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Family Area Report

SW12 Balham — Family Area Report

Balham · Wandsworth

Council Tax Band D · 2025/26Wandsworth£991/yrLambeth£2,030/yrThis postcode straddles 2 boroughs, so the exact rate depends on the street.
Family densityVery low · Under 16%14.8% of households have dependent children
66
Family Score

Ranked against every London postcode we cover.

SW12 is the London postcode area covering Balham in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It scores 66/100 on our family-life index. It's strongest on schools (100/100) and weakest on everyday amenities (0/100). 33 schools sit within a mile, the Met recorded 0 incidents in 2026-05, and there are 0 parks within walking distance. The nearest central London hub is Waterloo in 31 min on the morning rush. 14.8% of households here have dependent children — very low.

Schools100
Safety100
Amenities0
Green space0
Family density3
Commute70

Schools

33 within 1 mile

  • Alderbrook Primary School

    Primary · 216 pupils

    Good (pre-2024)
    241m

  • Balham Nursery School

    Nursery · 48 pupils

    Not judged (pre-2024)
    352m

  • La Retraite Roman Catholic Girls' School

    Secondary · 1197 pupils

    Outstanding (pre-2024)
    358m

  • Chestnut Grove Academy

    Secondary · 1327 pupils

    468m

  • Henry Cavendish Primary School

    Primary · 873 pupils

    Outstanding (pre-2024)
    486m

  • Holy Ghost Catholic Primary School

    Primary · 197 pupils

    Good (pre-2024)
    516m

  • St Francis Xavier Sixth Form College

    16 plus

    531m

  • Hornsby House School

    Independent · 433 pupils

    534m

Source: DfE GIAS + Ofsted latest inspections · updated Jul 2026

Safety

0 incidents in May 2026

    Counts cover a single calendar month (May 2026) — the latest released by data.police.uk.

    Family life

    Within 1km

    Parks
    0
    GP surgeries
    6
    Libraries
    0
    Supermarkets
    11

    Sources: NHS ODS (GPs) · FSA (supermarkets) · OpenStreetMap (parks, libraries)

    Commute

    6 central London hubs · Morning rush

    Good · 25–35 min
    WaterlooFastest
    31 min
    via Northern + 1 bus
    King's Cross
    40 min
    via Northern & Victoria + 1 bus
    Liverpool Street
    42 min
    via Northern & Metropolitan + 1 bus
    Canary Wharf
    50 min
    via Northern & DLR + 1 bus
    Paddington
    46 min
    via Southern & District
    Victoria
    32 min
    via Northern & Victoria + 1 bus

    Door-to-door, arriving by 08:15 on a weekday. Source: TfL Journey Planner. Nearest hub: Waterloo in 31 min.

    How this is built.

    Scores are percentiles within our London cohort: your score is relative to other London areas, not absolute. Schools come from the DfE GIAS register (open schools only). Crime is from data.police.uk, latest available month. Ofsted single-word judgements were withdrawn in Sept 2024. We'll add the new report-card grades as they roll out from late 2025.

    Family density is drawn from ONS Census 2021 household composition data at LSOA level. We map each postcode to its representative LSOA and rank it against the 32 London postcodes in our cohort.

    Commute times are pre-calculated via the TfL Journey Planner API for a weekday arrival at 08:15, from the centre of each postcode to Waterloo, King's Cross, Liverpool Street, Canary Wharf, Paddington and Victoria.

      SW12 — frequently asked questions

      The things families ask us most about Balham, answered from the same data behind the scores above.

      Is SW12 a good area for families?
      SW12 (Balham, Wandsworth) scores 66/100 on our family-life index, making it a solid pick among the London postcodes we cover. Schools score 100/100, safety 100/100, amenities 0/100, green space 0/100 and commute 70/100.
      What are the schools like in SW12?
      There are 33 schools within a mile of SW12, sourced from the DfE GIAS register with the latest Ofsted inspection attached. SW12 scores 100/100 on schools, ranked against every other London postcode in our cohort.
      How safe is SW12?
      The Metropolitan Police recorded 0 crime incidents in SW12 in May 2026 (the latest month released by data.police.uk). On our cohort-relative scale, SW12 scores 100/100 for safety.
      How long is the commute from SW12 to central London?
      Using the TfL Journey Planner for a weekday 08:15 arrival, the fastest of our six central London hubs from SW12 is Waterloo in about 31 minutes. We benchmark commute times to Waterloo, King's Cross, Liverpool Street, Canary Wharf, Paddington and Victoria.
      Do many families live in SW12?
      14.8% of households in SW12's representative LSOA have dependent children (ONS Census 2021), which we band as very low (Under 16%) versus the rest of London.

      Explore neighbouring postcodes

      Open a neighbour's full report, or see two areas side by side on the same yardstick.

      Nearby reports

      SW2Brixton Rush Common· 66SW3Stanley· 36SW4Clapham East· 66SW5Earl's Court· 36SW6Walham Green· 36SW7Brompton & Hans Town· 36

      Head-to-head

      SW12 vs SW2SW12 vs SW3SW12 vs SW4SW12 vs SW5SW12 vs SW6SW12 vs SW7

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