Inside the 'most expensive London borough' where residents rely on community to fight gentrification
The borough of Kensington and Chelsea has been named the most expensive place to live in London, with the highest rent costs in the city. While this may not come as a surprise, there are several pockets of the borough where life doesn't reflect the million-pound houses that line the streets.
According to data from the Office for National Statistics and analysed by BLG Development Finance and Online Marketing Surgery, in Kensington and Chelsea, average rents are £3,355 per month - more than double the rent in the cheapest borough, Bexley. We visited the borough to find out what residents thought about the sky-high prices.
"It's incredibly expensive," David Lucas, 76, told MyLondon. "I feel sorry for young people because it's impossible. I'm lucky, I've been here a long time. I own my property, so it's manageable.
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"But I really feel for people - I hear about people who've been in a place for a year or two, and then the rents go up 50 per cent without any control at all. It's just terrible."
Retired community nurse Elaine, 82, echoed this, saying: "It is very expensive, every step of the way. Housing, shopping, whatever. Kensington and Chelsea is very expensive."
But she explained that some areas of the borough, from Notting Hill Gate down to Knightsbridge are posh, while up towards Ladbroke Grove is poorer. "It's always been a poor area, very poor and run down," she said.
But everywhere is still expensive. "I wouldn't even think of buying a house, a flat," Elaine said. It's a worry she has for young people who want to stay in the same area as their parents. "Yeah, they can't afford it. They would be better going out into the countryside."
Elaine came to London in the 1960s from the West Indies as a trainee nurse, and lived in the borough for three months on a professional basis before moving out to be nearer to the hospital she'd been assigned to. "In the 60s maybe you could think of living here," she said.
But not now. The cost of living in the borough also impacts on how different communities survive in the area. "This is a very ethnic minority area, so people tend to do their own thing, stick together," Elaine said.
David said that on Golborne Road, where he runs his shop, gentrification has "failed", and that the useful shops that sell useful things are still operating. David compared his road to the more touristy Portobello Road, which has "already suffered" from gentrification "very badly", he said.
A former resident, who did not wish to give his name, said that his mum has lived in the borough for 60 years. "She loves it, but she doesn't own her home. She's still renting which is a worry to her."
He said that while change is often good, it also means that older generations are being left behind. Pat, who has lived on the Lancaster West Estate her whole life, echoed this, adding that more people moving into the estate don't speak English, so she's finding it harder to make new friends.
David also agreed that community was incredibly important in the borough. "It's a good neighbourhood, a good community, a neighbourhood that's one fellowship," he said. "It's very multicultural, and successfully multicultural."
Got a story for us? Email anna.willis@reachplc.com.
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