Wantage is a market town in the Vale of White Horse, in the south of Oxfordshire, England. It sits at the foot of the Berkshire Downs, about 13 miles south-west of Oxford as the crow flies. Wantage was in Berkshire until the county boundaries changed in 1974. Grove, its large neighbour, is just to the north.
Open the map full size to print it, or see Wantage on OpenStreetMap.
Where is Wantage?
Wantage is in the middle of the Vale of White Horse, between the Thames valley and the chalk downs. The Ridgeway runs along the top of the downs two to three miles south of the town, and the Uffington White Horse is about six miles to the west.
| From Wantage to | Distance (straight line) | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Grove | 1.5 miles | North |
| Uffington White Horse | 6 miles | West |
| Didcot | 8 miles | East |
| Faringdon | 8 miles | North-west |
| Abingdon | 8.5 miles | North-east |
| Hungerford | 12.5 miles | South |
| Oxford | 13.5 miles | North-east |
| Newbury | 14 miles | South |
| Swindon | 15.5 miles | West |
| Reading | 21.5 miles | South-east |
| London | 56 miles | East |
Road distances are a little longer. The A338 runs north to south through the town and meets the M4 at junction 14 near Hungerford. The A417 runs east to west, towards Didcot and the A34. The nearest railway station is Didcot Parkway. See getting to Wantage for buses, trains and parking.
Wantage postcode
Wantage, Grove and most of the villages around them share the OX12 postcode district. For a sat nav, the town car parks are a good target:
- Portway car park, by The Beacon: OX12 9BU
- Limborough Road car park: OX12 9AJ
- Mill Street car park: OX12 9AQ
Finding your way around the town
Everything starts at the Market Place, with King Alfred’s statue in the middle and markets on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The parish church of Saints Peter and Paul stands at its west end, with the Vale and Downland Museum just behind it in Church Street. The main shopping streets run out of the square: Newbury Street to the south, Wallingford Street to the east, Mill Street to the west and Grove Street to the north.
The Letcombe Brook, a chalk stream, runs through the west of the town past the Betjeman Millennium Park and on to Willow Walk nature reserve. Newer estates, including Kingsgrove and Crab Hill, have grown up on the north-east side of the town, and Grove lies across the fields to the north.
Who runs Wantage
- County: Oxfordshire (Oxfordshire County Council runs schools, roads and libraries)
- District: Vale of White Horse District Council (planning, bins, car parks and council tax)
- Town: Wantage Town Council; Grove has its own parish council
- Parliament: the Didcot and Wantage constituency
Explore further
Every village around Wantage has its own page with where it is, its pub, hall and clubs: see the villages. For routes on foot, see our mapped walks, and for shops and services, the Wantage directory.