Hoarding Clean Up in Coulsdon

Coulsdon had 25,530 residents at the 2021 census across two wards — Coulsdon Town with 15,419 and Old Coulsdon with 10,109 — sitting south of Croydon on the old London to Brighton road.

It is really two places. Most housing in Smitham, in the valley bottom, and in Old Coulsdon was built between 1890 and 1970, giving mixed suburban stock with an urban core in the centre. Saying which of the two you are in genuinely changes the vehicle and crew we send, because the valley streets and the higher ground are different jobs.

The railway arrived in 1841 and by 1912 there were continuous rows of villas, cottages and shops from Croydon down past Coulsdon station. Property of that vintage means narrower hallways and stairs built before modern furniture, which is usually what decides how a wardrobe or sofa actually comes out.

The Farthing Way A23 bypass opened in December 2006 and took the through traffic off the high street, which makes the centre more workable than it used to be. Farthing Downs and Happy Valley are a Site of Special Scientific Interest, bought by the Corporation of London in 1883 to stop enclosure — properties along that edge can have longer approaches and limited turning space.