This leafy suburban enclave sits sandwiched between the banks of the River Thames and the vast Queen Mary Reservoir. Affluent and quiet, other than in the north which borders the busy A308, the neighbourhood is predominantly made up of wide streets lined with interwar semis. To the south is a significant swathe of riverside green space in the form of Laleham Park, which also provides the community with local sports fields and athletics facilities. The huge Stanwell Moor is to the north, and is incredibly popular with dog walkers and nature enthusiasts, who enjoy the wide variety of animal species that call the area home. Staines is the nearest train station, and has made the neighbourhood popular with commuters and families, many of whom use the local Three Horseshoes pub as a centre of their community.

The name Laleham derives from the Old English words for ‘twig’ and ‘land in a riverbend’, and there is evidence of the village once being used as a Roman army camp during the 1st century. Iron Age artefacts have also been discovered in the area. The manor was later held by Robert of Mortain and a nun called Estrild, before falling into the hands of Westminster Abbey. The large local church of All Saints was built in the 12th century and remodelled in the 1600s – it is currently a Grade I-listed building. The village grew up around this church, expanding with the introduction of the railways in the 19th century. It was designated as a conservation area in 1970.

The massive Queen Mary Reservoir, which lies to the east of the neighbourhood, covers an area of 707 acres. It is one of the largest reservoirs to supply fresh water to London, and, during the Second World War, was so large that it was used for testing submarines.

The area lacks much of a high street, with the nearby towns of Staines and Ashford being the nearest commercial centres. Also, with Heathrow Airport just a short distance to the north, residents are sometimes bothered with the noise pollution caused by the planes immediately overhead.

Eden Grove, which occupies the land of 17-51 London Road, is a development currently being undertaken by the Berkeley Group in nearby Staines. The luxury housing project is set to bring hundreds of new faces to the area, who will benefit from the complex’s gym, cinema room, and central courtyard. It will likely bring further investment to the town and ultimately the regeneration of Staines town centre. It is expected to be fully completed in 2026, though homes will be ready to move into in 2023. The development will deliver a stylish collection of 1, 2 & 3 bedroom apartments. Interest in the project, especially considering it’s low prices compared to more central parts of London, has proven to be quite high considering that half of the flats are already sold.