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Oxted is the administrative headquarters of Tandridge District, and the Council Offices are to be found in Station Road East. The town is close to the Kent border, near the North Downs, with a population of around 11,000. Agriculture and the tanning industry dominated Old Oxted in medieval times, and it is now a Conservation Area bypassed by the A25. The narrow High Street is particularly notable for a selection of excellent pubs.

The opening of the train station in the late Nineteenth Century led to the growth of a new town. The main settlement is on the lower slopes of the Downs, and many of the buildings in the town centre are attractively built in the Tudor style. Oxted’s principal shopping streets, bisected by the railway line, still boast numerous independently owned stores which pride themselves on offering old fashioned and friendly service.

The origins of St Mary’s Church date back to at least as early as the Norman Conquest. The Barn Theatre, on Bluehouse Lane, is a community theatre that plays host to both the Oxted Operatic Society and The Oxted Players. Both have been running for over fifty years.

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