SE23 Forum

Hello all

My wife and I are considering moving to the area together with our 8 months old daughter. We have actually already made an offer on a new built property at Canonbie Road.

We have visited the area a few times and we really like it. As we both work in the City, the location is very convenient as you can get there by Overground quite quickly. At the same time, we do not know the area very well, so we would be grateful for any tips, in particular:

- is this area (and, in particular, Canonbie Road) safe and family friendly? (The road is very steep so it is certainly not pushchair friendly, but this this comes with the territory I guess)
- are there many activities for children (such as sensory classes organised by children centres etc) around?
- it seems that there is plenty of good schools around (such as Fairlawn), but is it easy to get a place?
- are there many places to shop or eat around Canonbie Road? (Lordship Lane is great, but a bit far to walk).
- Is there anything else we should be aware of when buying a property in the area?

We would be most grateful for any tips! Thank you very much in advance.

Many thanks
Marcin

Welcome, yes, I'd say Canonbie/Forest Hill is family friendly
There is the Turkish supermarket at one end and the Coop at the other end of Forest Hill Road, alternatively there is a Sainsbury's in Forest Hill and a smaller one on Honor Oak Park, close to Honor Oak Park Overground station. In Woodvale is a "small" food shop and a butchers next door to that.

It's very family friendly. We have a 4 year old and have lived here since he was 5months. There are loads of baby groups and se23 mums Facebook page is very active if your want to keep an eye on what's available.
I used a sling rather than a pushchair which worked well.
There are shops and restaurants on Forest Hill and Honor Oak both of which arenables walkable.
Welcome to the area!

Hi Marcin

Primary school catchment areas are quite small for a lot of schools - I live in Honor Oak so don't know Canonbie Road well applications wise.

This link will tell you the distance of the last place allocated last year - though keep in mind this changes each year, dependant on siblings and \ or bulge classes primarily. You can also go onto waiting lists which do appear to have some movement. Most schools bar private and religious offer places based purely on distance as the crow flies, (other some some criteria eg siblings,
children in care etc)LewishamPrimaryDistance

Forest Hill and Honor Oak are both excellent for families. You will have lots of families for company, lots of groups, The Horniman for when your child is a bit older, Forest Hill Pools and lots else. Enjoy and feel free to ask any other questions!

Al