A man called James Bedborough saw the potential which the railway brought to Slough. A semi-rural area of Buckinghamshire with easy transport links to London was ideal for the development of fashionable housing, and thus began Upton Park (now known as Herschel Park). The development consisted of large, prestigious houses surrounded by a park. By 1851 there were 25 houses and 2 lodges, together with pleasure grounds which contained curving paths, two small lakes (one with an island), a bridge and a variety of trees. The development proved attractive to the gentry and professional classes.

At the other end of the social spectrum was the Eton Union Workhouse, which was opened in 1836 in the building that is now Upton Hospital. Anyone who could not work and didn't have enough money to live on would be sent to the workhouse, where they would be expected to work for their keep. Typical tasks included breaking rocks, grinding corn, cooking and cleaning.

As the town expanded, it also had to change to cope with the increase in population. Several new churches were built in the Victorian period. The first of these was St Mary's in Church Street, which was completed in 1837, the same year Victoria ascended to the throne. St Ethelbert's Roman Catholic Chapel in Herschel Street was built in 1885, due to the efforts of Father Clemente. This is the same year that St Paul's was built on the Stoke Road. Other churches built during this period were St Martins on the Bath Road, a Baptist Chapel in Windsor Road built in 1894, a Wesleyan Chapel built in 1847, and a Congregationalist Church in 1852.

Several private schools existed in Slough prior to 1837, such as the Roman Catholic School at Baylis House (which opened in 1830), but as the town expanded more schools opened. These included the Congregational Church School in 1854, which used a room in the new church. A Roman Catholic School was built next to St Ethelbert's Chapel in 1886, and St Michael's School was opened in Aldin House in 1869 by Rev. John William Hawtrey, who had formerly been an Assistant Master at Eton - the school is still there as St Bernards. The Halidon House School for Girls first opened its' doors in 1865.