Living in Dalston: area guide to homes, schools and transport links

Dalston is a restless place. A once-famous nightclub is replaced by a craft beer chain; one of London’s top chefs packs up and moves on but another one moves in; new bars and cafés open almost weekly.

So what is the attraction in this north-east corner of London? The young and fancy free with a taste for partying have definitely decided it is the place to live and also, for some, to work.

Kingsland Road, its spine and nerve centre, reveals Dalston’s nature. A leisurely walk from The Haggerston pub, a hipster magnet, reveals a new comprehensive school, a vintage fashion store, a café with a bike pump, a cake shop, a fried chicken shop also serving sour cocktails, a bookshop which ran a successful kick-starter fundraiser, a café with a co-working space, a Japanese restaurant with music events, an English restaurant, and Prick, London’s “first cactus and succulent boutique”.

It’s a busy, mixed bag of old and new with the Methodist Church and Salvation Army Hall rubbing up against all that is fresh. North of Dalston Lane is Kingsland Shopping Centre with high street chains including Sainsbury’s, Matalan, Peacocks and Iceland.

Then comes one of London’s oldest street markets, plus an Art Deco cinema, a Japanese yakitori restaurant, an organic supermarket, an all-day restaurant and night-time bar, an organic sourdough bakery, more bars, a vintage clothing and furniture store, numerous Turkish grill restaurants, and an enormous vintage clothing warehouse.

Dalston has absorbed a large number of new homes over the last eight years. The Dalston Square development alone brought 500.

The Overground has been in Dalston since 2010. There are also long-term plans that could bring Crossrail 2 to the neighbourhood, with a new station in the Kingsland Shopping Centre and a new underground walkway removing the awkward traipse above ground between Dalston Junction and Dalston Kingsland stations.

For the moment, though, this is no more than blue-sky thinking. In the meantime, the local council, Hackney, has launched the “Dalston conversation”, an interactive map where locals can post their Dalston likes and dislikes.

This is the council making amends for the outcry it provoked two years ago when it announced a big land sell-off to developers in the area around Ashwin Street, home to Arcola Theatre and the Bootstrap Charity which runs the Dalston Roof Park music bar and the Café OTO jazz venue.

It ended with the council undertaking to protect the much-loved Dalston Eastern Curve Garden, a community-led garden, café and event space in Dalston Lane, and also to guarantee the future of the established Ridley Road Market.

Estate agent Liam Gaffey from the local branch of Stirling Ackroyd says Dalston is an area which caters to many different demographics.

“For the younger crowd, both renters and first-time buyers, there are centrally located apartments with 24-hour concierge and gyms. Kingsland Road has numerous bars, restaurants and niche outlets which provide people with much to do during their social time.

“For families the area has tree-lined streets of period homes as well as a number of excellent schools.”

Dalston is four miles from central London with Stoke Newington to the north; Clapton to the west; Shoreditch to the south and Islington to the east.

The property scene

Dalston has mainly Victorian terrace houses, some early flat-fronted, some later bow-fronted, varying in size from two to four storeys. There are also modern flats and estates of social housing.

The two most popular areas are London Fields between Queensbridge Road and Lansdowne Drive and De Beauvoir Town between Kingsland Road and Southgate Road. There are also some large four-storey Victorian terrace houses in Colvestone Crescent — which is home to St Mark’s Church, nicknamed the “Cathedral of the East End” — and Sandringham Road.

The most expensive houses currently for sale are a five-bedroom house of 2,530sq ft in Richmond Road in London Fields, priced at £2 million, and a five-bedroom house with a self-contained basement flat in Colvestone Crescent, with an asking price of £1,695,000.

Stirling Ackroyd’s Liam Gaffey has recently sold flats in Dalston Square, with one-bedroom flats selling for between £450,000 and £500,000; two-bedroom flats for £600,000 and three-bedroom flats for between £650,000 and £750,000.

New-build homes

Dalston Lane Terrace, a mixed-use development, has replaced a derelict terrace of Georgian houses and shops in Dalston Lane. The scheme, by Murphy Homes, has a traditional Georgian frontage on Dalston Lane but is strikingly modern at the back.

There are 44 one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom homes including seven duplexes and three triplexes. Only a handful of flats remain, all ready to move into, with one-bedroom flats starting at £710,000 and two-bedroom flats at £840,000. Contact Savills New Homes on 020 3151 4754.

Monohaus is a development of 47 one-, two- and three-bedroom flats between Mare Street, Hemsley Street and Sidworth Street close to London Fields. Nine flats remain, all ready to move into, with one-bedroom flats starting at £649,000 and three-bedroom flats at £799,000. Contact Stone Real Estate on 020 7043 8888.

Century Quarter House is a mixed-use development with five two- and three-bedroom flats in Downham Road in De Beauvoir Town overlooking Kingsland Basin. Two-bedroom flats start at £750,000 and three-bedroom flats at £1,045,000. Contact Currell New Homes on 020 7226 6611.

Quadra is a joint venture between housing association Hanover and builder Hill for the over-55s overlooking London Fields. There are 29 one- and two-bedroom flats, 15 for outright sale, 14 for affordable rent. The remaining one-bedroom flats, which are ready to move into, start at £499,950 and the two-bedroom flats are £549,950. Call 0800 731 2020 for details.

First-time buyer homes

Newington Gate in Mathias Road is another joint venture between housing association Hanover and builder Hill, this time of 72 one- and two-bedroom flats. Hanover is responsible for 38 flats, some of which will be for shared ownership. Call Hanover on 01480 223179.

Rental homes

Housing charity Dolphin Living will have 68 flats for intermediate rent next year at 333 Kingsland Road, the redevelopment of the former fire station. Call Dolphin Living on 020 7113 3349.

Stirling Ackroyd rental manager James Smith says Dalston is popular with young City workers. It is currently a renters market and he is telling local landlords that if they haven’t rented their property in the first two weeks, they need to think about lowering the rent.

Dalston landlords who are achieving the same rent as last year are doing well, says Smith.

Transport

Dalston, Dalston Kingsland and Haggerston stations are all on the Overground. Dalston and Haggerston have trains to Shoreditch High Street for the City and Canada Water, with a change to the Jubilee line for Canary Wharf.

Dalston Kingsland is on a different section of the Overground with trains to Stratford and Highbury & Islington for the Victoria line. All stations are in Zone 2 and an annual travelcard to Zone 1 is £1,404.

The No 30 bus goes to Marble Arch via Islington and Euston; the No 38 goes to Victoria via Islington and Piccadilly Circus; the No 242 goes to St Paul’s via Liverpool Street, and the No 277 to Crossharbour and Canary Wharf via Mare Street and Mile End.

Staying power

Estate agent Liam Gaffey of Stirling Ackroyd says that once children come along, Dalston flat owners often migrate to houses in Stoke Newington or further out into the suburbs.

Postcode

Dalston and London Fields fall into the E8 Hackney postcode but on its north-eastern edge it merges into the N16 Stoke Newington postcode, while De Beauvoir Town is in the N1 central postcode, which includes Islington.

Best roads

Anywhere in De Beauvoir Town and the London Fields area, including Richmond Road. In central Dalston, Colvestone Crescent and Sandringham Road are sought after.

Up and coming

The most affordable homes in Dalston are “right-to-buy” flats in estates of social housing. An example is a two-bedroom flat in Festival Court in Holly Street, on sale for £470,000.

Council

Hackney council is Labour controlled. Band D council tax for 2018/2019 is £1,374.67.

Shops and restaurants

Dalston’s shopping, eating and drinking scene is constantly evolving and in spite of Hackney council’s crackdown on new late-night drinking licences, people still pour into the area at weekends to seek out new venues.

The main shopping street tracks a mile-long stretch of Kingsland Road starting in Haggerston and ending up south of Stoke Newington.

Starting at the Haggerston end there is vintage store Storm in a Teacup; a café with a handy bike pump for Hackney’s many cyclists, Tin Café; a cake shop, The Caramel Tart Company; a fried chicken shop with a difference, it serves sour cocktails as its name Chick ‘n’ Sours implies; bookshop Burley Fisher Books; Japanese and music restaurant Brilliant Corners; Madame Pigg with a British menu, recently reviewed positively by Evening Standard restaurant critic, Fay Maschler; and where else but Dalston would there be a shop called Prick, described as “London’s first cactus and succulent boutique”.

Continuing past Dalston Lane, the Kingsland Shopping Centre has branches of Sainsbury’s, Peacocks, Matalan, Iceland and Costa and on the opposite side of the road is a new branch of M&S Food Hall. Ridley Road street market sprawls off Kingsland Road down Ridley Road.

Heading towards Stoke Newington there is a yakitori Japanese restaurant, Jidori; an organic supermarket, Harvest E8; an all-day restaurant and club, Dalston Superstore; an organic sourdough bakery, Dudley Bakehouse; lots of Turkish grill restaurants; a vintage clothing and furniture store, Pelican & Parrots; fashion store, HUH and craft brewer Brewdog has taken over the site once occupied by Birthdays nightclub. Other bars in this strip are Ruby’s and newer Undr; Beyond Retro is giant vintage clothing warehouse.

Furanxo in Dalston Lane is a shop by day and a Spanish wine bar by night, and Café Route, an all-day restaurant serving Mediterranean food, is in Dalston Square. New Zealand coffee roaster Allpress has its UK roaster in Dalston Lane where there is a café and pretty garden.

Open space

Dalston Eastern Curve Garden in Dalston Lane opposite Dalston Junction station describes itself as “a green oasis for everyone to enjoy in the heart of busy Dalston”. A community enterprise, it has a café and holds events on its colourful stage.

The two nearest parks are London Fields, which as well as the Lido, has two children’s playgrounds, cricket and pétanque pitches and a wild flower garden; and Clissold Park in Stoke Newington which has an aviary and small animal zoo, an organic food growing area and a café and function rooms in listed Clissold House.

Leisure and the arts

Dalston is a cultural and creative hub. The Arcola Theatre in Ashwin Street is one of London’s leading off-West End theatres; the Rio is an independent Art Deco cinema in Kingsland Road showing both art and first release films; there is live jazz at Vortex in Gillett Square, one of London’s foremost live jazz venues, and Café OTO, also in Ashwin Street, describes itself as pioneering “creative new music”.

London Fields Lido, a 50-metre Olympic-size heated outdoor swimming pool, is open all year and the other council-owned swimming pool is at the Clissold Leisure Centre in Clissold Road in nearby Stoke Newington.

Primary schools

State primary schools rated “outstanding” by Ofsted are: Holy Trinity CofE in Beechwood Road; Queensbridge in Queensbridge Road; Our Lady and St Joseph RC in Buckingham Road; Hackney New Primary School in Downham Road; St Paul’s with St Michael’s CofE in Brougham Road; and London Fields in Westgate Street. Gayhurst in Gayhurst Road, a popular primary school in London Fields, is judged to be “good”.

Comprehensive schools

The “outstanding” comprehensive school is Mossbourne (co-ed, ages 11 to 18) in Downs Park Road. The other comprehensive schools, all rated “good” are: Hackney New School (co-ed, ages 11 to 18) in Kingsland Road; The Bridge Academy (co-ed, ages 11 to 18) in Laburnum Street; Haggerston (co-ed, ages 11 to 18) in Weymouth Terrace; City of London Academy Shoreditch Park (co-ed, ages 11 to 18) in Audrey Street off Goldsmiths Row; The Petchey Academy (co-ed, ages 11 to 18) in Shacklewell Lane; City of London Academy Islington (co-ed, ages 11 to 18) in Prebend Street and The Urswick CofE in Paragon Road.

Private schools

The three local private schools are: Rosemary Works School (co-ed, ages three to 11) in Branch Place; The Children’s House Upper School (co-ed, ages five to seven) in King Henry’s Walk (the associated nursery, which takes children from age two and a half, is in Elmore Street in Canonbury in Islington); North Bridge House Senior Canonbury (co-ed, ages 11 to 18) in Canonbury Place in Islington and St Paul’s Steiner (co-ed, ages five to 14) in St Paul’s Road, also in Islington.

The two private City of London schools are nearby; the boys’ school (ages 10 to 18) is in Queen Victoria Street and the girls’ school (ages seven to 18) is in St Giles Terrace in the Barbican.