This part of South Norwood is even greener than its neighbouring communities. Home to the vast, lush South Norwood Country Park, even the less active residents can’t resist a good wander through the park and over to the South Norwood Lake. During those colder winter months, there’s also the popular South Norwood Leisure Centre. All of this wonderful outdoor space has attracted many London families who are also in search of more affordable housing options. Once they’ve made the move, locals are not disappointed. Residents love attending matches at Croydon or Crystal Palace Football Clubs, and eating at the wonderfully diverse restaurants in the area. Between the pub food at The Albert Tavern, West African food at The Gold Coast, and Chinese food at Yum Yum, amongst many more, there’s really something for everyone here!

Beloved South Norwood Country Park was originally agricultural land that was used mostly for pottery and brickworks. Following the closure of these industries, the site was repurposed into a sewage farm for the Corporation of Croydon. Unfortunately - or, fortunately, for local residents - the sewage plant ran into many issues due to the clay soil that had difficulty draining the sewage. By 1967, the sewage works had closed, and the site lay bare, quickly becoming an informal tipping ground. Later on, in 1982, Croydon began to plan for a park on the site. This involved a series of excavation and landscaping efforts. Once completed, the park was finally ready to open to the public in 1988.

Famous deep-water diver, William Walker (1869-1918), used to live in the neighbourhood. He is likely most well-known for his restoration work in saving the Winchester Cathedral.

Unfortunately, there’s no railway station in this part of the area. However, residents find the neighbourhood to be convenient enough - with the multiple bus lines that go through. When in need of the train, it’s only a short walk to The Overground at Norwood Junction station.

Croydon Council is focused on the regeneration of the South Norwood area. Through this work, they recently completed major improvements to the local public realm, which included the installation of new trees, seats and kerbs. In order to get resident input on the neighbourhood’s future improvements, the council has formed a “We Love SE25” residential team to help with new initiatives. Construction is also underway on the Belgrave and Grosvenor development on Belgrave Road. The proposed 17 storey tower, along with two more smaller buildings, will host 102 new homes.