Loading borough…
Neighbourhood profile
Forest
Waltham Forest, London
PocketsWhipps Cross (Essex Road · Knotts Green · James Lane · Abbotts Park · south)Baker's Arms (Knotts Green · Capworth Street · south-west)Leytonstone North
Forest sits in the middle of Waltham Forest around Leyton and the Lea Bridge Road corridor, a ward of Victorian and Edwardian streets with Abbotts Park at its centre. The listed-building set of six entries includes the Grade II 669 High Road E10, the Grade II Church of St Andrew and 143 Whipps Cross Road. Around five percent of the ward falls inside a conservation area and nature scores sit at 54, helped by 47.6 hectares of green space across the ward. Public-transport access is good, anchored by Leyton and Leyton Midland Road, and twenty-five outstanding-rated schools sit within reach. The food venue count of 116 is strong. The drawbacks are plain. Safety scores sit at 42 below the London median, pollution scores are weak at 44 reflecting the Lea Bridge and High Road corridors, and the planning-disruption score of 8 picks up the live regeneration along the Lea Bridge Road.
- Strongest55Education
Strong access to rated primary and secondary schools
- Also strong54Nature Access
Strong access to green space and waterways
- Watch out11Area development
Little recent major-development activity
At a glance
- Good public-transport access
- 6 listed buildings
- 4.8% covered by a conservation area
- 7 schools rated Outstanding by Ofsted within 1 km
- Largest green space: Abbotts Park (1.7 hectares)
- 177 open venues (115 food and drink, 62 other)
9 pockets across 3 named areas · coloured by overall score.See on full map ↗
This is one of 684 London wards
Find the London that fits you
Forest is one answer. The wizard scores all 684 wards against your budget, commute and priorities, then hands you a ranked shortlist of the areas that actually fit.
5 questions · about a minute · free
Browse listings
Forest, layer by layer
Every layer’s score is free. Seven deep-dives — here and on every area, one pass — unlock with the Day Pass ↓
Scores as of 23 Aug 2026 · prices to 2026 · crime to Jun 2026 · air 2022 · sources
Property prices & growth
50Better than 53% of London
How scores work - Purchase affordability50
- Rent affordability60
- Price momentum (5yr)51
- Activity (turnover)40
Locked
Prices, rent & trends
£ per square foot to buy, an estimated 2-bed rent, and decades of sale-price history for this ward.
For Forest: 108 sales recorded (2025)32-yr price trend £—
Safety
42Better than 37% of London
- Personal safety40
- Property crime43
- Anti-social behaviour44
Locked
Safety deep-dive
Every recorded crime type — burglary, robbery, vehicle crime and more — grouped into personal, property and anti-social behaviour, with the monthly trend for this ward.
For Forest: personal, property & anti-social breakdown24-mo trend to Jun 2026counts —
Connectivity
52Better than 63% of London
Median public-transport access is good (TfL PTAL 4.0 of 8 across this ward).
Locked
Connectivity deep-dive
Real TfL journey times to London's major hubs, plus this ward's transport access rank across London.
For Forest: — min by TfL to 8 major hubsaccess rank —
Air & Quiet
44Better than 43% of London
- Air quality53
- Quietness30
Locked
Air & noise deep-dive
NO₂, PM2.5 and road/rail noise for this ward, each against WHO / UK limits.
Cultural Signal
34Better than 72% of London
- Nightlife7
- Dining29
- Arts & culture7
- Retail & shops29
- Sports & recreation14
- Independent scene64
- Vitality (openings, diversity)69
177 open venues nearby — 115 food & drink, 62 other.
Locked
Culture deep-dive
What's open nearby — the venue mix, share of independents, and recent openings.
For Forest: the mix behind 177 open venues—% independent
Education
55Better than 60% of London
- Primary schools54
- Secondary schools56
Locked
School inspection history
Every school in this ward with its current Ofsted rating and multi-year trend.
For Forest: 5 schools, each with its inspection record
Heritage
12Better than 29% of London
6 listed buildings · 5% under a conservation area
- 669, High Road E10Grade II
- Church of St AndrewGrade II
- 143, Whipps Cross Road E11Grade II
From Historic England's National Heritage List for England.
Nature Access
54Better than 25% of London
- Green spaces74
- Waterways10
Largest green space: Abbotts Park (2 ha). ~48 ha of green space in total.
Area development
11Better than 74% of London
Locked
Planning pipeline
Named recent approvals with homes and floorspace, the local homes pipeline, and the affordable share.
Unlock the full details
Unlock the full details for Forest — and every other London area
Day Pass or WAYB+ — either one unlocks your full shortlist and every area profile on the site, not just this page.
- Prices — £ per square foot, an estimated rent, and the ward’s full price history
- Safety — crime by type with its monthly trend
- Getting around — real TfL journey times to the big hubs
- Schools, air & noise — every school’s inspection record, air & noise against WHO limits
- What's next — the venue mix, what’s been approved to build nearby, and cheaper areas that score like Forest
For Forest: 108 sales recorded (2025)32-yr price history £—24-mo crime trend to Jun 2026TfL times to 8 hubs — min5 schools' inspection records177 venues mapped
What unlocked sections look like · example ward, not this one
WAYB+ · month to month
- Everything in the Day Pass — kept on for your whole search
- “What’s changing” on every ward: new approvals, openings and closures, score shifts
- Cancel anytime
Day Pass · 24 hours
A day of full access — every area, your whole shortlist.
- Your full wizard shortlist, revealed
- Every area deep-dive: prices, crime by type, schools, air, commute
- The planning pipeline and cheaper lookalike areas
- Unlimited saves and shareable links
Already bought? Don't pay again — open the confirmation email from where are you based? and tap Restore access to sign back in on this device.
Make it personal
Forest might not even be your best match — run the wizard with your own budget and commute. About 90 seconds.
What's changing in Forest
Locked
What's changing (WAYB+)
The last 90 days here: new approvals, venue openings and closures, school inspections, score shifts. Subscription only.
Already bought? Don't pay again — open the confirmation email from where are you based? and tap Restore access to sign back in on this device.
Forest, quick answers
- Is Forest safe?
- Forest scores 42 for safety, based on street-level recorded crime (police.uk) — mid-table for London. The score weighs personal safety, property crime and anti-social behaviour separately rather than ranking on one raw total, so the mix of crime matters as well as the volume.
- Is Forest a good place to live?
- Forest scores 40 overall when all nine data layers are weighted equally. The London comparison beside the score shows how that number ranks against every ward. Its strongest suits are education (55) and nature access (54); its weakest is area development (11). Whether it suits you depends on what you weight — the same data re-ranked around your own priorities can read very differently.
- How well connected is Forest?
- Good public-transport access: Transport for London rates the typical spot in Forest 4 on its 0–8 public-transport access scale, which puts the ward at 52 for connectivity relative to the rest of London.
- Is Forest expensive to buy in?
- Relative to the rest of London, Forest is mid-priced by London standards: its purchase-affordability score is 10/20, where higher means cheaper per square foot (HM Land Registry sold prices matched to floor areas).
- What are the schools like near Forest?
- Forest scores 55 for education, based on Ofsted ratings and walking distance to the nearest rated primary and secondary schools. 7 schools within a kilometre hold an Outstanding rating.
Where else to look
Wards with a similar profile
- East Acton · Ealing
- Leytonstone · Waltham Forest
- Wood Street · Waltham Forest
Locked
Neighbourhood matches
Find areas that score like this one, with the price difference for each.
Nearby wards
- Wanstead Village · Redbridge
- Grove Green · Waltham Forest
- Hoe Street · Waltham Forest
- Lea Bridge · Waltham Forest
- Leyton · Waltham Forest
- Upper Walthamstow · Waltham Forest
More affordable, similar areas
- Manor Park · NewhamMore affordable
- Plaistow South · NewhamMore affordable
- St Martin's · LambethMore affordable
- Ilford Town · RedbridgeMore affordable
Like Forest?
Find a London like this
See the London wards that score most like Forest — especially its Schools and Nature & parks.
One quick thing
Is this page accurate?
Got something we missed or got wrong about Forest? Let us know.