We believe this part of the country is a very good place to live. It is not isolated nor is it over populated. The West Oxfordshire area around Witney offers the following facilities:-

Schooling

There are a large number of state owned primary schools many of which are within walking distance of houses. Secondary education is on the comprehensive system and almost without exception special buses take the children to and from school each day. The principal comprehensive schools are:-

• Henry Box, Central Witney
• Wood Green, Witney
• Bartholomew School, Eynsham
• Marlborough School, Woodstock
• Burford School, Burford
• Cotswold School, Chipping Norton
• Carterton Comprehensive School
• Faringdon School

Useful telephone number: -Oxfordshire Education Authority, Oxford (01865) 815449

Private education is available for children of all ages, and many parents drive their children daily along the largely uncrowded roads to private schools such as St.Hugh's Preparatory School, Buckland, Joscas Preparatory School in Marcham near Abingdon, Windrush Valley School in Ascoff-under-Wychwood and others including several schools in Oxford such as Magdalen, Christchurch and Saint Edwards.

Useful telephone number: -Independent Schools Information Service (ISIS) 01993 813006

Culture

Although London is about 70 miles away, fast roads mean that it is possible to go to London and back for an evening's entertainment. There are, however, wonderful cultural opportunities in Oxford (approximately 15 miles west of Witney) which hosts a wide variety of concerts, plays and opera. Some of these are staged in beautiful old buildings such as Christchurch Cathedral, the l7th Century Sheldonian Theatre and various college chapels. The Apollo Theatre in Oxford stages West End transfers, visiting international ballet and opera companies and pop concerts.

Due to good road communications, Stratford-upon-Avon is comfortably accessible, as are the smaller theatres at Cheltenham and Chipping Norton.

Oxford shows films on immediate release, whilst Witney boasts its own small cinema. There are various art galleries in Oxford and frequent exhibitions.

Religion

Witney has a variety of places of worship for all the main denominations. Oxford provides further centres of worship.

Eating Out

Oxford, Witney and other nearby towns have many international restaurants, but more particularly, the many pretty villages in this area have charming old pubs, which serve a choice of good food and excellent local beer.

Witney and Surrounding Countryside

The River Windrush historically was partly responsible for the success of the woollen trade in this area and from the mid 17th Century to today, Witney has remained world famous for its blankets. There are a number of fine old houses and cottages in the town, some with beautiful and very private rear gardens. The traditional building material is excellent quality and handsome local stone. Many of the roofs are clad in heavy, durable stone slates that perfectly complement the soft colour of the stone work.

Witney itself has a population about 22,000 and is a happy mixture of old and new. In the 1980's the centre of the town was re-developed to provide a sympathetic modern shopping area with generous free parking.

The Oxfordshire countryside which is on the very edge of the Cotswolds is largely unspoilt and generally very attractive. There are some delightful old stone villages and much pleasant, lightly undulating countryside with both animal and arable farmland.

Transport

Witney has been bypassed by the A40, which is the main road between Oxford and Cheltenham. The town is about 11 miles from the Oxford Ring Road, which leads westward to the M40 Oxford/Birmingham motorway and southwards to the M4 between London and Bristol. Apart from the central area and the environs of Oxford itself there is comparatively little traffic congestion and on the whole road transport is quick and easy. Oxford is on the main line to London (Paddington) and fast trains take about an hour. About 8 miles north of Witney is a main line station at Charibury (on the Paddington line) and many London commuters choose to take the train from Didcot station which is about 13 miles from Oxford from where the fast trains regularly take approximately 50 minutes.

Shops

Oxford is a large shopping centre but many prefer to go to the less crowded Gloucestershire town of Cheltenham for a serious shopping spree. Witney is an old market town with a small yet busy market on both Saturdays and Thursdays. There is a wide variety of the normal high street shops but also a number of established businesses, which are still family run. Both J. Sainsburys and Waitrose have large supermarkets in the town.

Leisure

The River Windrush meanders through Witney and to the south the River Thames runs from Lechlade into Oxford. From the north of the County the River Cherwell merges with the Thames in Oxford and there is good fishing on all these rivers and boating at various points, including punting in Oxford. Fly fishing is available in several places including the Farmoor reservoir between Oxford and Witney and the large number of lakes in this area provide a wide variety of water sports including jet skiing, camping, caravaning and fishing. Hunting with the Heythrop.

There are also gun clubs offering regular clay pigeon shooting. In recent years a number of golf courses have been built so there is now a good choice. The most popular of the established clubs are probably Burford (about S miles west of Witney) and Frilford Heath which has three courses.

Witney has a number of health clubs and a fitness centre. These facilities are expanding. In the centre of Witney is the leisure centre which is a council owned sports centre with a modem building containing two heated swimming pools, squash courts, badminton courts etc. There is a private snooker club in Witney and a wide variety of other sports and activities in the town. We should be pleased to supply you with further information on request.