THE number of people out of work and claiming benefits in Oxfordshire has fallen for the fifth month in a row. Figures for August show it fell to 6,889 or 1.6 of the working age population – down 93 on the previous month and the lowest since January
YOUNG people got out their cameras to shoot Oxford from interesting angles for a photography competition run by Oxford Preservation Trust. The trust is staging the competition for 16- to 25-year-olds as part of the Oxford Open Doors event last
PARKING fees at five city parks have not deterred visitors and will actually make more cash than expected. A year after the fees were introduced, Oxford City Council is expecting £86,842 in the 12 months to April, £16,411 more than expected.
A NEW post has been created at an Oxford University college aimed at encouraging bright state school students to apply to top universities. Dr Peter Claus will be access fellow for Pembroke College – thought to be the first such Oxbridge post.
BUSY mum-of-two Alison Pindar wrote her first novel by working on the story every night once her children were in bed. Now Stop the Clock has a mainstream publisher, Transworld, and Mrs Pindar, who has written under her maiden name Alison Mercer
Nature enthusiasts have been invited to save the world – one bug at a time at Farmoor Reservoir . Families have been invited to get directly involved in a ‘BioBlitz’ wildlife audit on Sunday September 16. Thames Water will host events such
OXFORD researchers have been given a £4m boost to find a way to prevent stroke and dementia. The money, donated by the Wolfson Foundation, which gives money to research projects, will be used to create a new specialist centre at Oxford’s John Radcliffe
WHAT I AM CALLED: Ian Nolan. MY AGE IN YEARS: A man never tells. We’ll settle at a showbiz 28… l WHAT I DO: I’m the director of Ian Nolan Events – an events and project management company. We manage anything from music festivals to press shows
“Let them just settle in, give them a minute and they’ll all be getting out Shades of Grey on their Kindles”, the conversation ran between two camp air stewards directly behind me on our flight back from Italy. “Why, they don’t just look at porn
COUNCILLOR Craig Simmons includes an on-pavement cycle route and a towpath among his hazards for cyclists (report, September 5). These will also be among hazards for pedestrians because of their use by cyclists. It seems that footways are now
WE CALL our children kids. Can we now call the adults goats? Please let us use the English language in all its glory to teach our children how to speak. Let us rid ourselves of these American slang words and speak proper like what I do. Can I say
Seeing young teens going to school or to catch a school bus, many are walking very bent forward due to the large backpacks they have strapped to their bodies. Surely this is not good for their immature growing bone structure? It may well cause
IT’S A pity that while he was accusing me of “bashing Uncle Sam” (View Points, September 6) Mr Leavis couldn’t engage in debate regarding Pinochet, for example. If making comment about a government that continually uses and condones torture, murder
In the past decade, Oxford’s population has risen by 12 per cent to more than 150,000. There are plans to build more than 8,000 new homes in the next 15 years, increasing the population to beyond 170,000. Development is destined for greenfield
I WHOLEHEARTEDLY endorse Bea Bradley’s defence of the sanctity of life (View Points, August 28). Conversely, the 20th century’s horrific wars and recently the monstrous invasion of Iraq perpetrated by Bush and Blair showed nothing but contempt for
ST Edward’s plan for a 1,000-seater concert hall (Oxford Mail, September 7) is tremendous news and should be supported and applauded by all Oxonians. As for parking, Pear Tree park-and-ride could be used by those coming to the hall from outside
OH HOW right Mr Collins is, talking about the disappearing correct use of the English language. It is no wonder exam results are confusing (Oxford Mail, September 7). One of my college teachers had an extremely effective way of correcting either
The true extent of the cover-up of official failures at Hillsborough was revealed for the first time today. In its report the Hillsborough Independent Panel said: "It is evident from analysis of the various investigations that from the outset South
Police and emergency services made "strenuous attempts" to deflect the blame for the Hillsborough disaster onto innocent fans, newly published documents about the tragedy revealed today. The disclosures were made by the Hillsborough Independent
CHRISTMAS has come early for a Bicester charity shop as they have a bumper crop of cards to sell. Adderbury-based Katharine House Hospice usually sells special cards with an image Banbury on the front, but this year Bicester, Brackley, Chipping
FORMER assistant printer to Oxford University Richard Russell joined 60 guests at the opening of the revamped OUP museum. The attraction at the Walton Street street building brings in about 3,000 people a year. But staff wanted more visitors
OPPONENTS have called for planning bosses to end confusion over a “failed” policy they say has left the Vale at the mercy of developers. Liberal Democrats have called a showdown meeting with Tory-run Vale of White Horse District Council tomorrow
AN ARMY major from Bermuda, who volunteered at the Olympics, was killed in a car crash on the A34 by Abingdon. Major Christian Wheddon, of the Bermuda Regiment, had trained at the defence academy in Shrivenham as part of a four-month visit to England
A 20-year-old woman was raped in a Headington park last night. The victim told police she was sexually assaulted by two men in Bury Knowle Park at around 11pm. A 28-year-old man from Oxford and a 26-year-old man from Swindon have both been
BY day Tim Crysell is armed with a squeegee mop to clean windows at offices and schools around Oxfordshire. But by night he downs the tools of his trade to put on a £3,000 jumpsuit and pick up a microphone for his other life as an Elvis impersonator
Luke Ingram turned on a five-star display as Wootton & Dry Sandford demolished hosts Childrey United 8-1 in their North Berks League Division 1 clash. In addition to Ingram’s nap hand, Tom Cooke (2) and Chris Potter scored for Wootton, with
A MAN caught with a handgun has been spared prison due to the “tardy” and “highly unsatisfactory” actions of the police. Thomas Parry was 17 when the weapon was found at his Bicester home in February 2010, but was not charged until July this year
Cay Verde, trained by Mick Channon at West Ilsley, ran out an easy winner of the Group 3 Prix d’Arenberg at Chantilly yesterday. Martin Harley’s mount slammed Baileys Jubilee by four and a half lengths.
Garsington Sports Club A were crowned Greene King Oxford & District League Section 1 champions with a 3-0 win at home to title rivals Red Lion B Kidlington in one of the closest finishes to the season, writes ANDY BEAL. With Cricketers B
Fire crews were called to a travellers site after a caravan was destroyed in what is believed to be an arson attack. Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue crews were called just before 9.30pm on Monday to Redbridge Hollow, off the old Abingdon Road near
THIS was the scene after a member of the public “rugby-tackled” a suspected robber and sat on him until police arrived. Several men struck at Michael Jones Jewellers, in Banbury’s High Street, yesterday at 10.40am and stole expensive watches.
WITNEY will host a new rock festival in The Leys next year to showcase local musicians and bands. Witney Town Council, which owns the site, gave its backing at a leisure and recreation committee meeting on Monday night. It hopes the event,
TWO friends killed in a car crash near Didcot had been drinking and taking cocaine in the hours before their deaths. Driver Rhys Roberts, 21, was more than one and a half times the drink-drive limit when the Peugeot 306 he had taken from a friend
OXFORDSHIRE could soon have its first three-form entry primary school. Consultations have begun on proposals to permanently change the intake at Windmill Primary School, Headington, from 60 to 90. Last year the school took 90 children in reception
Oxford ended the season on a high note by capturing a glittering cup double on Oxfordshire’s Twenty20 finals day at Aston Rowant. Having been relegated from Serious Cricket Home Counties Premier League Division 1 the previous day, their successes
Karl Tucker scored a late winner as Broughton & North Newington secured a 2-1 success at Northway in Division 1 of the Oxfordshire Senior League. The home side took the lead when Anthony Simpsson headed home, only for Aaron Field to level,
PUPILS, parents and teachers at Windmill Primary School are facing the prospect of a huge expansion. But it is a scenario that many more schools are, and will be, facing as the pressure on places continues to mount. Five hundred additional
HUNDREDS of motorcyclists are expected to gather at Oxfordshire’s Cherwell Valley Services to support the Armed Services. The M40 service station, at Ardley, near Bicester, is one of eight starting places for the fifth annual Ride to the Wall motorcycle
CAMERAS will be rolling at Heyford Park today when scenes from a new movie are shot. Actors will be dressed in military gear, carrying fake guns or in military vehicles, for scenes shot by Fast Production from noon until 10pm, at the former US
PLANS to allow liquid waste to be dealt with at the county’s first incinerator at Ardley, near Bicester, have been approved. Waste firm Viridor applied to Oxfordshire County Council to overturn a restriction agreed in 2010. Bucknell villagers opposed
AN OXFORD headteacher has defended his decision to have cameras in school toilet blocks. St Gregory the Great School, in Cricket Road, was one of four county schools which told campaign group Big Brother Watch it had cameras in changing rooms or
A MAN who died after a crash on the A40 on Thursday has been named as Herve Bukuru Bakundukize. An inquest was opened into the 29-year-old’s death yesterday. The collision on the A40 Eastbound sliproad near the Ducklington roundabout involved
HOMES are not being built because of “stifling” council policies on affordable housing, an inquiry heard yesterday. Developers urged an independent inspector to cut Oxford City Council ’s demand for affordable housing in new developments. Currently
QUESTIONS over Jim Rosenthal’s sudden resignation from Oxford United ’s board remain unanswered – with the club continuing their silence on the story. The popular television sports presenter stunned the U’s on Monday by quitting as a non-executive
CRAIG Harrington's story should be read by every aspiring footballer in the county. A career in football, like any professional sport, is fraught with pitfalls and uncertainty. But there are fantastic opportunities in football if you are talented
OXFORD University has been ranked fifth in the world in a new league table. The annual QS World University Rankings place the institution behind the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Harvard, and University College London. Oxford
WHILE most of us are only Californian Dreamin’, former Carterton boy Craig Harrington is actually living it. The 29-year-old has followed in the footsteps of football star David Beckham by making his mark stateside at LA Galaxy. Mr Harrington
THE Blenheim Palace Literary Festival at Woodstock will get under way today. Husband and wife Ross and Melanie King will be among the first speakers to be welcomed to the festival by deputy chairman Jill Dunsmore. Mrs King is the author of
THE best man of a triple amputee soldier has been arrested on suspicion of stealing tens of thousands of pounds from him. Former Bicester soldier Alex Stringer’s best man Connor Aldous was arrested over £35,000 allegedly missing from Mr Stringer
MAX Palmer bagged four goals as Dorchester United responded from an opening day drubbing to win 8-5 against Kidlington Royals in the Critchleys UTV League Premier Division, writes TIM SIRET. Playing the entire game with ten men, United shrugged
THE £300m Diamond Light Source at Harwell is best known for pioneering scientific breakthroughs. But the UK’s national synchrotron has now resulted in a collection of short stories. The facility inspired a group of authors to create a series
HEADTEACHERS should be able to decide whether or not to authorise term-time holidays, an Oxfordshire education boss has said. Melinda Tilley, Oxfordshire County Council education cabinet member, said: “It totally depends on what they’re doing with
WHEN musical director Nigel Hall suffered a heart attack he was determined it would not stop him leading his brass band to the biggest contest in its history. And just like in the hit movie Brassed Off, where colliery band leader Danny, played
SERGEANT Lee Davidson was looking forward to returning home to England for the birth of his third child – a daughter. But tomorrow his body will be flown back into RAF Brize Norton , bringing the total number of UK dead in Afghanistan to 427.
