Property

Hither where? you may well ask. This pocket of south-east London certainly has a low profile, with the exception of its train station, whose large size and high frequency of services to Charing Cross and Cannon Street seem at odds with its sleepy location. Find it tucked in between Lee and the noisier, more urban Lewisham and Catford. Also close to genuinely posh (and beautiful) Blackheath.

It’s the new…
Dulwich. Okay, maybe East Dulwich.

Best for...
Young families looking for a decent sized house on a quiet road who can’t yet afford the more desirable Blackheath. Don’t live there if you like a lively street culture.
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What else?
According to local estate agent, A Smarter Move, Hither Green is divided into two distinct halves by the railway lines. The smarter side towards Manor House Gardens and Lee costs about 15 per cent more than the less pretty Catford side, although the housing stock is fairly similar. However, the Catford side now offers an alternative to the standard terraced houses: Meridian South, a major redevelopment at the former Hither Green hospital site on Hither Green Lane. Now well on the way to completion, this has plenty of contemporary one-, two-, and three-bed apartments as well as its own little shopping area.

It’s very, very quiet and residential, full of Victorian and Edwardian terraces. Part of the reason for this is that over a century ago, house-builder Sir Archibald Corbett, who constructed 3,000 houses in the area, wrote leases that prohibited pubs in the area. A century on, not much has changed.

It’s at the heart of what some locals and estate agents call Hither Green Village – the cluster of shops close to the station on Staplehurst Road includes a chemist, newsagent, DIY shop and a barbers. There’s also the tiny but beautiful café/florist You Don’t Bring Me Flowers (15 Staplehurst Road/020 8297 2333). Cards in the window advertising pilates, flute lessons and botanical illustration give a flavour of the atmosphere within.

Hither Green does have a small but very pleasant park. Manor House Gardens, established in 1902, was restored a few years ago with a pond, children’s playground, café, tennis courts and a dog-free area that’s great for picnics in the summer. There’s also an adjacent library, situated in the former Manor House itself. The original ice-house is occasionally open to the public on Sundays.

The Station (020 8463 0367), a pub on the corner of Staplehurst Road and Station Parade, is the best chance of a night out in the area. If you’re after a traditional fry-up, there’s local caff Rosa’s Diner (23 Staplehurst Road/020 8852 2819). The décor might be stuck in a time warp but so are the prices – a bacon sandwich will set you back just £1.10. Otherwise, you can grab a kebab from First Choice Kebab House (020 8297 1829) on the corner of Leahurst Road or try Matahari (020 8695 8823) , a Malaysian and Chinese restaurant and take-away on the other side of the railway station on Springbank Road.

Local stereotype
Commuting professional with a young family and nice house who hopes to move on soon to somewhere a bit posher and bigger.

Your neighbours
With its dearth of nightlife, this area is more popular with those who’ve settled down already. So it has a thirty- and fortysomething demographic rather than young, footloose and fancy-free profile. It also seems less cosmopolitan than nearby Lewisham.

What to tell your friends who don’t live there
Hither Green is lovely and quiet and you can get a decent sized house here for the cost of a cupboard in Islington. If you really must have something to do, a train to London Bridge only takes 13 minutes.

What to keep quiet about if you’re selling
It’s rather boring. With a few exceptions, if you want to eat, drink or shop, you’ll need to go elsewhere.

What the estate agents say
'We live in a little village and people just seem to have forgotten it. Prices are shooting up and the 2012 overflow has to come here,' says the proprietor of A Smarter Move estate agents.

Historical claim to fame
Hither Green was the site of one of the worst rail crashes in UK history in 1967. Forty nine people died and more than 80 were injured when an express train was derailed.

Schools
Brimdishe primary school is the best in the area while Prendergast For Girls is the best performing secondary school with 78 per cent of pupils obtaining five of more GCSEs at grade A-C. Mixed comp Northbrook Church of England isn’t brilliant, with only 49 per cent achieving five or more grades A-C, but is still the best mixed school in the area.

You know you’re a local when…
You start to recognise the dogs that are walked in Manor House Gardens.