I can't really say anything about Snodland as it's a place I've only ever driven through.
As already stated, Parkwood, Tovil and Shepway are not places I would want to live and do have a poor reputation.
As @Daggs has said, don't expect to be able to drive around the area easily. Maidstone town centre is awful at peak times and all the villages around become rat runs. If there is an accident on the M20 expect the whole town to become clogged and even the M2 will affect Maidstone if there is an accident there.
Major road 'improvements' are currently taking place in the centre of the town but as Daggs says, so many new housing estates are being built, any improvement is likely to be short lived.
On the north side of the town Bearsted, Downswood, Weavering (Grove Green) and the Penenden Heath areas are all good areas to live. A big new Waitrose is planned behind the massive Next superstore near Junction 7 of the M20. There is a medium size Tesco at Grove Green
Allington is okay too, but new houses are also being built here and traffic builds up at peak times. Allington also has a Waitrose and a new M & S food store.
I know less about the south side of Maidstone but there are lots of new housing estates and both the A274 and A229 routes into the town centre are very busy.
Aylesford has a very busy retail park with a large Sainsbury's and lots of the usual retail park chains. A very nice M & S food store is also here. Nearby a brand new Aldi is being built alongside a drive through McDonalds.
I've only ever travelled up to London from Maidstone East once and it seemed a long tedious journey. I think you can get trains from Maidstone West which connect with the high speed line at Strood.
I cannot tell you anything about schools as I've never had anything to do with schools in the area.
Hello folks who live in those areas, what are they like? We're looking at houses in these areas, so need to know what the schools are like, the commute (says from Aylesford do you go to West Malling?) and the general feel of the area?
Cheers
Go with Maidstone. Easier for schools, transport and travel.
Maidstone is improving all the time as a town but the traffic does suck. I would avoid Snodland but Leybourne, Bearsted, Wateringbury and particularly West Malling are all very nice villages.
Some great Grammar Schools in the area of you kids are lucky/bright enough to get selected.
Trains only run to Victoria/Blackfriars I think. Problem if you work in the City.
Cheers for the info, all very useful, the preference at the moment is a place just off Gighill Road between the M20 and the Lakes in Aylesford, just the garden is small and while the house is huge
I wouldn't worry about the garden too much. The traffic noise from the M20 will ruin any enjoyment you may have in it.
Maidstone is improving all the time as a town but the traffic does suck. I would avoid Snodland but Leybourne, Bearsted, Wateringbury and particularly West Malling are all very nice villages.
Some great Grammar Schools in the area of you kids are lucky/bright enough to get selected.
Trains only run to Victoria/Blackfriars I think. Problem if you work in the City.
Maidstone West goes to London Bridge/Charing Cross - just change at Tonbridge. That Medway Valley line to Tonbridge is a stunning route.
I live just outside Maidstone and s'alright. As others have said, like most areas, it has good and maybe not so good, but mostly it is an ok place to live. Some nice countryside around it with plenty of nice pubs, walks etc if you like that sort of thing Maidstone is an ok shopping centre but the traffic and infrastructure to support it, especially with the new housing estates mentioned are quite a significant problem. Expect to be queuing to get into town on a fairly regular basis. The drive to Bexley I used to do every day normally took about 40-50 mins, but that journey can be a nightmare if there are problems on the motorways. If that sounds generally negative, it isn't meant to be, I mostly really like it here, but just pointing out a couple of things to consider if you move into the area.
Cheers for the info, all very useful, the preference at the moment is a place just off Gighill Road between the M20 and the Lakes in Aylesford, just the garden is small and while the house is huge
I wouldn't worry about the garden too much. The traffic noise from the M20 will ruin any enjoyment you may have in it.
Cheers for the info, all very useful, the preference at the moment is a place just off Gighill Road between the M20 and the Lakes in Aylesford, just the garden is small and while the house is huge
I wouldn't worry about the garden too much. The traffic noise from the M20 will ruin any enjoyment you may have in it.
I live about 700 yards from M20 and don't hear a peep from it. They put that sound reflecting fencing up alongside it a few years ago.
Agree traffic can be a bit of a nightmare. But it's no worse than London.
I work in Snodland and its very limited and I wouldn't recomend, however where you are looking Rothko is the fringes of Larkfield a better place in my opinion. You have a leisure centre and the lakes within walking distance.
The only downside would be access to mainline trains.
I live just outside of Maidstone in Bearsted, but outside of the village itself. Most of the Primary schools around Bearsted and Downswood are good and they tend to target eleven plus so there is a good chance that if you want your child to go to a Grammar, and they are bright enough and/or you throw enough money at 'private eleven plus coaching' they will get in. Realistically the town is so well provided with two Grammar schools for both boys and girls there will be a place should your children pass. I think that a lot of Kent is like this but certainly Maidstone is.
The quality of the schools for those that do not pass the eleven plus are still good in the most part, but some are better than others. I'm not so sure about the schools around Leybourne as that was never an area I looked at but from West Malling Mascals is a good school and Oakwood Park Grammar is a popular school for those that live on Kings Hill - where the Primary schools are, again, very good but very difficult to get into. We, initially, couldn't get my son in and we lived 0.43 miles away.
As I work from home I can't comment on traffic problems in rush hour but I did drive my son from Bearsted to Kings Hill for about a year to school and it was never too bad getting onto the M20 at Jnc 7, but it could be a little slow from time to time on the motorway - that was also after 8am so it might be worse earlier.
There are nice people and less desirable elements everywhere but I suspect that Kent is like just about everywhere else, if you choose an area that appeals to certain criteria you are likely to find yourself surrounded by people that have similar aspirations to you. Also I don't think Kent is an especially cheap place to live but I'm sure you get a lot more for your money here than you do in London where you might be less than an hour door to desk.
Snodland was great - gone down hill since I left 2 years ago. In fact, one of the pubs closed soon after I moved out, which I took as a compliment.
That would be The Bull, which is eventually turning into another co-op. Which always makes me laugh when I am there. Still not a bad place but of course there will always be a lot better.
I had family living in Aylesford (aunt, uncle, cousins and grandmother) so we used to go there when I was little late 60's & 70's. I last went there around 15 years ago (aunts funeral). Always liked visiting especially the Little Gem.
I had family living in Aylesford (aunt, uncle, cousins and grandmother) so we used to go there when I was little late 60's & 70's. I last went there around 15 years ago (aunts funeral). Always liked visiting especially the Little Gem.
I lived in Halling (next village down from Snodland) for 23 years and have very fond memories. As others have said, access to very good schools and my two were lucky enough to go to Maidstone Grammar.
It has changed though and every piece of land, however small, is being built on.
However if getting up town is a consideration there are some very nice areas of Rochester. And as a moving in present I'll give you a tour of the where to and where to not visit places
Don't let chatham's shady reputation put you off either, lordswood and walderslade give far more floor space for your buck than rochester but you will be getting a coach up town as he stations are all massive yomps
Bredhurst is a lively place to live, sadly the local has been done up by greene king and is very shiny and new with lots of outside seating but has also lost all its old character
Snodland was great - gone down hill since I left 2 years ago. In fact, one of the pubs closed soon after I moved out, which I took as a compliment.
That would be The Bull, which is eventually turning into another co-op. Which always makes me laugh when I am there. Still not a bad place but of course there will always be a lot better.
Comments
As already stated, Parkwood, Tovil and Shepway are not places I would want to live and do have a poor reputation.
As @Daggs has said, don't expect to be able to drive around the area easily. Maidstone town centre is awful at peak times and all the villages around become rat runs. If there is an accident on the M20 expect the whole town to become clogged and even the M2 will affect Maidstone if there is an accident there.
Major road 'improvements' are currently taking place in the centre of the town but as Daggs says, so many new housing estates are being built, any improvement is likely to be short lived.
On the north side of the town Bearsted, Downswood, Weavering (Grove Green) and the Penenden Heath areas are all good areas to live. A big new Waitrose is planned behind the massive Next superstore near Junction 7 of the M20. There is a medium size Tesco at Grove Green
Allington is okay too, but new houses are also being built here and traffic builds up at peak times. Allington also has a Waitrose and a new M & S food store.
I know less about the south side of Maidstone but there are lots of new housing estates and both the A274 and A229 routes into the town centre are very busy.
Aylesford has a very busy retail park with a large Sainsbury's and lots of the usual retail park chains. A very nice M & S food store is also here. Nearby a brand new Aldi is being built alongside a drive through McDonalds.
I've only ever travelled up to London from Maidstone East once and it seemed a long tedious journey. I think you can get trains from Maidstone West which connect with the high speed line at Strood.
I cannot tell you anything about schools as I've never had anything to do with schools in the area.
Hope that helps a bit.
Some great Grammar Schools in the area of you kids are lucky/bright enough to get selected.
Trains only run to Victoria/Blackfriars I think. Problem if you work in the City.
As others have said, like most areas, it has good and maybe not so good, but mostly it is an ok place to live. Some nice countryside around it with plenty of nice pubs, walks etc if you like that sort of thing
Maidstone is an ok shopping centre but the traffic and infrastructure to support it, especially with the new housing estates mentioned are quite a significant problem. Expect to be queuing to get into town on a fairly regular basis.
The drive to Bexley I used to do every day normally took about 40-50 mins, but that journey can be a nightmare if there are problems on the motorways.
If that sounds generally negative, it isn't meant to be, I mostly really like it here, but just pointing out a couple of things to consider if you move into the area.
Agree traffic can be a bit of a nightmare. But it's no worse than London.
The only downside would be access to mainline trains.
The quality of the schools for those that do not pass the eleven plus are still good in the most part, but some are better than others. I'm not so sure about the schools around Leybourne as that was never an area I looked at but from West Malling Mascals is a good school and Oakwood Park Grammar is a popular school for those that live on Kings Hill - where the Primary schools are, again, very good but very difficult to get into. We, initially, couldn't get my son in and we lived 0.43 miles away.
As I work from home I can't comment on traffic problems in rush hour but I did drive my son from Bearsted to Kings Hill for about a year to school and it was never too bad getting onto the M20 at Jnc 7, but it could be a little slow from time to time on the motorway - that was also after 8am so it might be worse earlier.
There are nice people and less desirable elements everywhere but I suspect that Kent is like just about everywhere else, if you choose an area that appeals to certain criteria you are likely to find yourself surrounded by people that have similar aspirations to you. Also I don't think Kent is an especially cheap place to live but I'm sure you get a lot more for your money here than you do in London where you might be less than an hour door to desk.
Good luck!
Live in the countryside, easy access to West Malling for nice eateries, very easy access to A2, M20, quick hop to Ebbsfleet for the fast train
And Gary Borrowdale lives at Holborough Lakes
Kings Hill only gets Cheryl Baker as the celebrity charlton link!
My other half lives there, it's ok, never had any trouble there. Obviously better places, but equally a lot worse.
It has changed though and every piece of land, however small, is being built on.
However if getting up town is a consideration there are some very nice areas of Rochester. And as a moving in present I'll give you a tour of the where to and where to not visit places
Don't let chatham's shady reputation put you off either, lordswood and walderslade give far more floor space for your buck than rochester but you will be getting a coach up town as he stations are all massive yomps
Bredhurst is a lively place to live, sadly the local has been done up by greene king and is very shiny and new with lots of outside seating but has also lost all its old character