With a short commute into London, the quiet suburban town of Wallington is a wonderful place to live if you’re looking for a sterling education for your children. Sutton is a high-performing borough for education in the UK, with a whopping three of Sutton’s 5 grammar schools located in Wallington, including Wallington County Grammar School and Wilson’s School.
Apart from a great education, Wallington offers peaceful, leafy streets alongside relatively affordable family homes. It’s ideal for those first-time buyers and priced-out families who often desire homes they can grow into by extending, with the help of local architect, Shuahra Rahman. The beautiful Edwardian houses in the best south Wallington roads hardly come up for sale, which demonstrates that families want to stay in the area. For those wanting to escape the hustle and bustle of city life at the weekends but still wish for a quick commute over the week, Wallington is an attractive proposition.
If you’re wondering about amenities, Wallington has great community spirit and hosts a number of annual events. It offers many suburban activities such as a farmer’s market held on the second Saturday of every month with locally sourced and grown produce. Also, a small independent cinema and a public library with an outside terrace are held there. If this is too mild for you, Croydon is less than 15 minutes by car.
Wallington may sound modest, but it has a compelling history. The original village appears in Domesday Book of 1086 and was held by William the Conqueror. It was also a hub for the production of lavender oil until around the time of WWI. A striking 18ft-tall sculpture of a lavender plant by sculptor Guy Portelli stands at the junction of Woodcote Road and Stafford Road, serving as a continued celebration of lavender for which this area was renowned. Not to mention, home to four gold post boxes, representing the four Gold Medals that local resident, David Weir won at the 2012 Summer Paralympics.
Wallington features lovely parks such as Mellows Park, Beddington Park and Grange Gardens. The latter two through which the River Wandle flows. Beddington park is nearly 100 acres in size and boasts The Grange, a popular restaurant. Mellows Park in Stafford Road is a smaller local park with a skate park, playground, café and an outdoor gym. Wallington’s leafy avenues, range of suburban amenities, ornamental bridges, lakes and ponds make it a perfect location for those looking for a peaceful retreat.
