London through its charity shops #29: Peckham SE15

Peckham Rye train station, designed in 1866 by Charles Henry Driver, who was also the architect of the Crossness pumping station

Peckham is part hipster hangout (Frank’s bar, the Bussey building etc) and part still-reassuringly a shithole (albeit a pricy one). That’s being unfair; it has vibrant and colourful African markets and community, the £4.99 Peckhamplex is the only place I go to see films, it has an amazing library and the South London art gallery. The Best Place To Live In London according to The Metro (last year anyway).

Peckham is surprisingly bad for charity shops, having only four average ones. Presumably there’s not much of a need for them: there are markets, Poundlands and Poundworlds and other numerous budget shops in the area.

Sense on Rye Lane is spacious but uninspiring. There’s a disturbing amount of new, twee goods. Over the road is Traid, which I never used to go into, selling mainly clothes. It’s large, funky and reasonably priced with a large table of books and CDs at the back.

On the High Street next to the library is a very nice but small Sense. Finally there’s Ald Life which has stacks of books, records and magazines, all pretty crap. Some furniture too. It’s an old school charity shop and smells accordingly.