'House prices here have rocketed'
The Florides family moved to Balham from Tufnell Park 10 years ago. "We felt south London had more of a sense of community," says Alice.
The couple have three children, Joel, seven, Molly, five and Tom, 15 months. Two years ago they moved from their three-bedroom maisonette to a four-bedroom house with a large garden.
"House prices in Balham have rocketed, especially over the past couple of years," Alice says. "We bought our Victorian maisonette for £78,000 and sold it two years ago for £180,000; now they are selling for around £230,000.
"We moved to a four-bedroom house on the Balham/Streatham borders, where prices are a bit cheaper, and we now have a bigger garden for the children."
Their two eldest children go to Telferscot, a local primary school with a good reputation, on the Hyde Farm estate near Tooting Common. There is an active PTA in the school and Alice is one of the many parents who have raised £40,000 for improvements to the playground. "It's just the kind of school we hoped to find for our children. It has a good spirit with dedicated staff and a supportive network of parents. We often get together at a local café after we have dropped off our children at school," Alice says.
