Places to visit in Thatcham

Thatcham is conveniently located between Junctions 12 & 13 of the M4 and straddles the A4 which was once the main coaching road between London and Bath and partly follows the old Roman Road – Ermin Street from Silchester to Cirencester. It benefits from its own Train station and the beautiful Kennet & Avon Canal meanders its way through the South of the town.

Getting Here

Thatcham lies in the centre of West Berkshire which is bordered with North Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire and Reading and is easily approached from all directions.

Just 3 miles East of Newbury where you can easily pick up the A34 travelling North or the M4 travelling West. Travelling East you can take the A4 which runs through the town to Reading Calcot where you are then about a 50 minute drive to London and Heathrow Airport. Travelling South you can avoid travelling through Newbury and easily pick up the A339 from Thatcham which leads to Basingstoke one way or the A34 southbound the other way where you are just 45 minutes from Southampton Airport and Southampton Cruise Terminals.

Thatcham Train Station is operated by Great Western Railway (GWR) and has regular services to Reading and London Paddington to the East and Bedwyn to the West. Check your journey here.

If you’re travelling by Canal boat then there is leisure mooring in Thatcham by Lock number 90.

Thatcham is well serviced by buses taking you directly to Newbury and Reading where you can pick up connecting services to beyond and the National Express coach network from Newbury Bus Station. Timetables can be found on West Berkshire Council’s website here.

Cycling is a cheap and healthy way of travelling and Thatcham has many dedicated Cycle paths. Maps can be downloaded from West Berkshire Council’s website and the Sustrans National Cycle Network Route 4 cuts through the Town.

Parking

Thatcham has four pay & display car parks operated by West Berkshire District Council:

Prices correct April 2017.

Location	Price
Brownsfield Road:	Up to one hour free (with a ticket)
Kingsland Centre:	Up to one hour 80p
Burdwood Centre:	Up to two hours free (with a ticket)
Thatcham Station Car Park:	Off peak day £2

There are two privately operated pay & display car parks:

The Co-Op, The Broadway, RG18 3HX

Thatcham Memorial Hall, Brownsfield Road, RG18 3HB

For more information on parking click here.

Retail

At the heart of the Town Centre lies the Broadway Green, a registered village green. This is edged by a variety of shops from large chains such as Waitrose and the Co-Op to local independent outlets such as Cook & Butcher and The Dusty Attic. The Broadway leads into the High Street to the west side where the independent shops continue such as Picture It and Lizzie’s Pet Supplies and onto Chapel Street to the east where you can find Creative Cakes by S&S and Angel Eyes Beauty Boutique. If you continue to the end of Chapel Street there is a Sainsbury’s Local store. The town centre also has two Italian Restaurants, a number of Chinese and Indian Restaurants, both eat in and take away, traditional pubs serving food, fast food outlets, a large Costa Coffee as well as many independent cafes and two kebab vans on The Broadway in the evenings.

Friday is Market Day on The Broadway and The Broadway Green. This is usually a good day to visit with the colour, hustle and bustle associated with a traditional market. Read more about the Market here.

The town centre businesses are listed below and our Officers try to keep this information up to date, if you spot any omissions or errors then please let us know.

Location	Businesses
Town Centre – The Broadway	Co-op, Bella Vita, Nawab Indian, Diamond Nails,  Barclays Bank,Baguette De France, RSPCA, Geoffrey Church & Co, McColl’s, Greenalls Barbers, Papadom Indian takeaway, Thatcham Sub Post office, Chancellors, The Dusty Attic, The Kings Head, Gardner Leader, Thatcham Tandoori, Paul Charles, Kiddiesworld, Cook & Butcher, Lovejoy Stevens, Sue Ryder, Stitch in Time, B. D Crayden, Thatcham Kitchen, StanJames, Skin Wizard, A.B.Walker, Guru Barbaras, Roots Estate Agents, Pizza House, Belles, Courtyard Café, Lily Boutique
Town Centre – Kingsland Centre	Envy, Age UK, Costa Coffee, House of Cards, Kingsland Cafe, Leightons Opticians, Lloyds Bank, Lloyds Pharmacy, Paggies Bar & Restaurant, Scope, Thatchams Nails & Beauty, The Indulgent Baker, Toucan Travel, L B’, Waitrose,
Town Centre – High Street	The Crickets, Jade Cottage, Spice Indian, The Cutting Bar, Kings Chinese Take away, Natwest, Szechuan Inn & Express, Thatcham Jewellers, The White Hart, Newbury Building Society, Thatcham Kebab, Vapour Wise Ltd, Beauty at Tiffanys, The Best Fry, Esteem Domestic Appliances, Thatcham Army Surplus, Bella Luna, Drummond & Son, Community Spirit, Legends, Blinds Showroom, George Fredericks Barbara shop, Barber Zone, Mug & Brew, Philip Green & Partners, Charles, Absolute healthcare, Picture IT, Lizzies Pet Supplies, Heslops, Tom Carroll, Dee’s, Chequers, TJ Photography, Comp U Tell, Sa Zim, Claires Hair and Beauty, Shoecare.
Town Centre – Chapel Street	William Dean Consultancy, A-Plan Insurance, Four Seasons Chinese Takeaway, Hedgehog Bottom,Woo and You Jukebox, Creative Cakes by S&S, Sainsburys, Tattoo & Body Piercing, Forresters.

If you cannot make it into town then there are several other retail areas across Thatcham, some key highlights are:

Location	Businesses
Thatcham Garden Centre, RG18 3AN	Bon Marche, Krystals Hair Studio, Leap Frog Ceramics, Maidenhead Aquatics, Oakley Green Conservatories, Optiplan Kitchens, Rivar Sand & Gravel.
Burdwood Centre, RG19 4YF	Community Hall for hire, The Co-Op, The Best Fry Fish & Chips, Lloyds Pharmacy, IT Repair Gurus.
Bradley Moore Square, RG18 4QH	Community Hall for hire, The Co-Op, China Kitchen, The Mill Pub, The Village Plaice Fish & Chips, Bengal Spice Indian Takeaway, Julian’s Hair Salon
Station Road, RG19 4PZ	Pets Corner, GKG Vets, Thatcham Mobility, The Liqour Shop, Clarissa Hair & Beauty.
Northfield Road, RG18 3EU	Tesco Express & Post Office.
Crownmead, RG18 3JW	Crown Mead Stores, Crown Mead Fish Bar, Lloyds Pharmacy, Chick King, Ladbrokes.
Henwick Lane/A4, RG18 3HA	Henwick Newsagents, West Berkshire Seafoods.
Sagecroft Road, RG18 3BQ	Costcutters, Thatcham Angling Centre
Lower Way Farm, RG19 3TL	Pineapple Palace- Art Gallery & Café, Inner Piece Framing, Buttercups & Daisies Florist,
Henwick Farm, RG18 3AP	The Taste of England Pub, Thatcham Driving Range, The Mulberry Bush, Flutterby Crafts, Threshers Animal Feed.
Crookham, RG19 8EA	Crookham Village Stores

Places to play

Thatcham has 15 children’s play areas across the town plus a very popular skate park and two outdoor gyms so that there’s a fun, free way for the adults of Thatcham to get active too. Download the play areas guide here or pick up a copy from the Town Council Offices.

Attractions

One of Thatcham’s most notable attractions is The Nature Discovery centre which includes a large nature reserve and lake. A Lakeside Café, Visitor Centre and gift shop. Adventure playgrounds, toilets and picnic facilities and the internationally important Thatcham Reedbeds- one of the largest areas of inland reedbed in Southern England and home to a number of rare species. The site also houses Thatcham Community Orchard which hosts a number of community events throughout the year.
Also in Thatcham is Crookham Common which joins up with Greenham Common in the Parish of Greenham. For many years it was a military site and once boasted the longest runway in Europe. It held strategic importance in the Second World War and during the Cold War it housed Cruise Missiles establishing the creation of the Womens’ Peace Camp which lasted 19 years and drew worldwide, media attention. The area was returned to common land in 2000 and is now a Site of Special Scientific Interest with cattle Exmoor ponies grazing there.

A selection of Thatcham’s attractions & walks, please click on the image to be taken to their website:

Places to stay

The town has one hotel as well as many B&B’s and pubs which offer rooms for a more budget stay , please click on the image to be taken to their website:

Just over the eastern Parish boundary are two further hotels. The Best Western West Grange Hotel is a three star 62 bedroom hotel  and The Good Night Inn Berkshire Arms Hotel has 49 rooms with a large pub/restaurant attached.

For more ideas of what to do whilst in the local area check out the Visit Newbury website and if you are thinking of bringing a large group or coach party to Thatcham, please contact the Town Council for maps and advice of what to do whilst here.