This part of Camberwell sits nestled between Oval, Walworth, and Peckham. It often gets overlooked by Londoners since it lacks its own tube station, but Camberwell is one of South London’s best kept secrets. Wandering through the tree lined streets, you’ll be blown away by the abundance of eclectic shops and eateries. Locals especially love running errands along Camberwell New Road, where they can grab hard to find ingredients at Turkish grocers TFC, sift through classic hits at Rat Records, and later catch up over Ethiopian food at fan favourite, Zeret Kitchen. While all of this has drawn young artists and professionals over the past several years, the neighbourhood still remains a great spot for families. Home to plenty of green space, like Burgess Park, and quickly improving schools, families love the convenient location and still relatively affordable housing options in the area. With all that the neighbourhood has to offer, it’s no surprise that locals have wanted to keep this gem under wraps.

The neighbourhood of Camberwell was originally a rural village filled with market gardens. By the 19th century, the area’s new roads and bridges had brought in more visitors and residents, leading to the construction of higher end terraced houses. Many of those who had begun to move to Camberwell would commute to the City for work, establishing the area as an early suburb. These commutes became easier at the end of the 19th century with the arrival of horse-drawn trams. This increased accessibility also attracted many working-class Londoners, which resulted in the subdivision of many of the once glamorous Georgian houses. Throughout the 20th century, the area continued to see pressure for more housing, and responded by building multiple large blocks of council flats that are still there today.

Unlike most of London’s green spaces, Burgess Park emerged out of a formerly built-up area. The land was previously made up of housing, industry, and transport infrastructure. The 1943 Abercrombie plan gave the local council the original idea to open up more green space, but the park emerged with the closure of the Grand Surrey Canal in the 1970s.

While the area’s transport connections are great for getting to central London and the City, they can make the trip to West London rather inconvenient. Still, many residents are content with the entertainment offerings in South London and find little need to venture west.

As young professionals and artists in London have begun to see the beauty in Camberwell, the housing market has quickly become more active in the area. Multiple housing developers have been focused on building in Camberwell in recent years. Of the many developments being built is Peabody’s The Gallery, adding nearly 70 new homes, a third of which will be affordable units. Another is the mixed use scheme between 25 and 33 Parkhouse Street which will provide 109 new flats and 1,400 m2 of commercial space upon completion in 2024. East of here, there is also a regeneration project planned around Peckham Rye station. Southwark Council claim that the project “will transform the narrow, dimly lit passageways that lead to the station into a generous, vibrant public square.” It will also increase the station’s capacity, allowing for more passengers and more platforms. The project was originally set to be completed in the autumn of 2020 but is currently still in the planning stage as of 2022.