Wantage news
Wantage news, newest first, from Abingdon Online: planning, roads, schools, business and what's on in Wantage, with every story linked to its source.
Top story
Wantage and Grove Station: Up to 1,400 Passengers a Day
A county study puts a Wantage and Grove station at 400 to 1,400 passengers a day and £44m to £86m to build. No site is chosen; the next call is in spring 2027.
More stories
Wantage
Wantage Padel Courts: £256,526 Grant Goes to Cabinet Friday
Wantage Lawn Tennis Club could build the area's first padel courts and a pickleball court with £256,526 of developer money. Vale Cabinet decides on Friday.
Christmas
Father Christmas Near Abingdon 2026: Grottos and Santa Trains
Millets Farm's grotto opens 14 November from £29.50 for two. Santa trains run at Didcot and Wallingford, and Wantage has a £6 Santa visit on 4 December.
Buses
Abingdon Bus Changes: X1 Withdrawn, Wantage Gets JR Bus
The X1 and the 35 have gone, the 6 now runs through to Abingdon, and Wantage has a direct bus to the John Radcliffe. Every Vale route change from 20 September.
Schools
Wantage's Fitzwaryn School Rated Exceptional in Two Areas
Ofsted graded Fitzwaryn School in Wantage exceptional for inclusion and pupils' wellbeing, and strong in the other five. All 126 pupils have an EHC plan.
Abingdon
Abingdon Christmas Lights: Sat 28 Nov, on at 6pm
The Christmas Extravaganza runs from 9am on Saturday 28 November, the parade sets off at noon and the lights come on at 6pm. Plus Wantage's Dickensian date.
Community
Abingdon Electric Blanket Checks Free on 25 September
More than a third of blankets tested in Oxfordshire last year failed. Free checks come to Abingdon Fire Station on 25 September and Wantage on 9 October.
Travel
Wantage bus changes 30 August: 68 drops Sarajac Avenue
The 67 and 68 between Wantage and Faringdon transfer to Thames Travel on 30 August, and the 68 stops serving Sarajac Avenue in East Challow. The new times.
Business
John Lewis of Hungerford in administration, name to live on
The Wantage kitchen maker entered administration on 7 July. Two of its directors have filed notices to carry on the business under the same name.
Schools
Oxfordshire School Term Dates 2026/27: Abingdon's Seven Calendars
Oxfordshire's October half term is 26 to 30 October, but three Abingdon schools break on 16 October and two Cambrian schools stay shut until 3 November.