Area Guide: The popular Southdown area of Harpenden

Residents say Southdown feels like a bustling village, which centres around the wide range of shops on and around Southdown Road - as well as spilling out into Cravells and Coleswood roads.

The area boasts a thriving selection of independent businesses, including the useful Southdown Hardware, as well as a launderette, a pharmacy, a fireplace shop, a Co-op supermarket and loads more.

Southdown also has a strong community spirit, with events specific to the area such as a Christmas lights switch on, and residents have a general sense of pride about where they live.

(Image: Danny Loo)

Travel   

Southdown is in a convenient location for travel, sitting between the M1 and the A1(M), while the M25 is immediately south of neighbouring St Albans.

For rail links, Harpenden station is a 15 minute walk away, and has fast trains into London St Pancras.

There are also regular buses from Southdown to St Albans and Luton, which are both around 15 minutes away by car.

Food and drink   

There is no shortage of places to eat and drink in Southdown, including Indian street food favourite Sarakh.

Pubs on offer include the friendly Carpenters Arms, The Engineer - which has fine food and outdoor pods - and the Plough & Harrow, which has a great selection of children's play equipment in the back garden.

You can also walk or cycle to The Elephant & Castle pub on the outskirts of Wheathampstead, which has a lovely beer garden offering a perfect spot for a weekend lunch.

The Engineer pub (Image: Newsquest)

Schools  

Southdown is home to The Grove Infant and Nursery School, a popular three-form entry school which accommodates around 340 children. 

The school, which is rated 'outstanding' by Ofsted, shares its grounds with the 'good'-rated The Grove Junior School. 

There is also St Dominic's, a Catholic primary school on Southdown Road, which is rated 'outstanding'.

Harpenden's three 'outstanding' secondary schools - Roundwood Park, Sir John Lawes and St George's - are all oversubscribed, so in recent years some Southdown children have had difficulty securing a place at a local state school.

This changed in 2019 thanks to the founding of Katherine Warington School, which is on Lower Luton Road.

The purpose-built school is part of the Harpenden Secondary Schools Trust, along with the three other local secondaries, the University of Hertfordshire and Rothamsted Research. 

Katherine Warington School (Image: Google Street View)

Property  

Potential buyers can get ever so slightly more for their money in Southdown that they would in central Harpenden.  

Homes which are currently on the market include a three-bedroom detached house on Coleswood Road for £625,000 and a four-bedroom end of terrace at St Michaels Close for £750,000. 

Green space and leisure

Southdown has a host of recreational activities available for visitors and residents to enjoy.

These include feeding the ducks on the Common at Southdown Ponds, having a picnic in Hay Field and exploring the old clay mines at Brickle Dells, which are known locally as 'the Ups and Downs'. 

Brickle Dells, an area of woodland off Walkers Road, is thought to be named after the brick kilns which were once present on the site. The undulating land makes it a popular spot for kids to play. 

Another well-used green space is Greenway Spinney Local Nature Reserve, better known as 'the Spinney'. 

Located between Aldwick Road and Grove Avenue, the nature reserve is maintained by a group of dedicated residents. 

You can also take a walk across the fields to Nomansland Common, or go further still to Heartwood Forest.  

Meanwhile you may spot an alpaca if you stroll down The Grove, past the Grade II listed former B&B of the same name.

Allotments are available for hire from South Harpenden Allotments and Gardens Society - colloquially known as SHAGS.  

This area guide is sponsored by Frost's, who have offices in St Albans, Marshalswick, Wheathampstead and Harpenden (www.frosts.co.uk/branches) (Image: Frost's)