Nappy valley

Having finally decided that south east London was the right move for us in the new year, I decided to spend a bit of time in the area and get better acquainted with all things toddler related! At the time we were planning a family, the outskirts of London in Epping Forest sounded like the ideal place to raise a child. However, nearly every day Ari is out of nursery I find my self tracking into town with her. Yes walking in the forest and taking horse-riding classes sounded, initially, like a fairytale environment for Ari to be brought up in, but for me nothing can make up for the immense amount of culture that London has to offer. And unbeknownst to me at the time, it also offers up an abundance of parks and woods as well as those all-important horse-riding lessons!

I also thought that we would need to live in the pricey north part of London to provide her with the best opportunities, but have since been pleasantly surprised with how much south east has to offer! The area we finally decided on is the little triangle of Peckham rye, Dulwich and Forest hill, with hopes of finding a place in the Dulwich corner.

Forest hill’s biggest offering is the incredible Horniman museum. What with its natural history museum, aquarium, animal enclosure, playground, Saturday farmers market and botanical gardens as well as an amazing adventure playground just across the road from the museum, it’s not a bad way to spend the day! And for lunch there is a little gem of a place just down the road on Darthmouth rd. called The Montage, an antique shop/café/gallery/indoor play area.

On the Peckham corner of the triangle, Peckham Rye common exceeded all my expectations, with its community gardens, adventure play area, the Sexby and Japanese garden, the school nature garden, skate park, bowling green and outdoor gym.

And finally Dulwich and East Dulwich, aka Nappy Valley, where as one mum said, the pavements need pushchair lanes! Nestled between tones of green spaces including the Brockwell lido and park with its very own miniature railway, and the boating lake in Dulwich park, Dulwich also has an abundance of excellent primary and secondary schools.

Of course, I’m not going to pretend I’m making a completely selfless move here either. Dulwich is also packed with rustic pubs and delicious restaurants, and it’s right next to Brixton, my personal favorite for late babysitter nights!