Introduction to the Borough

With its unique blend of countryside and town, historic features and up-to-date facilities, big business and market town trading, the Wokingham Borough offers an attractive place to live and work.

 

Situated in the Royal County of Berkshire within 30 miles west of London and bordered by Oxfordshire to the north and Hampshire to the south-west, the Wokingham Borough is an area of great diversity and character.

 

The historic market town of Wokingham, the picture book riverside villages of Sonning and Wargrave and rural communities of Finchampstead and Remenham contrast with the more modern developments of Lower Earley and Woodley.

 

Despite being near the nation's capital and home to modern employment areas, the Borough is noted for its charming woodlands, heaths, peaceful rivers and secluded villages.

 

The River Thames forms a natural boundary to the north of the Borough between Remenham and Henley - the Borough actually hosts the world renowned Henley Regatta course. This area provides some of the most contrasting scenic beauty in the south of England.

 

The scenery to the south of the Borough is characterised by miles of mixed woodlands, where remnants of the old Royal Chase of Windsor Forest are interspersed by scented pinewoods and extensive plantations of conifers. Many of the roads run through the splendid avenues, of which Wellingtonia Avenue at Finchampstead is perhaps the most impressive.

 

A sought-after location, the Wokingham Borough has seen its population rise rapidly to 150,229 according to the 2001 census. 

 

The challenge is to balance the need for housing development against the protection and enhancement of the Borough's pleasant semi-rural environment.

The housing growth has taken place on three major developments: Lower Earley, Woosehill and Woodley Airfield, providing accommodation for 27,500 people. Each development includes shopping and community facilities, primary schools and open spaces for recreation.

 

A prosperous area with a thriving local economy, the district has a low unemployment record.

In fact, a study published by the School of Advanced Urban Studies at Bristol University, based on six indicators (unemployment, lone parenthood, youth unemployment, single pensioners, long-term limiting illness and dependants per household) found Wokingham the least deprived district in England.

 

The economic base of the Borough has broadened through the growth of new business developments at Winnersh Triangle, Suttons Industrial Park and The Thameside Business and Country Park at Thames Valley Business Park, on the Earley/Sonning borders. There have also been small-scale office developments around the Borough.

 

Owing to these major business developments, the district is now home to leading information technology companies including Microsoft, Panasonic and Oracle who have chosen this part of the Thames Valley for their European or UK headquarters.

 

Located in the Thames Valley, Wokingham Borough has communications which are second to none, making it a desirable location for many international companies.

 

Use the menu on the left to read about the individual towns and parishes or countryside sites throughout the Wokingham Borough.