Living in Lewisham

Lewisham is a major town centre and transport interchange, and its appeal is practical. The station combines the DLR, which starts here and runs to Canary Wharf and Bank, with Southeastern trains that reach London Bridge in under ten minutes and continue to Cannon Street, Charing Cross and sometimes Victoria. For the price, very few places give such fast access to both the City and Docklands.

The centre has been rebuilt around the station in recent years, with tall residential towers, new public spaces and a rerouted road layout, alongside the older shopping centre and a long-running street market on the High Street. It is busy, functional and diverse rather than charming, and large chain shops and supermarkets make everyday life easy.

Two small rivers, the Ravensbourne and the Quaggy, meet near the centre, and some of the area's best green space follows their valleys. Ladywell Fields, restored as a riverside park, runs south towards Catford; Hilly Fields, with views across south-east London, sits on the ridge towards Brockley; and Blackheath is a short walk uphill to the east. University Hospital Lewisham is a major local employer.

The housing stock is split between new-build flats in and around the town centre, which are generally modern but can be small, and Victorian and Edwardian terraces in the surrounding neighbourhoods of Ladywell, Hither Green and Lee, which are quieter and more residential. For an evening out, residents mostly head to Brockley or Deptford; the town centre itself winds down early. Lewisham suits commuters working at Canary Wharf, London Bridge or the City who want value and choice of routes, and who can accept a busy, sometimes unlovely town centre.