The Parish contains 2 conservation areas, Upper Wanborough and Lower Wanborough, and includes the northern boundary of the Wessex Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (ANOB).

It is extensively laid to fields for grazing and agricultural use, which have a network of streams, springs and woodland running through them. There are many public green spaces within Wanborough Parish and each of them offer something unique.

With an extensive network of footpaths, the parish is a great location to explore and find an abundance of nature. With this in mind we have created a nature database to help identify what you can see as you explore.

Public Green Spaces

1. Hooper's Field - home to the sports pavilion this place is regularly used for outdoor Bowls, Cricket, Tennis and football. The annual fun run starts and finishes here.
2. The Lower Recreation Field - An open green space with a football pitch and under 12's play equipment. The annual May Day Fair is held here.
3. Badgers Field - An open wildflower meadow used by walkers with great views to the north east.
4. Rodway Open Space - home to 3 sculptures, this grassy slopped field is a popular location for sledging in winter and has great views to the north.
5. Mayfield Green - a small grassy area planted with mature trees which displays spring flowers
6. Church Meadow - An open green space with great views to the south west, it is the location for the annual Produce Show and is available for residents to use for private functions. It contains a football pitch and under 12's play equipment.
7. The Beanlands Field - on open grassy area adjacent to the Primary school.
8. Warneage Wood - owned by The Woodland Trust, who make this area available for public enjoyment. Follow the link to find out more.
9. The Hollow Protected Verge - protected for wild flowers and home to many wild birds, follow the link to find out more, has a great panoramic view which includes The Ridgeway and across the valley to the east, north and west.

Footpaths

A considerable amount of work has been done by various members of the Parish Council Footpaths and Maintenance Committee, to record, maintain and keep open the network of footpaths available to us.

The Footpath Map shows a complete record of where these paths are. Parish walks are regularly organised throughout the year by formal and informal groups. However, anyone can use the footpath map to plan walks and enjoy the countryside around the parish.

Use our nature databases to help you identify anything of interest you see as you wander.

Roads and Trails

Several of the roads passing through the village have ancient names reflecting how long they have been in existence. The more famous ones include:

• The Ridgeway National Trail; is a prehistoric trail that passes through the south of the parish from east to west. It drops down from the chalk ridge to join the main road at Foxhill and cross the M4 before it raises back up to ridge and Liddington Castle. The modern trail starts at Ivinghoe Beacon and runs 87 miles to Avebury. The original trail is thought to have started on the east coast and run over 200 miles to the west coast, it is closely linked to Ickneald Way
• Icknield Way; is a prehistoric trail that closely follows the route of The Ridgeway National Trail. It is thought to have run the length of the original Ridgeway but parallel to it by following the spring line villages. The road passes east to west mid-way through the parish from Bishopstone crossing Ermin Street at The Black Horse Crossroads, then on to Upper Wanborough at the New Calley Arms junction, where Church Road meets Ham Road, before it continues on to Liddington.
• Ermin Street; is an ancient Roman Road that runs the length of the Parish north to south east. It is locally named Wanborough Road, High Street, Callas Hill and then Baydon Road. The original road ran between Cheltenham, Gloucester and Speen near Basingstoke. Ermin street joined Wick Lane in the north of the parish at a small Roman town called Durocornovium which is now an ancient scheduled monument located at Lotmead.
• Wick Lane; is an ancient Roman Road which passes north to east along the eastern boundary of the parish and is now the A419. The road originally linked Durocornovium, an ancient scheduled monument at Lotmead, to Mildenhall near Marlborough.

All these roads are well known and can be researched further. However, we have some other less well-known roads and lanes with interesting names too. There are historical records of these road names and locations, some are shown on old maps, but they are now either no longer in regular use or are used and have been renamed. The ancient names are at risk of being forgotten, they include;

• Sugar Way; located in the south of the parish at Sugar Hill, is now a footpath
• Thieves Way; located south of the parish
• Rogues Road; a Roman Road passing from Horpit to Liddington
• The Hollow; links The Ridgeway to Ham Road