Advice on London neighborhoods for a young US family

Hi there!  My husband has accepted a job transfer within his company from Chicago to London.  The move is planned for March 31st, 2010.  We have a 17 month old son and I am a stay at home mom.  I'm curious to know what neighborhoods would be good for a young family like ourselves.  Also, are there toddler playcenters (like Gymboree in the US) readily available in most London neighborhoods?  I'm wondering how to go about finding playmates and things to do for my son once we arrive.  Any help is greatly appreciated!

Best,
Natalie 

It really depends on what your budget is, how far your husband is willing to commute, whether you need transit or not.  Does your husband's company have anyone to help you with relocation?  Do you want to live in an urban setting or more suburban?

Don't know about playgroups and such but I don't think there any playcenters like Gymboree. 

I live in Dagenham now (in the east, technically Essex but still on the London Underground). Schools here are quite good - people move here just for the schools. A couple stops farther east in Hornchuch has even more of a suburban feel - a bit of a richer area - with FANTASTIC schools. (I don't know about playcenters though.)

However, living in the east crime tends to be a bit higher. This feels like heaven to me, because we were basically living in the ghetto when I first moved here, but it is still much more dangerous than where I lived in the states. Still, steer clear of East London, unless you're going to move a bit farther out of the city. I wouldn't recommend raising a child there.

If you have a higher budget, Northwest London is very nice. I'm about to start teaching at a school in Hampstead Heath and I am still just amazed at the area. It is so lovely, and also with really great schools. But this is quite a bit more affluent than where I'm from.

I can't speak for any other areas of London, but I hope that helps a bit.

P.S. Welcome to UKY, and London.

I agree with Hampstead, also Kensington, Richmond, Wimbledon but these are all extremely expensive areas.

No idea what a Gymboree playcentre is like but in every area there is a "children';s centre" where you should be able to get information about all facilities for children in the area. They usually also have their own toddler groups which is probbaly your best starting point play wise.

Parts of Surrey are really nice, the longer your husband commutes the nicer you might find.

We lived in Wimbledon, it is great for families and I would highly recommend it. And yes, there are Gymboree's in the UK, we went to one in Wimbledon until we moved back to the US.

Thank you for your replies!  It really is helpful!  My husband's company (located over by Tower of London?) is setting us up with a relocation agent and we are going flat hunting mid-February.  My son is only 17 months so we do not need to worry about schooling yet.  I am more concerned with living in a neighborhood that is easily accessible to a grocery store, things to do, ect.. as we will not be bringing our car.  Also, would like it to be not to bad of a commute on my husband.  Any additional info is helpful!  Thanks so much!  BTW...we are looking at a budget of 350-450 pounds per wk.  (I thought Chicago was expensive!)  Really looking forward to seeing this beautiful new city, though.   

Best,
Natalie

Your budget is very unrealistic...

My husband and I were flat hunting a couple months ago, and you're looking at 500/month just for a Studio flat in London. You'll probably want a 2 bedroom which is a lot more expensive.

Remember that the farther outside of London you get, the cheaper they will be.

Your budget is very unrealistic...

My husband and I were flat hunting a couple months ago, and you're looking at 500/month just for a Studio flat in London. You'll probably want a 2 bedroom which is a lot more expensive.

Remember that the farther outside of London you get, the cheaper they will be.

She said the budget is weekly, not monthly!  So it's not unrealistic at all, far from it.

I'd have a look at the towns along the train line from London Bridge which is near to the Tower.

Also, worrying about having shopping nearby isn't that big of a worry - there's always a Tesco or a Sainsburys round the corner.

Given your budget and your husband being around the Tower, you've got a decent amount of choice really. You could get a nice place in the Docklands in one of those poncy new flats, and he'd just get the light rail into Tower. Speaking personally though (and this is completely personal opinion, all of this) Docklands is a little soulless, but still rather nice.

You could also move up to around King's Cross/Islington. King's Cross is a bit shabby when you're walking out of the tube station but there are some really nice places hidden up behind Penton Rise and the leisure centre and all the way curving round Angel down through City Road. Loads of shops (Sainsburys, Waitrose AND M&S) and the N1 shopping centre, not to mention Chapel Market and all that. I'm fairly sure they have quite a few nice blocks of flats up Liverpool Road, too, which heads right off from the Sainsburys - not to mention some ridiculously cute pubs off the squares. It's an area where a lot of upper-professional young couples seem to move to but by no means is it a posh ghetto either.

hmmmmmn,  to be honest Docklands probably isn't that great for families unless you really like sterile apartment living. Islington is better but I didn't like living there when our son was a baby. Getting on public transport with a pushchair was a nightmare for a start and shopping is not great unless you like & can afford poncey boutiques. I don't know what is in the N1 centre now but I don't recall the shops there being very useful except for Borders which has now closed down. It's really just a cinema complex with a few bars/restaurants. There's a distinct lack of decent green spaces around there too. 

I guess it depends what kind of lifestyle you're hoping to have though.

oops! sorry! 

I blame the jetlag. haha

Yeah, you're budget is definitely doable, and you can get something pretty nice for that, especially if you go a little bit outside of London. I definitely recommend the SW, Wimbledon, Richmond, Putney, Fulham. As everyone has said don't worry about the stores, they are everywhere and without a car you may want to have them deliver anyway!

Thank you for your replies!  It really is helpful!  My husband's company (located over by Tower of London?) is setting us up with a relocation agent and we are going flat hunting mid-February.  My son is only 17 months so we do not need to worry about schooling yet.  I am more concerned with living in a neighborhood that is easily accessible to a grocery store, things to do, ect.. as we will not be bringing our car.  Also, would like it to be not to bad of a commute on my husband.  Any additional info is helpful!  Thanks so much!  BTW...we are looking at a budget of 350-450 pounds per wk.  (I thought Chicago was expensive!)  Really looking forward to seeing this beautiful new city, though.  

Best,
Natalie

Natalie, welcome!  There are some very swanky apartments and developments around Tower of London area.  St Katherine Docks is a particular favorite area of mine.  There is a Waitrose Supermarket there.  Waitrose is known for its quality...kinda upscale too...it's the best.  I drive so not too sure about public transportation in the area but I'd say there are more than enough bus routes and trains. BTW the lights at nights in the tower of london is awesome!

I see Canary wharf has been mentioned and I agree can be a bit sterile but commute wise it, would be a quick easy ride for your hubby. It's also relatively safe.
Also check out Limehouse and just a little further afield is Hackney. Hackney is a combination of poor, social housing, stuck up sandal wearing, tofu eating, kumbaya singing arty farties (I have nothing against that), young hip professionals and intellectuals.  It has it's various enclaves and I'm sure you could get a ground floor flat or a two/three bedrom Victorian house within your budget.

Stoke Newington is part of Hackney, parts of which is very trendy and edgy...very communual feeling partly due to the regeneration.  Nice restaurants and pubs and grocery galore.  Even got Whole Foods store.

Hackney has close access to the West End and City...worth a check out.

Oh and there is also Islington.  Being child free I don't know much about baby stuff or mummy and me clubs, but Islington would be a good choice for me if I was new to the city and had a child.

Watch out for those realators in London....some are just criminals.