Watchfield
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Watchfield | |
  Watchfield shown within Oxfordshire |
|
| OS grid reference | |
|---|---|
| Parish | Watchfield |
| District | Vale of White Horse |
| Shire county | Oxfordshire |
| Region | South East |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Swindon |
| Postcode district | SN6 |
| Dialling code | 01793 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Oxfordshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| European Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | Wantage |
| List of places: UK • England • Oxfordshire | |
Watchfield is a village and civil parish, near Shrivenham and the A420, in the English county of Oxfordshire (formerly in Berkshire).
Contents |
[edit] Character and amenities
Watchfield is mainly comprised of military accommodation for the Joint Services Command and Staff College (JSCSC) and the Conflict Studies Research Centre (CSRC) in the parish, as well as for the Defence College of Management and Technology and Cranfield University across the boundary in Shrivenham.
Local amenities include the Eagle public house, located in the heart of the old village. Watchfield Post Office is located on the High Street. A purpose built mini-industrial estate near the A420 road houses the College Farm public house, a Midcounties Co-operative supermarket, a unisex hairdressers, opticians and a McDonald's.
A community-owned wind farm, Westmill Wind Farm Co-operative, opened in May 2008 on the site of the former RAF Watchfield near the village.[1][2] It consists of five 1.3 MW turbines, and is described by its promoters as the UK's largest community-owned wind farm.
[edit] Geography
As with nearby Shrivenham, a common element of confusion is that Watchfield has the Swindon postal code and Swindon telephone area code, despite being located in a different county: Oxfordshire rather than Wiltshire.
[edit] References
- ^ Energy4All Press Release, December 5, 2005, Westmill Wind Farm Celebrates Success of Public Share Launch. Retrieved on November 14, 2006. Archive copy at the Internet Archive
- ^ Energy4All Press Release, February 1, 2008. Fresh Wind Farm. Retrieved on March 8, 2008.
