Tom,
Looking at your location Stapleford is the best place to go. The flexibility you will have due to the short distance is a very big factor. Also, if you read the 16 of pages on Stapleford Thread, there are really great views on the flight school (apart form one). Now in my opinion, that is excellent odds!
In terms of time to do things, that can vary widely. Weather being a big factor. I'm not even at that stage yet so probably can't give that much advice. The website has the full brochure which tells you the average time for each section:
CPL=3-6 weeks
ME/IR=8-12 weeks
as i said all dependant on weather, and if you do full-time, partime.