Sitting north-east of the capital, Woodford has open green space with Epping Forest on the doorstep.

Winston Churchill, the great Tory wartime leader, was MP for Woodford from 1945 to 1964 and his statue stands on the corner of The Green. Clement Attlee, who succeeded Churchill as prime minister in the reforming post-war 1945 Labour government, lived on the favoured Monkhams Estate when he was MP for Walthamstow West from 1950 to 1956.

Sylvia Pankhurst, meanwhile, the suffragette and peace campaigner, scandalised her neighbours in the High Road by setting up home in 1924 with her Italian anarchist lover Silvio Corio and renaming her home Red Cottage.

The property scene

A small amount of grand period houses remains from the days when Woodford was a place of rural retreat for wealthy City retailers. Today, though, it is a typical commuter town with a mix of Victorian, Edwardian, and Twenties and Thirties detached, semi-detached and terrace houses, along with new-build flats.

Crest Nicholson converted the listed Victorian former Claybury Hospital in Manor Road and built new flats and houses in the Humphry Repton-landscaped grounds, creating 850 homes.

Lifestyle

Woodford’s main shopping centre is around South Woodford station, stretching up and down George Lane where there are branches of Sainsbury’s, M&S Simply Food and Waitrose.

There are more shops and restaurants in The Broadway around Woodford station. Find here Chrystalls traditional pharmacy, the popular Seasons wine bar, and Belgique, a branch of the Essex chain of patisseries.

There are more shops and restaurants in High Road at the junction with Snakes Lane West including a butcher and Deli on the Green.

The local gastropubs are The Royal Oak in Hale End Road and the Crown & Crooked Billet in Cross Road overlooking Woodford Bridge green.

Open space

Green space surrounds Woodford, with Epping Forest offering walks from Wanstead to Epping to the west, and the Roding Valley with walks to Ilford to the east.

Schools

Primary school: Churchfields Infants and Juniors/ Oakhill / Wells.

Comprehensive: Trinity RC / Woodbridge High / Highams Park.

Travel

There are two Tube stations — Woodford and South Woodford, both on the Central line with trains to Bank in 20 minutes and Oxford Street in 30 minutes. Both stations are in Zone 4.

The North Circular runs through Woodford, and the M25 and M11 are both nearby.

Postcodes

Woodford Green falls under the IG8 postcode and the local borough is Redbridge.