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Spotlight on Langley

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

Spotlight on Langley- our estate agents view. Langley lies east of Slough just off J5 of the M4. Its excellent transport facilities include mainline train services half-hourly to London Paddington (25 minutes) and to Slough, Reading, Oxford, Bristol and the West Country. Regular bus routes connect with Slough and Heathrow Airport and there is easy access to the motorway network - the M25, M40 and M3. Proximity to the new Crossrail route will also give direct access to The City with a resulting impact on property prices.

Langley’s name comes from two early English words: lang (long) and leah (wood or clearing). Langley was formed from several clearings including George Green and Middle Green which became residential areas, later merging into one village centred on the Grade I listed parish church in St Mary's Road which dates from 1150. World War I war artist Paul Nash (1889–1946) is buried in the churchyard there.

In 1938 The Hawker Aircraft Company built a major factory at Langley and manufactured over 8,000 military aircraft there during World War II; the Hawker Tornado (1940), Typhoon (1940), Tempest (1942), Fury (1944) and Sea Fury (1945) all made their first flights from Langley. The factory closed in 1958 and little of the factory or airfield remains today although street-names such as Spitfire Close and Hurricane Way serve as a reminder of Langley’s aviation history.

A range of excellent schools attract families to the area with primary schools such as Castleview, Parlaunt Park, Marish and the Holy Family Catholic Primary School and secondary education provided by the Outstanding (OFSTED) Langley Grammar, Upton Court Grammar, St Bernard’s Catholic Grammar and Langley Academy. East Berkshire College offers Further Education in the centre of Langley.

Local shops cater for most daily essentials and more extensive shopping centres can be found in nearby Slough, Windsor and Uxbridge. Popular pubs and restaurants in Langley and the nearby village of Colnbrook include The Montagu Arms, The Red Lion and The Ostrich - a historic coaching inn, and there’s an array of restaurants at Windsor and Eton, also within easy reach.

Langley has a variety of sport and leisure facilities to offer with a leisure complex, newly refurbished gym and pool in Parlaunt Road and a choice of golf courses, including Farnham Park, Richings Park and Iver, with Wexham Park Golf Centre also nearby. A multi-purpose sports centre is open to the local community in the evenings and at weekends, at East Berkshire College. It offers a fully equipped gym, sports hall, dance studio, changing rooms and an outdoor games area. The sports hall has options for football, basketball, netball and badminton.

Sailing, windsurfing and watersports are all available locally at Queen Mary Reservoir and there are waterside walks along the Grand Union Canal. Award winning Langley Park and Black Park offer acres of scenic open space for walking and outdoor pursuits. Langley Park is an 18th-century landscape park with woodland spanning 52 hectares open to the public. There are plenty of buggy and wheelchair friendly paths and cycling is permitted, except in the Temple Gardens and Arboretum.

An Oscar winning location, Pinewood Studios is one of the world's leading destinations for the makers of film, television, commercials and video games. Nearby Black Park has been the setting for numerous productions including Harry Potter, James Bond and Carry On films and the Hammer Horror films from the late 1950s to the 1970s. A walk around the lake or through the woods in Black Park often results in the sighting of film crews in action, working on the next blockbuster.

A full range of property is available in Langley from contemporary studio apartments to detached period family homes. The centre of Langley has a wealth of Victorian properties retaining much architectural character. Throughout each decade since the 1930s housing stock has continued to develop creating a thriving cosmopolitan community. To see all the properties that The Frost Partnership has for sale or to let in the Langley area, please contact our Langley office or visit frostweb.co.uk.