Man and van in Kensington
A borough so compact the drive barely counts, where your move is decided at the kerb and the front door: mews, garden squares and area steps.
Covering Notting Hill, South Kensington, Chelsea, Earl's Court, Holland Park and North Kensington.
Man and van in Kensington, London's smallest borough
This is the smallest borough in London, and one of the most tightly built. It runs from Notting Hill and North Kensington at the top, through South Kensington and Chelsea, down to the river.
Distances inside it are short, and none of the driving between its districts is in the Congestion Charge zone. When you book a man and van in Kensington, most of the time goes on what happens after the engine stops: finding a legal place to stand, then the carry to your door.
North Kensington and Notting Hill down to Chelsea and the river
Its districts include Notting Hill, North Kensington, Holland Park, Earl's Court, South Kensington and Chelsea, all close together.
Up in W10 and W11 there is one weekend to plan around. Notting Hill Carnival closes much of both over the August bank holiday, so pick another date if you live there.
Stucco flats, mews houses and basements down area steps
White stucco terraces split into flats are the homes you are most likely to be leaving.
Lower ground floor flats are harder. You reach them down narrow area steps tucked under the front stairs, and a sofa or mattress is hard to get through. Measure your largest pieces, and say on the booking that the flat is below street level.
Mews houses and red-brick mansion blocks are also common. A mews house often means a long carry.
Council bays, mews entrances and the far side of the square
Parking is council-controlled across the whole borough, and the bays fill early. With nothing arranged, the van stands wherever it legally can, and every metre beyond that is carried by hand.
Many mews are too narrow for a large van to enter. Loading then happens at the mouth, and your things go the length of the mews on foot. A garden square is the same problem in another shape: the van may have to stop on the far side.
Suspensions are available if you arrange one in advance, above all near Notting Hill.
- That it is a mews house, and how far along
- That the address is on a garden square
- That the flat is on the lower ground floor, down area steps
- Whether a parking suspension is in place
What makes removals in Kensington run long
Little of the time on a job here goes on the road. What stretches a job is the carry: from the mouth of a mews, from across a garden square, or down area steps.
For house removals out of a mews, allow for every box making that walk. A man with a van moving a flat in a stucco conversion loses time at the building, not in traffic.
- Area steps to a lower ground floor flat slow the loading.
- In a mews, the van usually waits at the entrance and everything is carried.
- Notting Hill Carnival closes much of W10 and W11 over the August bank holiday.
- On a garden square, the nearest legal stop can be a long walk away.
Congestion Charge and ULEZ in Kensington
No Congestion Charge applies anywhere in Kensington and Chelsea. The Western Extension that once took in the borough was scrapped in January 2011, and the zone now stops at Park Lane and Edgware Road.
ULEZ and any charge are in the driver’s price. How pricing works
What a move from Kensington costs
Other areas close to Kensington
W1, W2, SW1, NW8
W6, W12, W14, SW6
NW2, NW6, NW9, NW10, HA0, HA9
SW11, SW12, SW17, SW18
Moving in Kensington: your questions
Often not, if it is a large van. Many mews are too narrow, so the driver loads at the entrance and carries the rest. Say so when you book.
Not for a move within the borough. It has been outside the zone since the Western Extension was removed in January 2011.
Not easily if you live in W10 or W11, as much of both is closed over the August bank holiday. Choose another weekend.