a bit industrial. Has anyone any experience of the area, and would they recommend it?

Thanks for your help
F

there is currently a big problem with getting places at primary schools in Watford. there just aren't enough spaces so bear that in mind. Also someone mentioned the grammar schools, to have a realistic chance of getting into those you need to be within half a mile of them, any further away and its much harder.

Hi all hope your well.
We live in Bushey for many years and currently looking for a property to buy with a budget 650K.
we wanted to stay in Bushey but found nice houses in Garston, Leavesden and abbots Langley.
the kids are attending local school in Bushey ( the oldest is attending Queens school)
we both have cars and commute for work but outside London.
dose it really worth it keep trying to find a house in Bushey with this budget looking for 3/4 bedrooms semidetached house.
any advice would be much appreciated?
I needs thoughts about the difference nearby area and is it safe / vibes and things like that.
thank you again for the help.