Camberwell: An up and coming place for today's artistic youth

Camberwell is a metropolitan district located in Southwark, which forms the heart and soul of South London. 

Most of the properties in the area are made up of terraced housing, tower blocks and apartments. It is worth noting however that Camberwell Grove, Grove Lane and Addington Square are home to some of the borough's most sophisticated, luxury Georgian homes.

Prices start from around £600,000 - £700,000 for a three-bedroom house, and around £300,000 for a flat. Rental flats are available from £250 a week.

One of the best things about Camberwell is the fact that it is very diverse, has a fantastic arts scene and plenty of educational establishments. It is an affordable and lively place to live in, particularly if you are fairly young.

Shopping

If you have an eye for a bargain, and want access to affordable goods, then this is probably one of the best boroughs to be in.

The area is saturated with markets and independent stalls that sell everything from clothing, to kitchenware and trinkets. 

There are also a number of shopping malls and large department stores, where you can purchase goods from some of the major retail outlets.

En route to Camberwell is the iconic Elephant & Castle shopping centre. You can't miss it - it is a big, pinkish-red centre, with a giant elephant statue on top.

The mall has a lot of heart and is home to many small businesses and market traders. It is one of the first US-style enclosed malls of its kind in Europe, with a thriving food market which has attracted many shoppers over the years.

Arts and culture

Camberwell is famous for it arts scene and is currently at the centre of new proposals to build a theatre there.

The new £2.3 million community theatre has already been given the green light and is backed by actor, film producer and director, Jude Law.

He said the venue will help to support new, emerging talent in the area, and nurture the creative communities within South London.

It is set to be constructed by Alumno Developments at Camberwell College, and will include 200 seats, a rehearsal space, cafe and gallery. It will replace the current Theatre Peckham, which has been on the site since 1991.

Work on the theatre is due to finish by 2015.

Teresa Early, artistic director of Theatre Peckham said this will be the first development of its kind in South London for quite a while.

She added: "No need to say we are delighted that Southwark Council has come down in favour of Alumno Developments' arts-based scheme on the old town hall site. We are especially thrilled at being able to bring the first new purpose built theatre into Peckham and Camberwell for what is probably a century or more."

The borough is also home to Camberwell College of Arts, which forms part of the University of Arts London. It offers a variety of undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in all aspects of the subject.

For 19 years, the area has been host to the Camberwell Arts Festival, which is a nine-day celebration of talent in the district.

The festival even has its very own website, camberwellarts.org.uk which features the Made in Camberwell directory, where visitors can browse through work by local painters, photographers, ceramicists and jewellers – and then make direct contact with the artists if they wish to purchase anything.

Education

In addition to Camberwell College of Arts, it is home to King's College London and the Institute of Psychiatry, which forms part of that college. Southwark College Camberwell Centre is another educational establishment in the area.

Just around the corner from Camberwell is London Southbank University, which is a short bus ride away.

Transport

The borough is connected to Central London by Camberwell Road in the north and Camberwell New Road in the west.

Buses run regularly throughout the borough and it often takes less than 30 minutes to get into West London, although this can vary significantly during rush hour.
 
 Like most areas in London, it is served by Tube and rail stations, which make it easy to travel to different parts of the city.

Published 20th December, 2013

© 2013 Estates IT Limited