This sought-after slice of the lovely market town of Epsom, Surrey, incorporates a plethora of spacious semi-detached homes, which give the area that unmistakable community feel. With all the wonderfulness of the town you might wonder if there’s something in the water! And you would be right, as Epsom is famous for its Epsom Salts. Slap bang in the middle of the neighbourhood is Epsom College, a prestigious prep school – one of the many good educational facilities in the town. Epsom Golf Course and Alexandra Park satisfy the need for green space, whilst the Upper High street offers a selection of small local business from fried chicken to florists. With a strong commuter population, the town is also bestowed with a large number of train station options, with this neighbourhood’s closest being Epsom Down Station.

If you go into the British museum, you might spot an Anglo-Saxon brooch that was originally dug up in…? you guessed it – Epsom. There has been human existence in the area since at least the 7th century. Through the medieval ages, the land, nothing more than a little village, was passed around from aristocratic family to aristocratic family; however, by the Georgian period, Epsom developed into a spa town, not least thanks to the discovery of salt that was found in the springs of Epsom. The town’s next stint with fame then came when horse racing became the most popular form of entertainment in the country. The most famous race, the derby, was first run in 1780.

The races are still much-loved, and people continue to flock to this day to the town, on a yearly basis, and drunkenly gamble everything that they have on a lucky-looking stallion. It was at the Derby Races that Emily Davison, the suffragette, ran in front of a horse to protest women’s lack of voting rights back in 1913. She died from her injuries but did not die in vain.

The Upper High Street, a key spot for local businesses, is looking a little worse for wear as of late. Economic hardship has contributed to a number of shops shutting down, which has left a few empty stores and store fronts that over time have become more and more run down.

The village-esque, rural nature of Epsom means large scale developments to the area are few and far between thanks in part to both protected Green Belt land and opposition from residents. That said, Epsom is likely to see some change over the next couple of decades with the introduction of the Future40 plan, which will seek to improve the environmental friendliness, safety, culture and connectivity accross the borough with input from locals. This improvement plan is likely a knock-on effect of the proposed Crossrail 2 line which is slated to pass through Epsom, increasing the number of trains that will take commuters into central London and further afield to 8. Luckily for Epsom, the council will have plenty of time to implement any changes they may wish to make to this semi-rural borough before the new train line brings in lots of new faces as it’s now not predicted to launch for at least another decade!