Residents and local people united to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Oakwood House in Faringdon. The scheme is owned by the Vale Housing Association and provides quality housing at affordable prices for around thirty older people in Faringdon.
A celebratory lunch was held on Friday 22nd November, exactly twenty years to the day since a party was held to welcome tenants to their new homes. Tenants, staff, including the Association’s Chief Executive Mike Roberts, and local people involved with the scheme attended and took the opportunity of looking around some of the accommodation on offer.
One of the guests at the party was Mrs Cox, who has been at the scheme since it opened in 1982. Mrs Cox remembers: I’ve got some wonderful memories over the years and of the different parties and get-togethers that have gone on, and of the people who have been here. Of course there have been some huge changes in Faringdon over that time, with all the new houses, the new doctor’s surgery and now the community bus that goes around town. There’s now double-glazing all over Oakwood House, which makes it warmer, and it’s been completely redecorated.
There’s been a lot to celebrate in Faringdon – on Saturday the Faringdon Community Mini-bus commemorated having been up and running for a year. Several of the scheme managers who work at Oakwood are also members of the mini-bus committee, which provides a valuable resource for people in the town. Val Pugh, one of the scheme managers, commented, Faringdon is not one of the best places for public transport and this new service has made it much easier for many people to do everyday activities like visiting the doctor’s or doing shopping
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The bus makes regular journeys around the town every weekday morning and goes to villages nearby Faringdon twice a week. On alternate Thursday afternoons it makes journeys out to local places of interest, while at other times it is available for hire by members of the community.
Val Pugh
Oakwood House,
Meadowbank,
Faringdon,
Oxon,
SN7 8DS
Office Tel: 01367 240978
Mobile No: 07803 196085
Please note: Mrs Cox of Oakwood House does not want to be contacted directly by journalists