After the AGM of the Friends of Abingdon, at the Old Abbey Buildings, there followed a talk on “What makes a great place to live work and play.”
The ‘Friends of Abingdon’ Civic Society has done great work in the past protecting important historical buildings and has created monuments to Abingdon’s Heritage. The guest speaker was asking them as a civic society to look to the future. They had the town’s interest at heart and a role to play in determining the town’s future.
She asked people to think creatively, outside the box. What is Abingdon known for? Hay-on-Wye, for example is famous for book shops and a book festival.
What would you like Abingdon to be known for? .
Should it perhaps be the town known for it’s distinctive and confident independent shops, or perhaps the town known for making windmills, or …?
She also said we should not be thinking about and competing with near towns like Didcot and Witney but looking to compete and find examples of things that work much further afield. One example suggested was from our twin towns.
Chavs, drunken and abusive squaddies, lack of proper facilities in the town centre, closing pubs, the Tesco coprorate takeover
I agree with Dave.
The other Saturday afternoon I was waiting at the Ock St./Stratton Way traffic lights around 2pm, when these 3 drunken yobs (Abingdon’s Finest) threatened to push me in the road into the oncoming traffic. At that time I was walking with 2 sticks after having a knee replacement, as I braced myself for a shove in the back, they decided to move down the street where they all fell over. If they had have pushed me, my daughter who was with me would have grabbed my sticks and wrapped them around their necks! (She said).
OH perleeese (as the stereotypical chavs referred to above would say). We all know what we don’t like about the town, we don’t need to keep on about the negative stuff.
If we want to make it a better place “to live work and play” we need to pick some good points and build on those. If money is short it can be done by starting very small – a lick of paint, a mural, a new leisure space. That is what has worked in other places all over the world and it can work here. So let’s have some ideas.
Backstreeter asked what us to say what we would LIKE the town to be known for. Here’s a couple to start us off:
– its beautiful riverside – particularly to the south of the town centre
– its active arts and music groups – an enormous number of people of all ages – school age to well past retirement – are actively engaged in playing music, putting on plays and creating visual arts and crafts, and many more go and enjoy the fruits of their work.
…. but there are plenty more.
Yes, I have to agree with you both too.
We decided to go into the town centre on a Saturday night to go for a meal at Kitsons. Getting there at around 8:15 our taxi driver was accosted by a drunken lout (not a young one either!). On leaving the restaurant around 11ish there were a group of lads that could’t even stand, let along walk shouting and (trying) to make their way up the High Street. And apparently being drunk on a bike, cycling on the pavement shouting “Get out the way, I’ve got no brakes” is also a norm in the Town centre. Of course not a police officer in sight. This is why we go to pubs/restaurants out of the centre!!!
Meal at Kitson’s was lovely, by the way!
Since lots of the problems seem to be related to drunkeness it makes you wonder if there is the need for a revived temperance society! All rather depressing, but essentially I agree that Abingdon has a lot to offer and that we should be focusing on what is good and what can realistically be improved. The thing that struck me most, when I first came to live here, is that the best bits of Abingdon are all hidden and take a while to find. Examples are; the river walks (including Ock River), East St. Helen Street, Albert Park and the surrounding houses and used to include the health shop and Local Roots but luckily still includes Masons.
While I hate the drunkeness, I’m with Hester in celebrating the good bits. Not mentioned already is the keen literary presence in the town with 2 indie bookshops surviving, and in Mostly Books creating a great literary vibe which is drawing top authors to events in the town.
Sewing and crafts! There is no other small town with as many fabric, craft and yarn shops. Some days going in to Masons in Bath Street feels like Christmas to me with so many fabrics to look at and admire.
Abingdon has fantastic access to town and to countryside on foot or by bike. How many other small towns have such good cycle paths? And what about the lakes and meadows so easily reached from Audlett Drive?
The Stert going under town but audible through the metal grate between St Nicholas and the music centre; the tree growing over the spike of a railing in West St Helens Street; the path alongside the Ock, the frogs in the Nature Reserve at Daisy Bank; the streets and closes lined with shrubs and trees; I could go on and on.
I’ve been out in town late at night and not seen drunks so I’m not sure whether I have good luck or bad!
I would say that this is a safe town. Our teenagers have been out and about in both town and countryside here and had no difficulties they could not resolve on their own. They have never been attacked or threatened or robbed or hit by a car or bus.
This is a great town to raise small people and young teens and it is close enough to Oxford for them to stretch their wings as they get older.
If we ever move from here I am going to find it hard to find another place that is so close to greenness, wilderness and water.
There are so many good things if you look for them. Look for the beauty! It is always there if you choose to open your eyes to it.
I think those stories of drunken people would ring true with any town/city on a weekend, and as for the police, i work in the town Center on the weekends and am quite frequently chat with the numerous police walking around the towns pubs,
The good things about abingdon (apart from the ones already mentioned) Are its independent shops, restaurants, cafe’s and Pubs, I think we can all agree that shops like Mostly Books, The Gift Center, Outdoor trader, the Cafe’s and restaurants like Throwing Buns and Kitsons, and the Free houses like the Kings Head and Bell give Abingdon a unique feel that towns like Didcot don’t have, and when thay finaly get round to redeveloping the “Abbey Shopping Center” hopefully More independant and Chain shops will open, bringing more visitors to the center of town.
I moved to Abingdon 15 years ago because it has a fantastic stretch of river – particularly for rowing on from my perspective, but I also see thriving communities of anglers, sailors, pleasure boaters, canoists, walkers, cyclists … and people just taking in the view from the anchor and the nags head (and hopefully they will again soon!).
As I’ve become settled and raised my family here I’ve been surprised at how little focus there is on the river. The history, quirky traditions (bun chucking, boundary walk, feuding Morris men / ock street mayor, street fair, etc), independent stores, lovely parks, vibrant schools, seem to play a much bigger part in the hearts of abingdonians.
So my plea is let’s big up the river, and make more of an effort to link our twin centres of the Market square and the river bank.
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