London’s village high streets are shining bright this Christmas, says Winkworth

Adam Stackhouse, Winkworth’s MD of Developments and Commercial Investments, says there is a new energy kicking back into the high street. He told the latest episode of  Winkworth’s Property Exchange podcast: “When I look across the South-east, local people have stopped taking their high street for granted.  Now people are back in their offices three or four days a week, they are really engaging and seeing the high street as a place for relaxation and entertainment at weekends. We are doing deals with gym operators and we are also seeing people looking for places to meet and spend time together with their families. This kind of community activity is the backbone of the high street. Certain local authorities have been more proactive with their planning policies and that has allowed the high street to reinvent.”

For a traditional Christmas card village, Highgate in North London is hard to beat, with its pretty Georgian and Victorian houses, and views across the city as one of the highest points in the capital.

James Wilkinson, of Winkworth’s Highgate office, said: “There are Christmas lights strung across the high street with Pond Square as the centrepiece in the heart of the village. For Christmas drinks, there are old favourites such as the ancient Flask Inn and a wonderful new pub, The Crown, which has become very popular.  For excellent Christmas food shopping, there is the Highgate Butchers, the Highgate Pantry for delicious bread and the Coffee and Bean cafe, as well as a Gail’s, for somewhere to meet up.

“Highgate was described by the great Yehudi Menuhin, who lived there for many years, as London’s green lung, with the wild acres of Hampstead Heath, Waterlow Park in the centre of the village and Queens Wood close by. Many people move to Highgate and stay for many years yet there is a dynamism to it, with new people always arriving. Walk up the high street and you will be stopped by someone who knows you. It’s a village, people know each other and their kids have grown up together.  It’s such a great place to live, with a great range of homes. There are traditional period houses built centuries ago to more contemporary homes and apartment blocks.”

For those shopping for a home in Highgate this Christmas, family houses start at  around £1.2m,  with  large detached houses in private roads selling for £5m upwards. For those with more modest budgets, there are flats above shops from £700,000 and occasional one bedroom flats from £500,000.

The Highgate Society offices in Highgate Village

Over in South-west London, Southfields, widely known as the stop for the Wimbledon tennis championships, was once regarded as the quiet neighbour of Wimbledon village and Putney.

Douglas Moss, of Winkworth’s office in Southfields, said: “Southfields has really been put on the map by the tennis championshops and was overlooked for many years but it’s really come into its own.  Southfields has a high street which has been reinvented in the past two or three years. There are lots of new independent shops, the Village butchers, the Chanteroy patisserie with delicious baguettes and pastries. Coffee shops such as Dropshot, a fantastic independent coffee shop, is a hub for the local families living here. The Christmas lights are on and there’s a great community atmosphere.”

Flanked by affluent Wimbledon Village and Putney, Southfields’ proximity to wealthier neighbours has pushed the prices up in recent years.  For Christmas house hunters, Southfields has mainly Edwardian terraced houses, many with period detail, starting from £1.2m up to £1.5m. Douglas Moss said: “We have fantastic primary schools such as Sheringdale, St Michael’s and Wimbledon Park primary schools. There are fantastic farmers’ markets which pop up in the school playgrounds. The schools are a major pull for families moving to the area.”