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Would I like living here? What stands out, a day in the life, schools in reach, journey times, shops and leisure, and places with the same character.
Compared with all 7,264 neighbourhoods in England and Wales (council well-being: all councils). Open a tab below for the detail.
| St Mary Cray South | Bromley | England and Wales | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crimes per 1,000 residents a year | 88 | 88 | 99 |
| In good or very good health | 84% | 86% | 82% |
| Households with dependent children | 33% | 32% | 29% |
| Aged 65 and over | 15% | 18% | 19% |
| Degree or higher | 32% | 43% | 34% |
| Nitrogen dioxide (µg/m³) | 12.2 | 13.1 | 10.1 |
Ranked against your own priorities instead: Find places or Where could I live?
Answer a few questions in Where could I live? and this will use your own priorities. Until then, try a perspective.
Working out the fit…
The same scores as Find places: each priority against all 7,264 neighbourhoods in England and Wales.
The nearest station is St Mary Cray, a few minutes' walk (500 m), with 1.3m journeys a year; its busiest route is to London Victoria.
The nearest bus stop is Austin Road, 100 m away, with a bus about every 20 minutes on weekdays (route R3); 52 departures an hour from the 15 stops within a 5-minute walk.
Rail is a big part of life: 11% of workers commuted by train or Tube.
Central London is 21 km away as the crow flies.
The nearest primary school is Poverest Primary School, a few minutes' walk (400 m); 66% met the expected standard.
The closest top-rated primary is Perry Hall Primary School (0.9 km), with 4 rated strongly by Ofsted within 2 km.
The nearest secondary is Harris Academy Orpington, 2.1 km away; Attainment 8: 42.7 · 6.4% of GCSEs at 8–9.
Grammar schools are within reach: St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School (2.7 km) and Newstead Wood School (3.1 km).
Near the middle of the neighbourhood, the closest supermarket is Marks & Spencer, 700 m away, with Orpington Pharmacy closer still (250 m) for top-ups.
The nearest GP surgery is Poverest Medical Centre (150 m), with Orpington Pharmacy the closest pharmacy (250 m).
For a haircut, Ace Barbers is 250 m away.
The nearest full A&E is Princess Royal University Hospital, 4.1 km away, rated requires improvement by the CQC.
At its trust, 52% of major A&E patients were seen within 4 hours in September 2026 (the NHS standard is 95%), and 66% of people waiting for planned treatment had waited under 18 weeks (typical wait 13 weeks).
There's a handful of places to eat and drink locally: 9 restaurants and cafés, 1 pubs and bars.
The Greek Way is the closest café or restaurant (250 m), and The Beech Tree the nearest pub (900 m).
Crime is around the national middle: about 88 per 1,000 residents a year.
It's a mix of homes: 15% flats and 14% detached houses.
The typical home here was built in 1945-1954.
The nearest park is Riverside gardens, 700 m away; for exercise, The Gym Group (600 m).
Air quality is around the national middle (nitrogen dioxide 12.2 µg/m³).
For holidays, London City is 13 km away, and London Gatwick, with far more destinations, 33 km.
| School | Stage | Distance | Latest results |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poverest Primary School | Primary | 400 m | 66% met the expected standard |
| St. Mary Cray Primary Academy | Primary | 900 m | 41% met the expected standard |
| Leesons Primary School | Primary | 900 m | 33% met the expected standard |
| Perry Hall Primary School | Primary | 950 m | 90% met the expected standard |
| Harris Academy Orpington | Secondary | 2.1 km | Attainment 8: 42.7 · 6.4% of GCSEs at 8–9 |
| Kemnal Technology College | Secondary | 2.4 km | Attainment 8: 29.3 · 0.4% of GCSEs at 8–9 |
| St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School | Secondary | 2.7 km | Attainment 8: 83.6 · 76.8% of GCSEs at 8–9 |
| Orion Coopers | Secondary | 2.8 km | Attainment 8: 48.5 · 10.9% of GCSEs at 8–9 |
| Newstead Wood School | Secondary | 3.1 km | Attainment 8: 82.8 · 73.3% of GCSEs at 8–9 |
| Clannad Education Centre | Independent | 1.1 km | – |
| Woodview | Independent | 1.5 km | – |
| Farringtons School | Independent | 2.9 km | 22.8% of GCSEs at 8–9 |
| St Mary Cray South | Bromley | England and Wales | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rush hour to central London, public transport | 63 min | 61 min | 163 min |
| Rush hour to the nearest big city centre | 118 min | 112 min | 93 min |
| Minutes to a town centre | 15 min | 16 min | 20 min |
| Distance to the nearest station | 0.5 km | 1.1 km | 2.8 km |
| Buses an hour within a 5-minute walk | 59 | 46 | 21 |
| Commute by train or Tube | 11% | 11% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home | 36% | 46% | 30% |
| Households without a car | 22% | 22% | 23% |
DfT journey time statistics, our rush-hour journey times, NaPTAN, ORR, Census 2021.
| St Mary Cray South | Bromley | England and Wales | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restaurants and cafés | 9 | 9 | 10 |
| Pubs and bars | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| Independent cafés, takeaways and shops | 88% | 82% | 85% |
| Named parks within 2 km | 12 | 8 | 5 |
| Postcodes within 400 m of a public park | 85% | 55% | 55% |
| Gyms, pools and sports centres within 2 km | 11 | 11 | 4 |
| Public swimming pools within 5 km | 3 | 5 | 2 |
| Cinemas, theatres and libraries within 5 km | 10 | 20 | 8 |
FSA, OpenStreetMap (ODbL), Sport England (CC BY).
Matched on character, not price: age mix, education, tenure, home types, how people travel, deprivation, crime, places to eat and distance to London. "Alike" is 100 for an identical profile and 0 for no closer than a typical area.
How the neighbourhoods around it compare on crime, schools, journeys, parks and price.
| Orpington South | 30 | 1 | 123 min | 5 | £566k |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Langley Park | 31 | 5 | 105 min | 8 | £900k |
| Hayes North | 34 | 4 | 101 min | 6 | £749k |
| Crofton | 37 | 6 | 116 min | 5 | £635k |
| Petts Wood | 39 | 4 | 120 min | 6 | £754k |
| Chislehurst West & Elmstead | 42 | 2 | 120 min | 3 | £786k |
| Beckenham East & Kelsey Park | 48 | 4 | 102 min | 11 | £471k |
| Chelsfield & Green Street Green | 49 | 1 | 125 min | 4 | £637k |
| Widmore | 50 | 3 | 115 min | 6 | £537k |
| Bickley East | 54 | 3 | 125 min | 3 | £716k |
| West Wickham | 57 | 2 | 95 min | 11 | £704k |
| Shortlands Bromley Road | 57 | 6 | 108 min | 11 | £469k |
| Bickley West | 59 | 3 | 115 min | 5 | £530k |
| Hayes South & Coney Hall | 61 | 2 | 107 min | 7 | £722k |
| Orpington East | 62 | 1 | 129 min | 11 | £459k |
| Biggin Hill West | 63 | 0 | 121 min | 2 | £445k |
| Elmers End | 64 | 3 | 91 min | 15 | £646k |
| Chislehurst North | 67 | 0 | 127 min | 9 | £572k |
| Anerley South | 67 | 2 | 87 min | 20 | £492k |
| Goddington | 71 | 2 | 124 min | 8 | £558k |
| Biggin Hill East & Cudham | 77 | 0 | 147 min | 1 | £525k |
| Plaistow (Bromley) | 82 | 2 | 112 min | 14 | £537k |
| Keston | 85 | 1 | 119 min | 7 | £711k |
| St Mary Cray South (this one) | 88 | 4 | 118 min | 12 | £466k |
| Clock House & Cator Park | 89 | 3 | 92 min | 17 | £602k |
| Bromley Common | 89 | 1 | 124 min | 7 | £555k |
| Farnborough | 94 | 2 | 133 min | 5 | £521k |
| Chislehurst East & Hoblingwell Wood | 104 | 2 | 136 min | 3 | £534k |
| Eden Park & Bethlem | 113 | 1 | 98 min | 11 | £715k |
| Crystal Palace Park | 119 | 2 | 96 min | 23 | £400k |
| Penge East | 127 | 2 | 97 min | 20 | £612k |
| Mottingham | 131 | 0 | 118 min | 13 | £412k |
| St Mary Cray North | 133 | 2 | 126 min | 9 | £421k |
| Anerley North & Penge West | 144 | 2 | 90 min | 20 | £363k |
| Orpington West | 144 | 3 | 123 min | 8 | £489k |
| New Beckenham | 150 | 3 | 101 min | 16 | £369k |
| St Mary Cray East | 162 | 1 | 132 min | 8 | £373k |
| Bromley North & Sundridge | 175 | 6 | 107 min | 9 | £440k |
| Bromley South | 205 | 7 | 99 min | 6 | £468k |
Most households own their home, 14% rent privately.
Written from the figures on this page: Census 2021, DfT journey times (2019), NaPTAN/ORR, Ofsted, CQC, FSA, police.uk and planning registers.
| St Mary Cray South | Bromley | England and Wales | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top-rated state primaries within 2 km | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Top-rated state secondaries within 6 km | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| Good or outstanding nurseries within 2 km | 15 | 15 | 7 |
| Grammar schools within 15 km | 10 | 11 | 0 |
| Minutes to a primary school | 8 min | 9 min | 9 min |
| Minutes to a secondary school | 23 min | 17 min | 18 min |
DfE performance tables and Ofsted.
Sort by any column; open a neighbourhood for the same view.
Rank every neighbourhood in England and Wales on what matters to you (a commute, schools, budget, quiet, the coast) in Find places, or answer a few questions in Where could I live?. Compare St Mary Cray South with somewhere else.
| To | Public transport | Car |
|---|---|---|
| Central London (Bank) | 63 min | 39 min |
| Gatwick airport | 1 h 46 | 41 min |
From the middle of the neighbourhood, leaving on a weekday between 8 and 9am (the typical journey across that hour, including walking and waiting). Buses, trams and the Tube from the Bus Open Data Service, trains from the National Rail timetable; car times assume free-flowing traffic on OpenStreetMap road speeds, so rush-hour driving is often slower. The city and airport are the nearest by car. Contains OpenStreetMap data (ODbL).