100 replies to this topic

[Darcy]

Thanks SL...

[toja]

I would like to defend South Norwood, too. I have lived here for 5 years and bough a nice Victorian house 3 years ago. We live in between Portland road Tesco and Country park – lovely area of rows of terraced houses. Perhaps South Norwood lake area is more “posh” end, but I could not afford it at the time.
Lots of positives has been said already, which we enjoy every day, i.e.:

• excellent commuting Norwood Junction-City, 11 mins on the train, and rarely a major delay,
• lovely Country park nearby for playground, walking, cycling and blackberries,
• Croydon by tram for shopping, must emphasize tram because it’s more comfy than buses,
• Crystal Palace & Beckenham just 10 mins by bus/tram,
• South Norwood leisure centre & swimming pool (I would never go swimming if it wasn’t that close),
• excellent links with airports (even First Capital Connect line from East Croydon Gatwick-Luton),
• never experienced any problem/crime (touch wood),
• childcare more affordable than elsewhere, £4-5/hour,
• lots of lovely people and villagey feel. I especially love walking around Harrington road area & country park, where I feel like in a countryside.
• East London Line worth mentioning, which I don’t use personally.

I would like to mention schools as a separate topic. I have two children, 4.5 and 2, and this is very important to me. Well, surprisingly, quite few improvements here.

• St. Thomas Becket RC and Cypress – outstanding primaries
• St. Chad’s RC, Ryelands, Monks Orchard – good primaries
• South Norwood Primary, Heavers Farm – fast improving with very good SATS results in recent year

Secondaries are known to be not so good in Croydon, however:

• Harris Crystal Palace, Harris South Norwood – both outstanding academies,
• BRIT school in Selhurst is very valued,
• St Joseph’s in Upper Norwood quite OK,
• choice of Sutton/Bromley grammars,
• a new secondary will open in Sandown road from 2013: http://www.croydongu...ing_to_Croydon/ I really look forward to hear what school it will be, because it might mean South Norwood can become a very desirable area!

I think that’s enough now for defense purpose

Edited by toja, 08 August 2012 - 01:46 PM.

[toja]

Forgot to add that we have had new home owners on our road moved from Rotherhithe and Streatham.

[Summit Lover]

Actually really good to hear more about Norwood Jct/S Norwood, hope more people from the area keep it up - VN is sometimes too CP centric

[St. Lukes Railings]

And with good reason too SL! My views on SE25, SE27 and SE20 are well documented. I've been told many a time that SE25 (can't bring myself to name the area) is the next new gem just waiting to be discovered . Well I've been told that for nigh on 20 years, still nothing.

Even Mrs SLR, who is the worlds biggest SE25 apologist commented on the detritus that frequents the high street in non glowing terms the other day. North East of the centre there is some very nice housing stock, but you can keep the rest. Portland Road needs to be flattened and started again.

I'm just posting this for a bit of balance. If am outsider had read this thread they'd think they're moving to some sort of suburban utopia

[toja]

St. Lukes Railings, one thing is "views", another thing is living there an everyday life. One day one of my colleagues said "no offence, but South Norwood is nahh" and I honestly got offended as as I later clarified she hasn't even visited SN properly. I will defend itbecause I live here, have lots of enjoyable moments and I see lots of positives here.

[St. Lukes Railings]

Unlike your colleague, I know SE25 well enough to have the 'views' I express. One mans trash is anothers treasure I suppose.

[twinkle]

Fully agree about Portland Road needing to be bulldozed and started again - its just gone through so many transitions and not a lot of planning permission thought in the visual outcome of each building - a strange mish-mash of extensions to the old Victorian terraced shops behind etc.

Its a shame really, but the roads off the main thoroughfare are little terraced cottage gems. The Tesco metro down by the pool has helped people locally walk to their grocers (if their was an independent one that would be better but alas there isn't!) grocers rather than pop in the car and the butchers up the road has clung onto his business but the rest are all take away establishments - so what happened to all the hoo-ha about taxing these places and also making sure there wasn't too many takeaways in one street!!???

Anyway I'm going away from the main point - SN has the Arts festival, great buildings, fantastic links into town/airport, affordable houses, country park, boating lakes, trams - shame about the shops - but CP or Croydon are 15 minutes away.

I remember CP 25 years+ ago when I was growing up and it wasn't anything to write home about - the main excitement going up there was to go the MacDonalds and have a root beer - woo-hoo!!!! So you see each area had it's share of hard times but I always feel that every area is always evolving and ever-changing to suit it's local people - nothing stays the same for long.

[Darcy]

Fully agree about Portland Road needing to be bulldozed and started again - its just gone through so many transitions and not a lot of planning permission thought in the visual outcome of each building - a strange mish-mash of extensions to the old Victorian terraced shops behind etc.

Its a shame really, but the roads off the main thoroughfare are little terraced cottage gems. The Tesco metro down by the pool has helped people locally walk to their grocers (if their was an independent one that would be better but alas there isn't!) grocers rather than pop in the car and the butchers up the road has clung onto his business but the rest are all take away establishments - so what happened to all the hoo-ha about taxing these places and also making sure there wasn't too many takeaways in one street!!???

Anyway I'm going away from the main point - SN has the Arts festival, great buildings, fantastic links into town/airport, affordable houses, country park, boating lakes, trams - shame about the shops - but CP or Croydon are 15 minutes away.

I remember CP 25 years+ ago when I was growing up and it wasn't anything to write home about - the main excitement going up there was to go the MacDonalds and have a root beer - woo-hoo!!!! So you see each area had it's share of hard times but I always feel that every area is always evolving and ever-changing to suit it's local people - nothing stays the same for long.

I totally agree with your comments. In the early '90s I thought both Crystal Palace and Gypsy Hill weren't anything to shout out about. But of course, now is it's a different story..

Re all the takeaways in SN, there are way too many (I have a lot to say about this but will refrain) and I find it really annoying. Because of the demographics in SN, I suppose these takeaways are imposing a demand.

[toja]

I totally agree with your comments. In the early '90s I thought both Crystal Palace and Gypsy Hill weren't anything to shout out about. But of course, now is it's a different story..

Re all the takeaways in SN, there are way too many (I have a lot to say about this but will refrain) and I find it really annoying. Because of the demographics in SN, I suppose these takeaways are imposing a demand.

Let me and "...and hairdressers", so many of them.

[Darcy]

Let me and "...and hairdressers", so many of them.

Don't let me start on the hairdressers... Another one just opened up on Portland Rd. I walked past the shop when they were working on it and I specifically said "I hope you're not going to be another barbers". Answer was "no". But lo and behold they're a hairdresser!

I know that the black hair is a 9 billion dollar industry but please, no more hairdressers!

Edited by Darcy, 15 August 2012 - 11:02 AM.

[ChewderOde]

desmond-tastic!

[St. Lukes Railings]

Loved that show Chewie....



From the long warm nights with an ocean breeze
to the damp and and to the rain of London city
we come from the sun to live in the cold
I miss me rum, I want my coconut tree

Don't scratch my soca
'til the party's over

Let's keep the music sweet
wine up your waist and feel the beat

Don't scratch my soca

[Marti]

Like all of London villages, SN can be split further into zones. In many ways it reminds me of where I used to live in New Cross - There were streets that would rival Hampstead or St Johns Wood and streets that would resemble a LA ghetto, like South Norwood, New Cross has a tatty high street also.

South Norwood suffers due to it's high street's having a shabby appearance, but it's residential streets are lovely. I took a walk around Woodside and around the green is lovely, it has a peaceful English village feel, but to go 5 minutes from there on Portland Road and you would never guess such a place could exist!!

For someone considering moving to the area, I can only really suggest where I've been living for almost a year: Overlooking Grangewood park, to be fair where I live is more upper norwood than south norwood proper; the very very expensive Fox Hill is about 15 mins walk from my place.

Postcode snobbery means living on the coat tails where SE25 becomes SE19 meant I got a 3 bed semi for under 300 with a converted loft giving me 4 beds, a big back garden and front garden. My neighbours are friendly and everyone around here says morning and and evening and it has a really smart feel to the neighbourhood.

But......It amazes me how different the vibe is when I walk down the hill to Norwood Junction or Thornton Heath.....

but and it's a BIG but with things like this http://www.tfl.gov.u...t-factsheet.pdf in the piple line, the ripple effect of CP going through the roof will eventually trickle down to South Norwood ( Rebranded something more posh such as 'Norwood Hill' or 'Norwood Lakes' and 'Grangewood lands' )

and in time even Thornton Heath will be re branded ( Thornton north Surrey, The Thornton Heathlands anyone??

[Sidney Ruff-Diamond]

...and in time even Thornton Heath will be re branded ( Thornton north Surrey, The Thornton Heathlands anyone??

Nah. It'll always be Fort Neaf.

Edited by Sidney Ruff-Diamond, 28 August 2012 - 09:24 PM.