This classically suburban ‘Metroland’ neighbourhood holds an extra hint of charm thanks to the open greenery, ancient woodlands and historic houses that make up Eastcote Village. The residential parts of the neighbourhood are occupied predominantly by 1930’s semi-detached family homes and small terraces, with many of the occupants enjoying quiet, traffic free and tree lined streets. The area is well located near many local amenities namely Eastcote High street and the Charles Holden-designed Eastcote Underground station, which conveniently operates on the Metropolitan and Piccadilly lines, to the south of the area, as well as the lush green grounds and Grade II-listed walled gardens that surrounded the now-demolished Eastcote House. This open space is open to the public and enjoyed by many, providing the perfect rural urban balance to this quiet suburb.

Eastcote Village gets its name from the 13th century or earlier, and is thought to mean ‘eastern cottages.’ In the middle ages the forest-area was cleared to make room for farming, but it was the establishment of a number of prominent houses and landed families that put Eastcote on the map. For example, Eastcote House around which the beautiful contemporary grounds that are today open to the public were built, was the home of the Hawtry family from around 1532 to 1880. Another such building was Haydon Hall, built in 1630, an impressive mansion which has now also been demolished - but again, the estate is now open for the public to enjoy. Aside from these grander, rural outposts, it wasn’t until 1906 with the arrive of the Metropolitan railway and subsequent development of ‘Metroland’, that Eastcote really blossomed into its modern, solidly suburban character. During the Second World War the area was subject to 18 raids by the Luftwaffe, and along with a hospital for casualties from the D-Day landings, Eastcote was also home to a codebreaking facility that worked with Beltchley Park to decode German Enigma messages. The site continued to be used as a codebreaking facility until well into the 1950s as GCHQ.

One of the nations most beloved radio and TV presenter stars, Fearne Cotton, actually hails from Eastcote. In fact, she even went to local secondary school, Haydon. Cotton, who started her career at the young age of 15 on an early morning show ‘The Disney Club’ on GMTV, continued to work as a presenter for children’s television until moving to ITV’s Love Island, the Xtra factor and ultimately moved to become a radio host on BBC Radio 1. Cotton has a number of important and impressive achievements to her name, as well as numerous involvements with charities such as Comic Relief, for which she climbed the formidable Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for the charity.

Local Highgrove House was owned for many years by a number of esteemed occupants - Sir Winston Churchill actually stayed there for part of his honeymoon. The house itself has since been sold and used as a hostel for homeless families, and was recently re-sold and developed into flats for sale.

Whilst a mostly very desirable place to live, there are a few local problems which continue to bother some residents. For example, families living towards the Pinner Green area, particularly around the Tesco Store, have had a ‘nightmare’ parking as many of the places are taken up by visitors to the store a problem which is echoed more widely in the Eastcote area.

Despite this, there is a very strong sense of community in the area which gathers to work on tackling these sorts of issues. The Eastcote Residents Association, which has been around for over 80 years, is testament to this spirit. In recognition of the rich history of the local area, they are a particularly effective organization when it comes to conservation of local heritage: observing on their website that ‘Eastcote is most fortunate in having extensive parks and green spaces, woodland areas, a large number of historic buildings, Conservation Areas and a number of Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC)’ giving it the credence and acknowledgement needed to maintain the historical legacy of Eastcote.

Speaking of preserving historical legacy, a recent archaeological excavation at the site of Eastcote House (which no longer stands) was undertaken as part of the improvements being made to Eastcote House Gardens following the national lottery funding which was recently allocated to Hillingdon Council to restore the beautiful gardens for public use.

Given that there has been an increased interest from those seeking to buy homes around the Eastcote area, particularly near the station, it is not surprising that a number of new planning applications for flats have sprung up in recent years. Alongside London Square’s relatively recent 45-apartment development, projects such as the 56-flat Malt Works, all of which sold out in 2022, and Eastcote Lane, which will consist of 36 flats on the site of the former Eastcote Arms pub, will bring a number of new homes to the area over the coming 5-10 years.