Sharrow

Sharrow offers some of Sheffield’s best-value centrally located housing. Simple redbrick terraces, with either 2 or 3 bedrooms, line the roads off the lower reaches of both Sharrow Vale and Sharrow Lane. They typically have backyards rather than gardens. A large number of these houses are rented out to students. Like much of Sheffield, Sharrow is built on a hill and as you climb it the housing stock becomes more desirable. The roads between Sharrow Lane and Cemetery Road have sizeable Victorian properties, some of them of grand proportions, which are now either family homes or divided into flats. In southern Sharrow, Psalter Lane also has imposing properties and the medium-sized terraces on the roads descending from Psalter Lane to Sharrow Vale attract a mixture of students and families. Some 1930s semis close to Sharrow Head, and a very few modern buildings, are exceptions to Sharrow’s Victorian and Edwardian norm.

Sharrow is a vibrant area of Sheffield stretching all the way from Ecclesall Road in the west to London Road in the east. Two main roads, Sharrow Lane and Sharrow Vale, act as a corridor running through the district. Sharrow’s diversity, its proximity to Sheffield’s city centre and university campuses, and its enviable local amenities make up for its slightly tatty feel in parts. Sharrow Vale and Ecclesall Road offer excellent local shopping. Wherever you turn there’s a quality local butcher’s, Italian deli, music shop, clothes boutique or antiques emporium. There is also a thoroughly tempting selection of restaurants and cafes offering mouth-watering cuisines from all over the world, both here and on London Road. For the times when you need a supermarket, there is a medium-sized Tesco on Ecclesall Road, close to the lower entrance to the Botanical Gardens. Waitrose is also not far away, at St Mary’s Gate.

Sharrow falls largely within the S11 postcode (Sharrow Vale and Sharrow Lane), but extends into S7 at Sharrow Head, an area that has more in common - in terms of property, price and atmosphere - with neighbouring Nether Edge.

Crime rates in Sharrow are higher than in some other parts of Sheffield, although efforts are being made by the local police to address the problem. Much theft is drug related. Of the local secondary schools for Sharrow, Silverdale performs well in league tables and much better than Abbeydale Grange. Hunter’s Bar Junior School is “very effective”, with attainment well above the national average. Sharrow Junior’s pupils come largely from homes where English is not the first language and it is praised in some respects although it has below average results. Both Hunter’s Bar Junior and Sharrow Junior have linked infant schools.

The General Cemetery in Sharrow is Sheffield’s answer to the famous Highgate Cemetery in north London. With the tombstones of industrial grandees, and ordinary Victorian Sheffield folk, now atmospherically draped in tangled vegetation, it is an enclave of Sharrow where time stands still. It is bordered by Porter Brook, which can also be viewed over a pint from the Porter Brook pub on Ecclesall Road at the western edge of Sharrow.

Sharrow has an ethnically diverse population, with many nationalities represented in its melting pot. London Road is a center for the Sheffield’s Chinese community. Sharrow is also socially mixed and families rub shoulders with young professionals and party-minded students. The significant student population in Sharrow has grown over recent years, displacing some longer-term residents and giving parts of the area a more transient feel. Sharrow also attracts bohemian types and has an arty vibe that has given rise to local galleries and arts projects.

Sharrow’s proximity to the center of Sheffield and good bus links mean that using public transport is generally not a problem. In rush hours, though, traffic can often be jammed. Parking can be something of an issue: the council is considering introducing residents’ permits to counter the problem of commuters filling local streets with their cars and then walking into Sheffield’s centre.