New Eltham: A thriving London district which is great for retail therapy

New Eltham is based in South-East London, and is based in the London borough of Greenwich. Parts of it also lie in Bexley.

With the look of a modern market town, it has a large number of independent shops, and tight-knit community groups.

It also benefits from having excellent transport links and being in close proximity to the countryside.  New Eltham is also a great place to shop in, with three main shopping areas to choose from. 

One of them is located along Footscray Road either side of the Library and the Station, while the other is located over the railway bridge down Avery Hill Road.

The third shopping area is based on the A20 to Five Ways. New Eltham also benefits from plenty of green spaces, attractions, community clubs, and associations.

It has plenty of different special interest clubs and activities to suit the family, and is great for people with a wide range of different interests.

These include the New Eltham Operatic Society, a member of the National Operatic and Dramatic Association. Every year, they host one production, in addition to a concert in August.

There are also many other dance clubs, choirs, and other specialist groups in the area.

Recreational activities

New Eltham is known for its abundance of sports clubs and recreational activities. If you are a keen jogger, you may be interested in the New Eltham Joggers, who claim to be the friendliest group of runners in the south-east.

They hold many events throughout the area and are easily recognisable for their distinctive shirts.

Newpark FC is also based in the area. These guys play in the play in the South London Alliance Division 3 and are the current winners of the Beckenham Hospital Cup.

However in New Eltham, there are several local clubs. There are two main football clubs in the area, as well as  teams from neighboring suburbs that have their training ground in New Eltham.

If rubgy is more your thing, then you will be pleased to know there is the Footscray RUFC, which is comprised of three all-male teams, a ladies team and mini rugby. 

The club is open to people of different ages and abilities. 

Education

New Eltham has a number of primary schools, secondaries and colleges. Most of these have received an OK or outstanding rating from Ofsted.

However, official statistics from the UK Census appears to show that the quality of education is very high.

The figures revealed that New Eltham has a lower level of residents with either no qualifications or qualifications equal to one or more GCSE at grade D or below, compared to the national average.

In addition, the area also has a high level of residents with a higher education qualification (level 4) than the national average.

Essentially it means that the typical person in the area has a higher level of education.

This is true for the borough of Greenwich as a whole. For example, 33.2 per cent of people in Greenwich have a level 4 qualification, compared to just 27.4 per cent as a whole.

Similarly, 8.5 per cent of people have an advanced qualification, compared to just 5.7 per cent in the UK.

Health

The general health levels of people in the area also tend to be a lot better than the national average.

When asked to rate their health as part of the 2011 census, over half (50.14 per cent) of the local population said their health was very good, compared to just 47.17 per cent.

A further 32.95 per cent rated their health as good, compared to just 34.22 per cent across the UK as a whole.

Just 4.09 per cent claimed they had bad health, and this was still lower than the 4.25 per cent across England as a whole.

Demographics

The population of New Eltham are fairly young, compared to the national average. For example, it has a higher proportion of people between the ages of 18 and 44 than anywhere else in the country.

However, it also has a fairly sizeable elderly demographic, due to the number of people who move there to retire.

In general, New Eltham is an ideal place for families and young professionals, who want to escape from some of the busier parts of the city, in favour of a slightly slower pace of life.

Published 7th November, 2014

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