New to Charlbury

Tue 8 Nov 2005, 10:03

I moved here from London 4 years ago and commuted to my office in Clerkenwell for the first 6 months, 4 days a week. I gave up after 6 months during the winter months as delayed/cancelled trains are more than just a minor inconvenience when the weather's bad. But I…

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Fri 7 Oct 2005, 09:13

Shepherds Bush from Paddington will be ok. Hammersmith and City line direct from Paddington or Lancaster Gate tube is only 5 mins walk from Paddington and then you are on the central line.

Thu 6 Oct 2005, 10:05

Thanks for those messages. It sounds really good plus, a vibrant TOWN where the girls will be happy I know. For me at the moment that's the most important thing as they need complete stability after we sell up in London. Additionally you all sound so much more friendly than the typical London folk. I am feeling more and more positive about everything everyday and will definitely try to get involved as much as possible, time allows.
Thanks for the info about the trains too. I unfortunately work full-time up in Shepherd's Bush, but I'm hoping to work from home on Thursday's which will help with the commuting fatigue/apathy.
BTW - my IP address is different as I've logged on from work rather than at home.
Also this website it fantastic and will be a great resource to find out what's happening when we move. Thanks again...

Wed 5 Oct 2005, 17:08

Hi Lizzie and welcome to Charlbury. 21 years ago I moved here with 2 young children and have never looked back as everyone is so friendly. There is plenty for you to do with the children, ballet, pre-school, after school club etc etc. And if you would like to get involved with the town (make sure you say Charlbury is a TOWN) then why not help with Street Fair next year. Not sure if you have experienced Street Fair - its always held on the 3rd Saturday in September and is run to raise funds for the upkeep of the Corner House and Memorial Hall. This year we think we may have raised £9500 and still counting! Anyway, the next meeting to start organising the fair for next year will be held in February next year - so look out on this website for the date. Anyway, even you if cant help, welcome to Charlbury.

Susie

Wed 5 Oct 2005, 12:56

Hi Lizzie;
Welcome to Charlbury! I'm sure you will love it here! The trains all seem ok,but to be fair I tend to drive everywhere. Everyone is very friendly and even if you walk into the pubs alone there is always someone to talk to.
All the best for the move and I hope to see you around the town sometime. If I see a lady with two young children looking lost then I will say 'hi' to you! :-)
Stuart.

Mon 3 Oct 2005, 12:33

Loads of people commute to London - I did it for a while. Jokes aside, the train service here is outstanding for such a small place - there are towns 20 times the size which don't have any trains, whereas we have an Intercity (or similar) to London every hour or two. First Great Western are by no means perfect, and trains do get cancelled more often than anyone would like, but compared to (say) Virgin or Central Trains the service is a dream.

My experience of commuting was that Charlbury to Paddington was the easy bit. The dispiriting part was the Tube/cycle ride across London from Paddington. If you're working near to Paddington then you're smiling.

As for the community - very welcoming and there's always plenty to do. The easiest way to get to know people is via one of the many local societies, or the five (!) churches. Whether you're into sport (football, tennis, cricket, bowls), history, the theatre, or whatever, you're sure to find something. The community pages on the site should give you a taster, and we'll be posting PDFs of the Charlbury Chronicle (the town newsletter) once again, which is another useful resource.

Mon 3 Oct 2005, 11:15

Thanks Geoffers.
I get the feeling then that not many people commute up to London??

Mon 3 Oct 2005, 09:14

Hello Lizzie, welcome to Charlbury and a new stage in life. At least you have family here.

There are three places for young children in Charlbury. 'Tis a few years since my two had to use them; but basically there's Charlbury Pre-school at the Old Grammar School (unless its changed, this doesn't do whole day care). A Nursery next to the Butchers in the centre of Charlbury; and Charlbury Railway Children, which is near the railway station. So there's a choice, look at all three and take your pick.

Railways - I appreciate and accept the standing jokes about the various companies not being able to tell the time; or at least not apply the time to actual timetables and rail journeys. That out the way, there is a railway station here - and when they run there are frequent services to and from Paddington. In your shoes, I'd be inclined to look for a job that's closer.

As with most places, there are opportunities to meet others, especially if you have children - they make friends, go to their friends' houses, you meet the friends' parent(s)and so on.

Charlbury? - all in all, I can think of a lot worse places to live.

Good luck and best wishers
Geoffers

Sun 2 Oct 2005, 19:58

My parents live in Charlbury and once we've sold our house my two young daughters (4+2) and I will be joining them. I won't pretend that it's under pleasant circumstances as my husband and I have decided to separate and so I shall be venturing out as a single mum, albeit working full time up in London. I come from London but know Charlbury from our wonderful visits to my parents house.

I wanted to join this message board because I thought you could give me good advice about the train service to London and also some might know of good childminders/nursery for the girls.

Lastly, as a 35 year old I am interested to know if there will be opportunity for me to join in the community and whether you have any advice given that I'll be totally new to living in Charlbury.

I suspect that this won't happen until the new year as we have a house to sell in London.

It's lovely to make contact with a community already - given that for me it's a particularly sad time that my marriage has ended and that I'm starting again with two young children. However, I am looking forward to moving on and getting on with my life...

Regards
Lizzie... :-)