Places to live near Slough

Hello !

I will be joining work and my workplace will be in Slough .
I will be moving with my wife and 9 month old son .
I have a housing allowance of 900-1100£.im looking to rent a flat / house 1bhk .
Also I will not be having a car as my project is going to be only for 9-10months.

So I would like some suggestions for safe areas in or near Slough with easy commute .
Most importantly it needs to be safe for my kid and wife to take walks etc

Thank you

Avoid Slough and you'll be okay.     Unfortunately it's not one of the nicer parts of England.

I'd look at Maidenhead or Windsor.  Though your budget is unlikely to go very far in those areas.

The best thing about slough is that there are great train connections to other places that you can live.  Like KFdancer said, Windsor is nearby but the queen lives there so it's pricey.  Look along the train lines and do your research on Rightmove.  Budget for a train ticket each way that will be shockingly expensive.

Can you commute by bike?  Might open things up a bit. 

Don't trust real estate agents to tell you what is safe.

Hi,

KF Dancer & Jimbo;



Jadegoalie;

Lots of people will say Slough is bad and not good etc. To an extent, it's true but it's also true that pretty much every other similar sized town is exactly the same!

I live in Slough and for the most part, the views you'll hear like the above and from others isn't actually true. What it often forgotten to be mentioned is the nice(r) parts of the town and the surrounding areas which are just as 'nice' as other towns which get mentioned as being lovely and wonderful!

Are you looking for a 1 bed flat ? or a 1 bed house? is that budget to include bills/council tax etc or would it be allocated just for rent? You'll find plenty of listings if it's a flat you'd want and a quick scan shows that these are decent properties around here in my opinion. 1 Bed houses are much thinner on the gorund to find. Looking around some of the areas here, again it's flats that'll have more choice. Which company will you be working for? location in Slough will do as I mean if you'll be in the Trading Estate or central Slough. How far would you be willing to commute in for work each day?

In terms of safety, I'd put forward the notion that central Slough and the main throughfares are quite safe. I walk my dog each night 930-1030pm in Central and there's many lone females getting back into the area from the train station. I've never seen any attempts at an attack or any threatening behaviour etc over the last 11 years of doing this each evening.

I know a handful of estate agents who are local's and they'll perhaps indeed 'gloss over' some of the known worse areas etc. If you have any questions feel free to PM me and I'll answer as best I can.


Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!

DTM speaks the truth in that Slough is not any more dangerous than any town of comparable size.  Some would say it's a bit ugly, but not much uglier than normal London commuter town.  It's just close to Windsor and some other lovely places so it comes off s bit worse in comparison. 

Isn't there a famous poem about Slough that says "Come friendly bombs..."

Thank you so much for the reply ! Yes we will be looking at flats as that seems to be the more easily available one .
Do you see any challenges if it's a flat when living with an infant ? I'm really unsure what to expect .

Hi,

KF Dancer & Jimbo;



Jadegoalie;

Lots of people will say Slough is bad and not good etc. To an extent, it's true but it's also true that pretty much every other similar sized town is exactly the same!

I live in Slough and for the most part, the views you'll hear like the above and from others isn't actually true. What it often forgotten to be mentioned is the nice(r) parts of the town and the surrounding areas which are just as 'nice' as other towns which get mentioned as being lovely and wonderful!

Are you looking for a 1 bed flat ? or a 1 bed house? is that budget to include bills/council tax etc or would it be allocated just for rent? You'll find plenty of listings if it's a flat you'd want and a quick scan shows that these are decent properties around here in my opinion. 1 Bed houses are much thinner on the gorund to find. Looking around some of the areas here, again it's flats that'll have more choice. Which company will you be working for? location in Slough will do as I mean if you'll be in the Trading Estate or central Slough. How far would you be willing to commute in for work each day?

In terms of safety, I'd put forward the notion that central Slough and the main throughfares are quite safe. I walk my dog each night 930-1030pm in Central and there's many lone females getting back into the area from the train station. I've never seen any attempts at an attack or any threatening behaviour etc over the last 11 years of doing this each evening.

I know a handful of estate agents who are local's and they'll perhaps indeed 'gloss over' some of the known worse areas etc. If you have any questions feel free to PM me and I'll answer as best I can.


Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Thank you so much for the reply ! Yes we will be looking at flats as that seems to be the more easily available one .
Do you see any challenges if it's a flat when living with an infant ? I'm really unsure what to expect .

I would recommend looking at ground floor flats, simply for ease.  Not many places will have elevators, and stairs with a baby isn't much fun (especially if you have a stroller).

I'd enquire with your new colleagues about particular areas to look for a place to live.  They'll know what areas are within your price range, easily commutable, and where to avoid.  I am near Reading and I had several people tell me to avoid particular areas of Reading, which was excellent advice (again, like DTM says you don't hear of major violent crime there, but I wouldn't have been comfortable living there as a single woman).

With a kid, you are going to need good laundry facilities.  You are unlikely to get a dryer, but maybe a yard with some space to hang stuff might be nice.  Look out for communal garden, which means the flat has a big garden shared by everyone.  You probably can't hang laundry.

Don't over think it though.  Many British people live here and bring up kids, even in Slough.  There will be tons of challenges, they might be overwhelming in the beginning, but in the end you'll be glad you did. 

I had some friends who had a baby in a bed sit (one room, you literally sit on the bed because there's no room for furniture).  The mother in law even came to stay for 6 months!  Believe it or not, they still look on the time fondly.  You can adapt and enjoy anything if your heart is in it.

  Many British people live here and bring up kids, even in Slough. 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_from_Slough

Heck Brunel is from Slough.....and Ginger Spice!

Hi Jadegoalie,

As per above, there's many many families that live here in Slough with infants and toddlers. I guess aspects to consider if living in a flat would be aspects like neighbours, noise issues, any communal areas cleanliness and overall vibe of a place. With your budget level, I'd say that you'd be able to find a decent place fairly easily.

I'd also agree with KFDancer in looking for a ground floor unit if the block doesn't have a lift, it'd make life much easier !

I do have an investment flat I rent out, and I do keep an eye on the local market and what's available etc. I've recently looked around some of the new builds and enquired about them etc. Some friends have recently purchased locally for instance and now do let them out. Many people as mentioned above can get views on local areas from friends/work colleagues etc, which does help for sure - I can go a step further and know about specific blocks, and units within blocks ! - I'm not saying all, but a decent amount of them!

Depending on where your new job is located and perhaps more of your specific requirements, I can point out certain ones which may suit you. If you prefer being a little further out from Slough then my knowledge there goes back to specific areas rather than blocks/buildings.

Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Oh that's really awesome ! Thank you so much and I'll keep in mind the things you ve asked me to consider before zeroing in one . I'll further let you know once I have more details . Thank you

Hi Jadegoalie,

As per above, there's many many families that live here in Slough with infants and toddlers. I guess aspects to consider if living in a flat would be aspects like neighbours, noise issues, any communal areas cleanliness and overall vibe of a place. With your budget level, I'd say that you'd be able to find a decent place fairly easily.

I'd also agree with KFDancer in looking for a ground floor unit if the block doesn't have a lift, it'd make life much easier !

I do have an investment flat I rent out, and I do keep an eye on the local market and what's available etc. I've recently looked around some of the new builds and enquired about them etc. Some friends have recently purchased locally for instance and now do let them out. Many people as mentioned above can get views on local areas from friends/work colleagues etc, which does help for sure - I can go a step further and know about specific blocks, and units within blocks ! - I'm not saying all, but a decent amount of them!

Depending on where your new job is located and perhaps more of your specific requirements, I can point out certain ones which may suit you. If you prefer being a little further out from Slough then my knowledge there goes back to specific areas rather than blocks/buildings.

Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Hi Jadegoalie,

How are/did you get on?!

Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Hi

Yeah so we have moved here and right now staying at a hotel . Have a found a place to stay near the Slough station . Could you tell me if it's a safe locality ??
Thank you so much !

Hi Jadegoalie,

How are/did you get on?!

Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Hi

If you are looking at a flat/house near the station, then you'll be a few hundred yards from where I live!

*Italian Brooklyn accent* Don't worry, I'll make sure you and your family are safe !

/end joke!

Overall, I'd say you don't have anything to worry about in terms of this area, it's busy, there's lots of movement through the day and evenings - you'll see me walking my dog each night as well ! To give a bit more perspective, I've often thought about safety when I see lone female's walking home from the station after a days work in London most likely when I walk the dog. I initially always think, 'you shouldn't be on your own' then a few seconds later, I see that it's always busy, and I've never seen anything bad unfolding or happening in front of me each evening.

For a complete perspective, then this area is like any other large city or town, there is incidents and going's on but it's not any worse as it were.

Drop me a PM if you'd like, can always drop by for a chat and a cuppa tea or a pint and I can give you some more ideas and pointers!

Cheers, DtM! West London & Slough UK!