One of the few pockets of central London to remain relatively untouched by gentrification, Somers Town’s 6,000-strong population is still predominantly housed by the local authority. Perhaps because of this, family and community links are strong. In recent decades the area has also seen an influx of Bangladeshi and Somali people adding to the cultural diversity of the neighbourhood.

Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

Local authority

Somers Town is in the London borough of Camden and is in the NW1 postcode district. The parliamentary constituency for the area is Holborn and St Pancras.

Council Tax bands

Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

Council Tax for Camden ranges from £880.32 for the smallest properties in Band A to £2,640.96 for the most expensive Band H homes. Properties in the average Band D should receive a bill of £1,320.48.

Property

The average price of a two bedroom flat in the area is £377,841, for a terraced house it’s £824,044.

Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

Somers Town has been predominantly filled with social housing for the past 200 years or so, and much of the area’s housing is in twentieth century-built local authority blocks. There are also several small pockets of Victorian terraced housing dotted throughout the area.

Education

St Mary and St Pancras Church of England Primary School is rated Outstanding by Ofsted. St. Aloysius’ Catholic Infant School is a voluntary aided mixed gender school for 3-7 year olds, with a third of places going to Somers Town residents, regardless of faith. Edith Neville Primary School is a co-educational school, with a very high proportion of pupils from Bangladeshi and Somali backgrounds. Both schools have been rated Good by Ofsted.

Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

Regent High School is a co-ed comprehensive school, rated Good by Ofsted.

Camden City Learning Centre provides IT and programming lessons to school and community groups, with short course options including IT for Parents and Web Design for Beginners.

Transport

Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

Situated between two of London’s busiest transport hubs, Somers Town has excellent transport links to the rest of London, the UK and, indeed, Europe.

The nearest London Underground stations are King’s Cross St Pancras, served by the Northern, Victoria, Piccadilly, Hammersmith & City, Circle, and Metropolitan lines; Euston, served by the Northern and Victoria lines, as well as the Overground service to Watford Junction; and Mornington Crescent, on the Charing Cross branch of the Northern line.

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Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

National rail links head to Scotland, the Midlands and the north of England from the area, while the Eurostar from St Pancras connects Somers Town to continental Europe via Paris and Brussels.

Landmarks and history

The first housing in Somers Town was built in the late eighteenth century, in a development called The Polygon.

Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

The area’s links with France long preceded the opening of Eurostar at St Pancras as The Polygon was home to numerous people fleeing the French Revolution.

The area went rapidly downhill and, by the time a young Charles Dickens moved in in the 1820s, it was a rundown neighbourhood full of multiple occupancy transient dwellings.

Major shopping areas

Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

Chalton Street is the main commercial hub of the area and holds a weekly street market every Friday selling an array of household items, fabric and crepes made by young homeless people from the New Horizons centre up the road.

An annual festival is a popular community event held every July.

For cafes, Albertini is a popular spot for locals to grab coffee or lunchtime paninis, while the Somers Town Coffee House is a historic pub, with a restaurant and cocktail bar.

Ham & High: Charrington Street, CamdenCharrington Street, Camden (Image: Archant)

Local amenities

With such a high level of deprivation among the population, the area is fairly well served for local amenities. The Polygon Road Open Space has an outdoor gym and Plot 10 Community Play Project is a children’s play area.

The Somers Town Community Association has a community café where local mums congregate over morning teas and pensioners can attend a daily lunch club. Adult education and youth activities take over in the evenings.