But this affluence doesn't automatically make for an easy life for theresidents or the executive director of its family and children'sservices.
As Anne Marie Carrie, who took up the role a year ago, explains: "Peoplelook at the borough and they think of Harrods. But we have some of themost deprived wards in the country."
Carrie has just been sent the borough's joint area review. Its glowingreport - two good grades, for achieving economic wellbeing and itschildren's health service, and the rest outstanding - is also quick tonote its diverse population.
In the north of the borough, almost half of all children and youngpeople live below the poverty threshold, while the Golborne ward is oneof the most deprived areas of England and Wales. In addition, half ofthe local children go to private schools so it imports a lot of youngpeople from other boroughs.
As a result, the area with the most expensive real estate in London hasmore children on free school meals than Haringey. And just because achild is rich doesn't stop them from being Carrie's responsibility.Having a lot of money may lead to drugs for some children, while othersmay not get enough attention at home, she points out.
However, the main focus of Carrie's work - and the inspectors' report -is on the borough's poorer population. She credits the borough'semphasis on families as being at the heart of its success. If there'sone thing that makes Kensington's approach unique, she says, it's this."We need to work with adults to help children flourish."
An enormous amount of the borough's work is on family support, so itsMind the Gap scheme helps adult and children's social workers meet todiscuss how to support the family as a whole.
And although many local authorities have scrapped their family centres,Kensington still has four. These provide holistic packages of childcare, mediation work and support to parents. There is also a focus onensuring young dads receive support.
Carrie believes this strong preventative work has been responsible forlow numbers of children in need, another success highlighted byinspectors, while the borough's approach to safeguarding is anotherfactor.
Social workers have light caseloads - on average 10, compared to as manyas 24 in other areas. They work across five local teams rather thanspecialising in specific areas and work with families for a long time tobuild up trust.
Parents often self-refer and intervention happens earlier.
Despite the glowing report, Carrie is far from complacent. Theinspectors want the borough to speed up joint commissioning and needsassessment.
A director for the joint unit, who starts in March, ahead of children'strust arrangements beginning in April, has already been appointed, saysCarrie.
But she wants to go much further. Plans are under way for children tocommission their own services. "We still see commissioning as somethingto be done to people. If I'm a looked-after child, do I need 12professionals to tell me what's best for me?"
The plan would see life coaches or lead professionals help looked-afterchildren work out goals. Together they and the children could decide onrewards for doing well at school.
"A good parent does those things and that's the next level we need toget to."
But she's not waiting for the Government to tell her to do it.Participation schemes in Kensington have seen children trained to assessgrant bids by voluntary organisations and its children and youngpeople's plan was reworked after feedback said it needed to be made morefun.
Carrie herself is critical of "knee-jerk" government policies, such as alack of focus on the role of health visitors in vulnerable children'searly development. But she is confident she can surpass "short-termist"policies and inspectors' expectations.
"I'm not going to wait for a government scheme to tell me the kind ofthings I should be doing. I'm going to look at the needs of the childrenin the borough, listen to them and act on what they say."
BACKGROUND - KENSINGTON AND CHELSEA
- London's second smallest borough is also the most densely populatedlocal authority in Europe
- Almost half of all pupils speak English as an additional language. Aquarter of looked-after children are unaccompanied minors seekingasylum
- More than 70 per cent of the borough's 236 looked-after children wereplaced outside the authority.
