Planning ahead to find the right home

What I’m looking for:
More than just a room - a place to call home. I would love a double room with private bathroom, however what’s more important to me is that it has good transport links into and around london. I’d like to live with people of a similar mindset, with similar interests as it’s important for me to get on with the people I’ll be living with (hence why I’ve started my search this early). I’m up for either renting a room, or linking up with someone to find a place together. An ideal place would have a good balance of shared space and private space. I’m a tiny bit hesitant on live-in landlords as I’m looking to make a place my home as opposed to step into someone else’s however what’s important to me is finding the right place/people and I’m not ruling anything out. I wouldn’t really want to share with more than three other people as I worry this becomes more of an HMO feel rather than a home.

About me:
I’m a laid back guy and enjoy socialising but can also be quite introverted so I do like my down time and own space from time to time. I have a few hobbies which are listed somewhere on my profile but I’m always up for trying new things out too. We could go for runs or walks together then give each other kudos on Strava, or just have a catch up in the kitchen as we cross paths.

I’m a police officer so work fairly long hours on a shift pattern. The downside to this is that I tend to be coming and going at odd times of day but I’m fairly quiet so hopefully that wouldn’t disturb you. The upside to this is I won’t often be taking up space in the shared areas during weekends (although if you also work shifts then there’s no upside I’m afraid).

If you have a room that you think would be suitable then let me know and I’d love to take a look. If you think we could be potential flat mates then say hi and let’s go for a beer!