Commuter home hotspots: Hassocks property guide with house prices, journey time to London, best schools and more

WHY MOVE TO HASSOCKS, WEST SUSSEX?

Set in the sweet spot halfway between London and Brighton, Hassocks is the gateway to some of West Sussex’s pretty villages, conveniently located right on the tip of the South Downs.

Hassocks is no rural idyll. Its high street is pleasant but suburban, surrounded by mostly Thirties bungalows and Fifties semis.

But Charlie Davenport, senior branch manager at Hamptons International, says that as more Brighton and London exiles arrive, the village is changing. “The high street is getting some really good independent retailers and a fantastic cycling café.”

Buyers come to Hassocks for value, then funnel what they save into private schooling. A three-bedroom semi would cost about £375,000, while a four-bedroom executive home on the fringes would start at £800,000.

Hassocks station also serves the village of Hurstpierpoint, with its high street of traditional butcher, baker, fishmonger, a great wine shop, a bistro and several pubs.

Its other great asset is “outstanding” St Lawrence CofE Primary School. There are senior schools in Hassocks itself, Cuckfield and Burgess Hill.

You’ll pay about £500,000 for a two-bedroom character cottage in Hurstpierpoint centre, or from £800,000 for a four-bedroom detached house.

Quieter and prettier Ditchling, one of the best villages in southern England, has stunning period houses, great pubs and a village school, Ditchling (St Margaret’s) CofE Primary, rated “good” by Ofsted.

You could get a pretty cottage for about £500,000, but a four-bedroom house here carries a premium. Expect to pay £1 million to £1.2 million for a good-looking family home.