General
Herne Hill is one of the smallest postcodes in London and is situated between Brixton, Dulwich, Tulse Hill and Camberwell. The beautiful leafy expanse of Brockwell Park dominates the skyline running along the south side of Herne Hill. Its 124 acres of parkland (described as the most underrated park in London) offer a wide range of activities including tennis, football, bowls, childrens’ play area, walks and regular free (and paying) festivals. Sometimes called the ‘Brixton Beach’, the park is also famous for its Lido, one of the few outdoor swimming pools left in London. Built in the 1930s and still clinging to life despite several closure attempts. Herne Hill is particularly well known for its Velodrome which is one of the few remaining purpose-built Victorian sports stadiums in London, now the only remaining cycle racing track in the Capital. The area incorporates both Southwark and Lambeth boroughs and is only 10 minutes by train to Victoria and 10 minutes by bus to Brixton and the Victoria line.

Property
With fantastic transport links to central London and within easy reach of Dulwich and its excellent schools, Herne Hill is popular with families and young professionals. Seen as more urban and less genteel than neighbouring Dulwich this area is a definite property hot spot.

Half Moon Lane connects Herne Hill to Dulwich Village and is lined with fine Victorian houses many of which are still single family homes. Roads running off here and forming what is known as the North Dulwich triangle include Ardbeg Road, Beckwith Road, Wyneham Road and Elmwood Road. In these roads there are large double-fronted period houses and smaller semis and terraced houses all dating from around the same period. In addition, along Half Moon Lane itself is a group of 3-storey 1960s’ townhouses, similar to those in West Dulwich, which provide great living space and offer the opportunity to indulge in cutting-edge contemporary design as exemplified in some of the current popular property TV shows and lifestyle magazines. These offer a really good residential mix and are again popular with families looking to be close to both North Dulwich and Herne Hill stations.

Roads running up from Half Moon Lane onto Herne Hill itself include Carver Road, Ruskin Walk, Holmdene Avenue and Hollingbourne, Elfindale, Frankfurt and Danecroft Roads where you will find a mixture of highly coveted Victorian and Edwardian houses again bordering North Dulwich.

To the other side of Herne Hill a pocket of good residential roads made up of late Victorian and early Edwardian detached and semi-detached houses can be found in roads like Brantwood Road, Kestral Avenue, Cosbycote Avenue and Fawnbrake Avenue. In many of these streets the houses have large rear gardens.

Croxted Road is another popular road with a choice of single and double fronted houses, a number of which have been split into attractive conversion flats, Guernsey Grove and Hawarden Grove are 2 popular streets off Croxted which are made of period properties less than ¼ mile from the open spaces of Brockwell Park.

Schools
As with all parts of London, catchment areas cross boundaries and, included in this list, therefore, are schools where the catchment areas include Herne Hill. In addition as children from the area use the nearby Dulwich Schools, these have also been included.

State primaries: Bessemer Grange Primary School, Dulwich Infant School, Dulwich Hamlet Junior School, Corpus Christi Catholic Primary, Jessop Primary School, Rosendale Primary School, St. Judes Cof E Primary School and St. Saviours Cof E Primary School. State secondaries: Kingsdale Secondary School, The Charter School.

Fee-paying schools in the proximity include: Herne Hill School (nursery to 7 years), Rosemead Preparatory (nursery – formerly Noah’s Arc -- to 11 years),
Streatham Hill and Clapham Girls School (nursery to 18 years), Dulwich College (separate but affiliated kindergarden - DUCKS - and junior schools) (nursery to 18 years), Dulwich College Prep School (nursery to 13 years), Alleyns (4 to 18 years), James Allen Prep School (mixed nursery to 7 years, girls only 8 to 11 years), James Allen Girls School (11 to 18 years) and Sydenham High School (4 to 18 years).

For details of school results (SATS, GCSE & A level) together with addresses and map visit Southwark-local-education-authority (for schools in Southwark) and Lambeth-local-education-authority. (for schools in Lambeth).

Other
Brockwell Park’s 124 acres of land is used annually to host the Lambeth Country Show, now the biggest free event of its type in South East England. Offering a huge selection of fairground rides, performance stages, community stalls and local attractions, a Parade of Steam, Medieval siege re-enactments and Falconry displays! The park now also boasts a miniature railway (open in the summer months only), as well as the Lido, paddling pool and tennis courts. Every year there is also a huge (free) firework display on 5 November which is spectacular. The Lido has now been developed by Lottery funding and includes a fabulous Fitness First gym which incorporates the pool and yoga studios. The Herne Hill Harriers can also be seen training in the park with their cross country headquarters based here. There has been a club since 1889 when a group of local boys decided to form an athletics club. Another gem which belongs to Herne Hill is the Velodrome which has been here for 120 years! Its future is hopefully secured with regeneration proposals focused on cycling and complementary recreational use.

Transport
Transport links into central London are good. There are fast, frequent services from Herne Hill to Victoria (9 minutes) via Brixton (Victoria line) and there is a rush hour service to Blackfriars calling at Elephant and Castle for the Bakerloo and Northern lines. There is also the CityMetro service operated by Thameslink via Kings Cross and Farringdon to Luton. Detailed information on train links to Herne Hill can be found at Journey Checker. The No. 3 bus goes to Oxford Circus via Westminster and Whitehall. The No. 68 bus goes to Russell Square via Elephant and Castle and X68 (faster service/less stops). Detailed information on buses (with map) can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk/buses.