Oxford Property Consulting’s ultimate guide to… the Cotswolds!

Over four million eyes have been firmly fixed on an innocent yet influential 1,000-acre farm in Oxfordshire this month, with the third series of Clarkson’s Farm launching on our screens.

The documentary tells the story of TV presenter and journalist turned farmer Jeremy Clarkson and his attempt to farm the land he purchased with help from partner Lisa and their team of staff and advisors.

Since its launch, Clarkson’s Farm has become the most-watched original TV show in the UK with the charming Cotswold village of Chadlington at the heart of all filming.

With so much attention being brought to the region and the farm’s Diddly Squat Farm Shop, we asked our team to pick-out their favourite Cotswold locations and key considerations for those thinking of moving to the area.

Chadlington

When it’s not home to Amazon’s film crew documenting the highs and lows of modern-day farming, Chadlington is a quaint and typical Cotswold village of just under 1,000 residents.

It’s positioned three miles south of Chipping Norton with links to the A44 which connects Oxford to Worcester. On a good day, Oxford city centre can be reached in 45 minutes by car.

There is a sports club, a bowls club and village pub plus a café and countless footpaths stretching across the Evenlode Valley providing unrivalled views of west Oxfordshire. Properties in the village vary greatly with a mix of farm houses, country homes and spacious detached and semi-detached buildings.

The launch of nearby Daylesford Farm Shop and Spa in 2002 and Soho Farmhouse in 2015 had added to the appeal of a move to Chadlington, with the village recently named by The Sunday Times as one of the UK’s Top 14 places to live.

Quaint villages

Ascott-Under-Wychwood

Three-miles south-west of Chadlington is Ascott-Under-Wychwood, one of three villages locally named after the Forest of Wychwood.

Despite its rural location, the village is served by a train station with two services operating every hour to London Paddington during the week in under two hours, making it a popular spot for commuters.

There’s also a pre-school, a primary school, cricket club, art gallery and a pub.

Kingham

Right on Oxfordshire’s border with Gloucestershire to the west of the county is Kingham, a village four miles south-west of Chipping Norton home to just under 1,000 people.

Kingham is another sleepy Cotswold village to be served by a train station, with up to four services running every hour to London Paddington via Reading with a journey time of two hours.

Nearby Kingham Hill is a private day and boarding school for children aged 11-19 with the village home to a public primary school. There are two pubs – The Plough and The Wild Rabbit – a village shop and Post Office too.

The Rissington’s

As rural locations go, you won’t find many communities which feel as cut-off from the outside world as Great and Little Rissington.

Properties are a mix of gorgeous cottages and renovated farmhouses with the area truly epitomising Cotswold beauty. This comes at a practical price, though, with limited public transport and the nearest secondary school in nearby Bourton-on-the-Water.

Market towns

Charlbury

With a distinctive ‘town feel’ to it by comparison to neighbouring villages, Charlbury still retains its rural charm.

It’s home to approximately 3,000 residents and has everything a person requires – shops, a train station, a community gym, high street, schools and multiple pubs.

Burford

Described as one of the UK’s most picturesque villages, Burford is the gateway to the Cotswolds and is well-known for its iconic High Street which rises from the River Windrush.

Public transport options are limited to buses, however the town is home to a primary and secondary school.

Chipping Norton

Chipping Norton is a lively market town – arguably the most ‘active’ of Oxfordshire’s Cotswold locations with plenty going on.

It’s also the region’s most populated area, with over 6,000 residents. Naturally, there is no shortage of things to do with a cinema, schools and theatre in the town centre. The only missing piece is a train station, which closed in 1962.

Woodstock

Home to Blenheim Palace – a World Heritage site regarded as Britain’s greatest palace – is Woodstock. The town sits right on the eastern edge of the Cotswolds and is less than 10 miles from Oxford city centre.

The town has a primary school, secondary school and plenty of tearooms, coffee shops, pubs and restaurants which line the town’s high street. Woodstock is also home to The Oxfordshire Museum. Public transport is limited to buses in the town, although nearby Hanborough Station which operates trains to central London can be easily accessed by bike.

What our experts say

That’s Oxfordshire’s pocket of the Cotswolds summed up as briefly as possible.

If you are passing through the region, we would advise spending time familiarising yourself with at least one of the above locations.

While unquestionably picturesque and aesthetically pleasing to look at, it is important for buyers to understand the practicalities of moving to the Cotswolds and choosing a town or village which best suits their lifestyle.

While we’d never talk down Great or Little Rissington, for example, the location may not be best suited to a young family due to its disconnect both geographically and from a public transport viewpoint.

There is a home out there for everyone, and our team are experts at sourcing properties which suit your requirements at the right price. Drop us a message today to learn more and plan your dream move to Oxfordshire with our support.

Phone – 01865 553 956

Email – info@oxfordpropertyconsulting.co.uk