The local area - Newbury, West Berkshire and North Hampshire
Set in one of the most attractive areas in central Southern England, Newbury and its surrounding villages have a great deal to offer the homebuyer in both local amenities, schools and leisure activities.
The town centre is undergoing an extensive build programme designed to bring a wealth of new, high profile, High Street names to the area in the next year or so. Currently the town has sufficient for everyday needs with all the major supermarkets located close to the town centre, department store and major retailers situated on Northbrook Street and in the Kennet Centre, currently Newbury's retail centre. There is also a retail park about a mile south of the town.
- On the edge of the Kennet Centre is the recently opened multi-screen cinema and in the Market Square The Corn Exchange offers theatre and cinema plus cultural events.
- The nationally renowned Watermill Theatre is located a short distance from the town offering a wide variety of dramatic events together with stage classes for young people.
- Newbury racecourse, home to the famous Hennessy Gold Cup meeting, has thirty days of racing set for 2011 with mixture of flat and jump racing held during day and evening meets. The site also hosts after race and general live concerts.
- The Kennet and Avon Canal runs through the Town centre and the wharf area is a popular venue to ‘feed the ducks’ and just sit and watch the world, and the boats, go by. An annual Water Festival in July sees the central wharf area filled with colourful narrow boats and a weekend of entertainment around and on the water.
- During May the Newbury Spring Festival sees a variety of performances by world class artistes with all kinds of music from classical to jazz, choral to poetry, ballet to ballroom, staged in large and small venues in and around the town including the Parish Church of St Nicolas.
- Each week on Thursday and Saturday there is a market held in the Market Square in the centre of Newbury. A charter market with a royal grant dating back to 1596, and there is strong evidence that the market existed long before then. Periodically, specialist markets occur, French and Italian market traders have been regular visitors in recent years, with a Farmers market held on Sundays twice a month.
- Newbury station is on the south side of the town centre, with trains to London Paddington in around one hour, dependant on the number of stations the train stops at. There is a regular hourly service to Reading which also stops at local stations along the way, including Newbury Racecourse station. In the other direction trains run to Bristol and the West Country.
- Sports and leisure facilities in and around the town are plentiful with five golf courses within five miles of the town centre, a local authority sports centre and numerous private gyms and sports clubs. There is a thriving local Rugby Club which offers facilities for young rugby players and women’s teams, canoeing clubs, tennis clubs, a cricket ground at Wash Common which also has its own pub/restaurant, and numerous cricket grounds in the surrounding villages. The arts are equally well catered for with local authority classes at Newbury College and a diversity of art and craft classes throughout the area.
Schooling
Schooling in the area is diverse with both state and private schooling available locally at Primary and Secondary level. In order to assist potential buyers the schools have been divided into four blocks, working clockwise around the town, each dealing with the suburbs of the town and the outlying villages in that direction.
West Berkshire School Admissions
01635 519771
Independent Schools Council
020 7766 7070
Tertiary education
Newbury College, Monks Lane, Newbury
01635 845000
Secondary Schools
The Downs School, (NORTH EAST)
Compton
RG20 6NU
01635 270000
John O’Gaunt School (WEST)
Priory Road,
Hungerford
RG17 0AN
01488 682400
Kennet School (EAST)
Stoney Lane,
Thatcham
RG19 4LL
01635 862121
Park House School (SOUTH)
Andover Road,
Newbury
RG14 6NQ
01635 573911
St Bartholomew’s School (SOUTH)
Andover Road,
Newbury
RG14 6JP
01635 521255
Trinity School (EAST)
Love Lane,
Donnington,
Newbury
RG14 2DU
01635 510500
The Clere School (SOUTH EAST)
Burghclere,
Newbury
RG20 9HP
01635 278372
Primary Schools
North/East Schools
Cold Ash St Mark’s Church of England Primary School
Cold Ash Hill,
Cold Ash,
Thatcham RG18 9PT
01635 862600
Curridge Primary School
Curridge,
Thatcham
RG18 9DZ
01635 200486
Dunston Park Infant School
Park Lane,
Thatcham
RG18 3PG
01635 863573
Fir Tree Primary School
Fir Tree Lane,
Newbury RG14 2RA
01635 42129
Hermitage Primary School
Hampstead Norreys Road,
Hermitage,
Thatcham
RG18 9SA
01635 200355
St Finian’s Catholic Primary School
The Ridge,
Cold Ash,
Thatcham
RG18 9HU
01635 865925
St Mary’s Church of England Junior School
Park Avenue,
Thatcham
RG18 4NP
01635 862184
Whitelands Park Primary School
Sagecroft Road,
Thatcham
RG18 3FH
01635 862517
South/East Schools
Ashford Hill Primary School
Ashford Hill,
Thatcham
RG19 8BB
0118 981 3822
Burghclere Primary School
Burghclere,
Newbury
RG20 9HT
01635 278523
Ecchinswell & Sydmonton Church of England Primary School
Ecchinswell,
Newbury
RG20 4UA
01635 298288
Francis Baily Primary School
Skillman Drive,
Thatcham
RG19 4GG
01635 862188
Kingsclere Church of England Primary School
Ash Grove,
Kingsclere,
Newbury
RG20 5RE
01635 298583
Parsons Down Infant School
Paynesdown Road,
Thatcham
RG19 3TE
01635 862475
Parsons Down Junior School
Herons Way,
Thatcham
RG19 3SR
01635 866700
St Josephs Catholic Primary School
Newport Road,
Newbury
RG14 2AW
01635 43455
The Willows Primary School
Pyle Hill,
Greenham,
Newbury
RG14 7SZ
01635 42155
Spurcroft Primary School
Spurcroft Road,
Thatcham
RG19 3XX
01635 871541
South/West Schools
Enborne Church of England Primary School
Enborne,
Newbury
RG20 0JU
01635 40569
Falkland Primary School
Andover Road,
Wash Common,
Newbury
RG14 6NU
01635 44949
Inkpen Primary School
Weavers Lane,
Inkpen,
Hungerford
RG17 9QE
01488 668219
John Rankin Infant School
Garford Crescent,
Newbury
RG14 6EX
01635 42376
John Rankin Junior School
Henshaw Crescent,
Newbury
RG14 6ES
01635 42859
Kintbury St Mary’s Church of England Primary School
Gainsborough Avenue,
Kintbury,
Hungerford
RG17 9XN
01488 658336
Speenhamland Primary School
Pelican Lane,
Newbury
RG14 1NU
01635 41077
St Martin’s School
East End,
Newbury
RG20 0AF
01635 253489
St Thomas’ Church of England Infant School
Woolton Hill,
Newbury
RG20 9XF
016350 253431
The Newbury St Nicolas Church of England Junior School
Eastfields
Link Road,
Newbury
RG14 7LU
01635 41282
Woolton Hill Junior School
Woolton Hill,
Newbury
RG20 9XE
01635 253364
North/West Schools
Chieveley Primary School
School Road,
Chieveley,
Newbury
RG20 8TY
01635 248281
Robert Sandilands Primary School
Digby Road,
Speen,
Newbury
RG14 1TS
01635 40318
Shaw cum Donnington Church of England Primary School
Love Lane,
Donnington,
Newbury
RG14 2JG
01635 40971
Shefford Church of England Primary School
Wantage Road,
Great Shefford,
Hungerford
RG17 7DB
01488 648657
Stockcross Church of England School
Chapel Row,
Stockcross,
Newbury
RG20 8LD
01488 608356
The Winchcombe School
Maple Crescent,
Shaw,
Newbury
RG14 1LN
01635 41767
Welford & Wickham Church of England Primary School
Welford Road,
Wickham,
Newbury
RG20 8HL
01488 608306
The Castle School – Special Needs
Love Lane,
Donnington,
Newbury
RG14 2JG
01635 42976
Independent Schools
Brockhurst (boys day/boarding to 13 – see Marlston House below for girls)
Marlston Road,
Hermitage
RG18 9UL
01635 200293
Cheam School (co-ed day/boarding 3-13)
Headley,
Newbury
RG19 8LD
01635 268242
Elstree School (boys day/boarding 3-13)
Woolhampton,
Reading,
Berkshire
RG7 5TD
0118 971 3302
Horris Hill (boys day/boarding 7-13)
Newtown,
Newbury,
Berkshire
RG20 9DJ
01635 40594
Marlston House (girls day/boarding to 13 – see Brockhurst above for boys)
Marlston Road,
Hermitage
RG18 9UL
01635 200293
St Gabriels (girls day school 3-18, boys 3-7)
Sandleford Priory,
Newbury
RG20 9BD
01635 555680
Thorngrove School (co-ed day school 4-13)
The Mount,
Highclere,
Newbury
RG20 9PS
01635 253172
The National Grammar School for the Deaf (co-ed boarding 5-19)
Arlington Manor, Snelsmore Common, Newbury RG14 3BQ
01635 244200
The National Grammar School for the Deaf
Primary School
Mill Hall, Pigeons Farm Road, Newbury RG19 8XA
01635 573800
Newbury Hall International School Newbury Hall, Enborne Road, Newbury, RG14 6AD 01635 36879
St Michaels Catholic School Harts Lane, Burghclere, RG20 9JW 01635 278137 |
The local area