Moving to Banbury - what's it really like?

[LondontoBanbury]

Hi all!

We are currently selling (or trying to sell!) our 1 bed London flat and planning on moving to Banbury. We're currently renting in a small village nearby, and while it's fine, we really aren't out in the sticks sort of people and it's not particularly convenient.

Main reasons for deciding on Banbury:

• 2+ bed houses within our price range (<£300k)
• Walkable to Banbury station which has a reasonable commute time and price to London (we both still work for our London companies and husband is in London 3 times a week)
• Close to in laws (25 mins)
• Closer than London to my parents (2.5 hours rather than 4/5)

I've seen lots of negative comments about Banbury, so wanted to check if the negative comments are because the town itself is dangerous, or just not as pretty as other villages nearby?

We 100% aren't looking for a quaint village life, if we could have afforded a 2 bed in London and moved our families nearer to us, we would have happily stayed! We also aren't looking for a "forever home" or location, no real plan, but ideally would like to move again in 5 years or so, dependant on job opportunities. Having said that, we're expecting our first child and I want to make sure we're living somewhere safe. I don't want to be nervous walking to the local shops or having violent encounters on our doorstep.

We've been to visit and it seemed fine, so just trying to gauge the negative reviews vs what we can see and what exactly it is people don't like about it.

(Also, we don't care about the coffee smell)

Thanks!

It's fine. Not great but perfectly ok in my opinion. Some interesting local characters who have lived there forever. The down centre is becoming quite run down but it's not dangerous from what I can see.

It's not dangerous but it's run down and depressing! I used to live there and went back just last week- I was shocked how run down its become

There are nicer places in North Oxfordshire than Banbury. Shipston-Upon-Stour is nearby and lovely. Kings Sutton has a train station and is reportedly nice (I haven’t been). Brackley is just over the border in Northamptonshire but also nice.

I would try to avoid Banbury itself.

It's slightly run down now but not dangerous by any means. I lived there for a good chunk of my life.

Thanks all, I really appreciate hearing your thoughts, it's all useful to know! Most mid-size towns seem to be falling into the run-down category these days, so not too concerned about that, especially as we aren't looking to be tied there forever. I've made note of some of the no-go areas people had listed, Bretch Hill and Ruscote seem to be the main ones, as well as possibly the Grimsbury area, though that seems to be quite big, so I'm not really sure what it encompasses!

Shipston and Brackley are too far from London unfortunately, and there's certainly nothing more depressing than a regular four hour commute! (Forgot to note, we also currently have one car and would like to keep it that way, so areas that don't require driving to the station are our aim!)

Kings Sutton does seem like a good option though, just slightly less frequent train times - thanks for the suggestion, will have a look into there some more!

Have you looked at Bicester? That's also on the train line.

It doesn't smell of coffee anymore because they've stopped making it there 🙂
Parts are good, parts are bad. Which is like everywhere really.
The town centre has had a lot of changes in the last few years. A brand new complex of a cinema, restaurants and other entertainment places has opened by the canal and it makes the canal side very modern indeed.
Some parts of the town centre are run down but it seems to gradually be improving.
A lot goes on (have a look at Banbury Town Council website - you'll see all the events they put on).
The Cherwell Heights estate is walking distance to the train centre and is a nice area. That's close to the new-ish Longford Park area which has a lovely country park to walk through.
Go for it 🙂

I've lived in the locality for years and Banbury is certainly a bit run down in places (as are many markets towns) but I'd echo what nomoreLego said and I have never felt remotely unsafe there. Hanwell Fields is nice, with some lovely areas for walks. I also like the Broughton Road end of town.
Kind Sutton is a large village with a train station, a few pubs and a couple of shops including a Co Op so it depends what you want.

I like Banbury. There are loads of interesting independent shops and cafes opening up. Unfortunately towns seem to have to get run down to get cheap enough for independents to thrive. Yes, bits of it are very run down, but there’s lots going on too. The Mill Theatre does loads of brilliant kids plays.

Have you checked the commuting costs? I know off peak it’s twice the price from Banbury as it is from Milton Keynes or Oxford. Don’t know whether there’s a big difference for peak/season tickets, definitely worth checking.

The weekly market is quite good. There's good coffee from nice people at The Mill by the canal. I used to work there, but would prefer not to live there.

Have you looked at Abingdon which is a lovely market town on the river and a 10 minute drive to Didcot Station if in South Abingdon.

Didcot is a quick commute to Paddington and loads of new builds with a thriving town. But it has little character and few independent shops and coffee bars. It does have an m & s food though 😃

It's good to hear some positive points! And reassuring to hear it's worst character trait seems to be being a bit rundown. Thanks for the recommendations on nicer areas! We have a dog, so nice walks/parks are always a bonus!

Bicester is definitely on the potential list too. I'm reluctant to move further south and put more distance between us and my parents though! Same for Milton Keynes, Didcot and Oxford. Very much trying to have our cake and eat it too, being as far north as we can with as cheap/easy a London commute as we can manage! We did initially look at Stafford as the fast train is only 1 hours 15, which would have been amazing, but the commute was too expensive!

We're commuting from Banbury currently, but have to drive 20 minutes to the station. We both have fairly flexible jobs so can usually get the off peak train tickets + Banbury is in the south east/London railcard, so get a third off. Usually about £25 a day.

DS lived there for about 9 months while he was doing his post grad studies at Oxford. He rented a nice little fairly modern flat within walking distance of the station. It was a nice leafy spot and I thought it was fine. The town, like many, seemed a bit run down but not awful. No idea what it was like at night.

I commuted from Kings Sutton for 4 years- there weren't many of us, and you need flexibility in your hours, but I loved it.
Banbury is fine, there are places to eat and drink in the evenings with a safe atmosphere.
Bicester can be soulless.

I have family there and it's perfectly ok. I tend to stay if I need to go into London for any reason.

I've been to Banbury a couple of times in recent years as a visitor, staying for a few days and I have fond memories of the museum and canal and wonderful Banbury Cross statue, with the original Cross in the museum. Doesn't it have an aviary in the very pretty park? And I still remember the gorgeous Banbury cakes mmm

@Abracadabra12345 I think the aviary is still there. That's People's Park. Nice little park with a new cafe. They have annual family days there and flower beds that have flowers planted by local school children.
Banbury Cakes are indeed most excellent.

I have to say I agree re Bicester.