Please help this prospective new Busher out using the comments section, she wrote to me today asking for local views..Hi there,
We are thinking of moving into the Sundew Avenue area of the Wormholt estate near to the bottom of the road.....please can people tell me what its like to live there? Crime how safe it it too walk around, also especially burglary/car crime? How often does it occur and will premiums be hogher by much form the sothern counties?...
The friendliness of the residents? Something of the history of the area....i believe these houses were built in 1918...i wondered who they would have housed and why they were named as flowers?
Many thanks!
The Flowers Estate is a very interesting area. It was built by London City Council after WW1, as part of the "homes for heroes" programme. Architecturally, the whole project was heavily influenced by the Garden City movement, hence it is (as you will have noticed) quite green and spacious. There are meant to be a fewer similar developments in London, one in Tottenham and one in (I think) Tooting. I am not really sure why it is called the Flowers Estate. It is also called the Wormholt Estate, after the a farm that used to be there. The whole area is a conservation area, so there are limits on changes you can make to your house. The houses are built in different styles.
ReplyDeleteA good portion of the houses are still council owned.
The population is the usual mix. I would not say it is unsafe, I walk around at night. Though there is a bit of crime, it is probably less then where we used to live (Cathnor Road area). Not sure if there is a problem with burglary. There is definitely some drug dealing and boys with nasty dogs and every now and then one of the boys gets stabbed. Wormholt park can feel a bit unsafe.
To be honest, I think the main problem is fly tipping.
If I would buy a house there, I would find out about the neighbours. Most people are absolutely fine, but if you happen to live next to a problem family you are not going to enjoy it.
We live in the area and I quite like it. If you have small people or are thinking of getting a few, you need to be aware that schools in the area are not the best, though (and I am not being ironic) they are really trying very hard to improve and up to a point they succeed.
I would not say the residents are very friendly, but then this is Central London.
There are all sorts of restrictions on traffic, and hence it tends to be very quiet, unless if you live close to the Westway.
Hope this helps,
Greetings from Hemlock Road, W12
I think this fellow's resident remarks are quite accurate. It is a pretty, green and unpretentious area. Have lived here for about 3 years and never had any issues with safety. However, yes it is a very mixed area and some streets might have more problems than others. It is well located and has good transport links. The houses might need updating but are spacious with decent gardens. Watch out for the direct neighbours you might be getting, that can make quite a difference. Trashed front gardens are a good indication. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI live round the corner from that street too and would echo everything thats been said. In fact we used to have a very good friend on sundew, the street is very nice and the house certainly was. There are a couple of dicey neighbours on the road though - but they are clearly recongisable from the state of the front of their houses, so just use your common sense!
ReplyDelete