WEST Oxfordshire District Council has become the latest Oxfordshire authority to agree to pay its staff the “living wage”. Oxford City Council implemented the higher wage last year and Oxfordshire County Council is considering introducing the scheme
GLAMOROUS mum-of-two Heidi Kelloway will be returning for a celebrity Christmas special of primetime Saturday night dating game show Take Me Out. The 40-year-old, from Langford Village in Bicester, appeared in 12 episodes of Take Me Out last year
PLANS to re-open an iconic city pub and former Chinese restaurant as a bar have sparked concerns about anti-social behaviour. Spice Island Leisure Limited, which owns Raoul’s cocktail bar and The Victoria in Jericho has applied to Oxford City Council
MEET Ice Warrior, Stiggy and Snowball – they could soon be melting ice in your street. No, not the children, but the road gritters they are sitting in. Dion Stopps, Grace Payne and Libby Spindlow from Drayton Primary School were invited to
OXFORD MAIL BOYS LEAGUE Under 9 Red League: Didcot Tn Yth 11, Bure Park Juniors 0. White League: Cumnor Minors 1, Crowmarsh Yth 0; Harwell & Hendred 2, Kennington Ath 1; Oxford City Whites 0, Summertown Stars Giants 2; St Edmunds 3, Abingdon
REECE Hayes scored two extra-time goals as Cumnor Minors Blues beat Kennington Green 4-1 in the first round of the Oxford Mail Boys League Under 11 League Cup. Cumnor took the lead with a strike from Gregor Horn, but Kennington equalised late in
SCOUTS face camping in borrowed gear this week after burglars broke into their hut and stole tents and equipment, writes LUCY GOLDING. Five windows were smashed at Minster Lovell Scout hut in West Oxfordshire by thieves who stole four inflatable
Free in Tuesday's Oxford Mail is a free supplement covering the Nativities of more than 80 schools. Those we have covered are: Crowmarsh Gifford CofE School Tower Hill Primary School RAF Benson Community Primary School Woodstock
OXFORD United have been forced to postpone tonight's FA Cup replay after a pitch inspection this lunchtime. The pitch was covered last night, but with temperatures forcecast to fall below freezing before the scheduled kick-off it was unlikely the
COUNCILLORS have been urged to support a £300,000 investment in ultrafast broadband in Oxford. The city council is working on a bid to the Government’s super-connected cities fund. Oxford was one of the 27 small cities invited to bid for a share
A GROUP for deaf people has found a way of making sure its members can enjoy Christmas carols this year. A choir from the Oxford Deaf and Hard of Hearing Centre will take to the streets to perform a host of timeless festive favourites using sign
MONEY has been put up for a zebra crossing on a “nightmare” road, three years after six Abingdon headteachers called for it. County councillors Mike and Marilyn Badcock have agreed to spend £25,000 on the crossing for the top of Spring Road at
A goal from birthday boy Frankie Haines saw Saxton Rovers stay top of Division 1 with a 3-2 win at East Hendred. Simon Pritchard and Lydon Szabo got their others, Jason Maynard and Mike Farrelly replying. Didcot Casuals kept up the pressure
THE principal of an Oxford college has hit back after being accused of “destroying its history”. Protesters accusing Ruskin College of destroying an historic archive presented college governors with a petition signed by 7,500 people, along with
FC Nomads’ run came to an end in a 2-1 third-round loss at Wroxton Heath. Chris Lawrence scored for Witney & District FA side Nomads. Bampton Town lost 2-0 at home to St Clements.
THE number of people unemployed and claiming Jobseekers’ Allowance in Oxfordshire fell last month. Latest figures from the Office of National Statistics show there were 6,447 claimants in November, a fall of 79 people or 1.5 per cent. It is
Two men from Oxfordshire have been remanded in custody charged with a number of offences including a robbery at a garage near Didcot. Alexander Clarke, 32, of The Street, Ipsden, near Wallingford, and Kieran McKenna, 34, of St George’s Green, Wallingford
ED VAIZEY serenaded pupils at King Alfred’s new music classroom with the Oasis hit Wonderwall – on a ukelele. The Wantage and Didcot MP, who was opening a new £1 million classroom block, picked the song after recently meeting Liam Gallagher. The
Pioneering trainer Helen Johnson Houghton’s remarkable life is to be celebrated by a memorial service at St Michael’s Church, Blewbury, near Didcot, next Wednesday (2.30pm). Johnson Houghton, who lived in a bungalow close to the Woodway stables
GILES SPORTS WITNEY YOUTH LEAGUE OLIVER Crossley bagged a four-timer as Bampton Town won 4-0 at Bicester Town Colts Pumas in the Under 12 B League. OTHER SCORERS Under 9 Knockout Cup: Hook Norton 2 (T Taylor 2), Tower Hill Stripes 0; Tower
CLARENDON CUP KENNINGTON United Res knocked out holders Freeland Res with a 2-1 away victory. Jamie Luland and Andy Dyer netted for Kennington, while Rob Belcher equalised for the hosts.
ON PURE numbers, some observers might think Christianity has not done too badly overall with a drop of about 8,000 people between the 2001 and 2011 census. As we report today, in 2001 about 81,000 people said they were Christians, with this dropping
Sutton Revolution and Standlake Garage, who had failed to record a point between them in Critchleys Upper Thames Valley League Division 1 this season, finally got off the mark by sharing a 4-4 draw. Tim Senior fired a treble for Garage, with Josh
As some of you may know I work not only as columnist, but also as a disability advocate and accessibility adviser for the University of Oxford. One of the great things about my job(s) is the variety of people I get to meet. Recently I have
Matt Cole and Craig Butler were among the goalscorers for Lambourn Sports Res as they saw off fellow North Berks League Division 2 outfit Steventon 3-2 in their twice postponed Berks & Bucks Junior Cup third-round encounter. Phil Thomas-Richards
Stefan Reed fired a treble as Division 3’s Carterton Rangers pulled off a shock 5-4 win against Premier Division Ducklington in the Witney & District FA's Fred Ford Cup quarter-finals. Craig Williams also notched a double, with Ben Hutter (
OXFORDSHIRE UNDER 14 GIRLS CUP THREE players scored hat-tricks as Oxford City began the defence of their trophy with an 18-0 quarter-final defeat of visiting Carterton. April Bedford led the way with six goals, Shelley Knight and Lauren Page
OXFORDSHIRE INTERMEDIATE CUP EYNSHAM reached the quarter-finals with a 2-0 home victory over Chinnor Res. Tom McCudden put Eynsham ahead after one minute as his side went on to dominate the early stages. Substitute Andy Glossop sealed the
OXFORD is the agnostic capital of the UK and one third of the city has no religion at all. Census figures yesterday revealed Oxford has the highest percentage of non-believers per population in the country. The city, which has a population
OXFORD: Teacher Layla Moran has been selected by the Lib Dems to stand for the parliamentary seat of Oxford West and Abingdon at the next election. She was selected on Monday.
OXON: A charity which provides audio books to the partially sighted will be one of 60 recipients of The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Award. Calibre Audio Library helps 400 people in Oxfordshire who are signed up to receive MP3 books of their choice.
SCHOOLS FOOTBALL OXFORD & Cherwell Valley College’s terrific run in the ESFA Under 18 Colleges Trophy came to an end with a 3-2 defeat at Hopwood Hall College (Rochdale) in the quarter-final. Luke Heron opened the scoring for the hosts,
OXFORD: In Scales of Justice on Monday it was reported Kieron Flynn, 27, of Banbury Road, Oxford, had admitted tests done at St Aldate’s Police Station on April 10 found he had cocaine and heroin in his system. We would like to clarify the charge
DRIVING test bosses have said they are committed to keeping a centre in the Banbury area after uncertainty over the lease of the town’s site. The Driving Standards Agency has refused to confirm or deny whether it will shut the West Bar Street facility
GROVE schoolgirl Millie Preece’s birthday is a dozen times more special this year – as she celebrates turning 12 on 12.12.12. And today’s special date will also be memorable for couples getting hitched across the county, with 12, (yes 12), couples
AN idea to give jobless 18 to 24-year-olds free public transport was thrown out by councillors yesterday. In a motion tabled at yesterday’s full county council meeting, Lib Dem leader Zoe Patrick asked the chief executive and cabinet to look at
OXFORDSHIRE is to get £4.7m for free early-years education for the most disadvantaged two-year-olds. From September 2013, the poorest 20 per cent of two-year-olds, estimated to be 1,148 children, will receive 15 hours a week free early- years education
Saxton Pirates needed extra time to overcome Thatcham Redsox 7-5 at home in a Berks & Bucks FA Sunday Junior Cup third-round thriller. They trailed 5-3 before fighting back to force extra time with a late equaliser from Rob Catell. Extra
Yogi Breisner, the Oxfordshire-based British eventing national coach, is set to play a key role in Kauto Star’s proposed new career in the world of dressage. Breisner, who lives at Thame, will help European bronze medal eventing rider Laura Collett
So, this is the fourth major flood to hit Oxford in a decade. While the flood defences put in place in the past few years have had a noticeable impact, at least in West Oxford, we should not ignore the main reason why we have this problem, namely
THE statement that must be vying to be judged ‘The Joke of the Year’ was the one made by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, during a recent visit to Northern Ireland, when she said: “Violence is not an acceptable means of settling differences.”
I WASN'T aware that there were degrees on offer for those completing apprenticeships at the present time but it’s great to know there are and that Adrian had obtained one at the Headington Technical College (ViewPoints, December 10). For all that
NORTHWAY Community Association (NCA) runs the community centre under licence from the city council. It desperately needs new blood and ideas to inject life into the heart of Northway. There are some important activities (e.g. weekly lunch club
Racing around the craft shop at the weekend, asking for dinosaur scales, green felt, and instructions on how to make papier mache, our enthusiasm was beginning to wane. The past evening had been spent drawing diagrams and working out our model
Oxford Sports & Social Club brushed hosts Barton United aside with a 6-0 demolition job in the Oxfordshire FA Sam Waters Sunday Cup third round, writes TIM SIRET. Jonny McMahon smashed home a 25-yard free-kick for the opener. Aaron Armstrong
ABOUT 24,000 cars per day entering central Oxford cause congestion; a few hundred buses per day prevent gridlock. Almost half of all travel in or out of central Oxford is by bus. Passenger increases in recent years have required bigger buses on
OXFORD MAIL GIRLS LEAGUE MALI Minchin and Catherine Howse enjoyed a field day as Bloxham won 12-0 at Marston Saints in the Under 15 Division. Minchin scored five golas and Howse four, while Beth England, Chloe Stallwood and Jade Brooker also
YOU report (Waterstock Golf Club rubble saga ends as brothers are jailed after appeal, December 8), only on the most recent chapter in this saga – not, unfortunately, its end. While Ron and Mick are locked up, no progress can be made on resolving
OXFORDSHIRE SENIOR LEAGUE SEAN Hurcombe’s four-timer fired Premier Division leaders OUP to a 6-2 home demolition of Adderbury Park. Matty Spooner and Neil Lockhart also netted, while Dave Seeney and James Truitt replied. Rob Andrew’s equaliser
ADAM Chapman is desperate to help Oxford United get through in the FA Cup tonight to set up what would be a tantalising third round tie for the midfielder. The winners of the second round replay with Accrington Stanley will host Sheffield United
The Government has announced that it will be making state-funded schools exempt from its carbon tax scheme from 2014. Last month Oxfordshire County Council said it would pass on the cost of the Carbon Reduction Commitment energy efficiency scheme
FROST covers were used to protect the Kassam Stadium pitch last night as Oxford United did what they could to get tonight’s FA Cup replay on. Temperatures were forecast to plunge as low as minus -4C and are not expected to rise much above freezing
FAMILY doctors in Oxfordshire are on course to take over controlling local health services after they passed a key test. From April 1 next year Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (OCCG), which is made up of GPs and other clinicians, is set
TWO years ago little Rhys Smith was diagnosed with leukaemia on Christmas Eve and was too poorly to even open his presents. But now the three-year-old can’t wait for his first proper Christmas at home. And yesterday his Christmas was made even
TWO crashes caused road closures and long delays during rush hour yesterday as freezing fog hit the county. A pick-up-truck and a lorry collided on Lower Road, on the Bladon side of Long Hanborough, at about 3.47pm leading to the road being closed
People in Headington can quiz council officers about planned changes to London Road tonight. Proposals for the eastern end of the road, between Bury Knowle Park and the Green Road roundabout, are being discussed at a meeting at Headington Community
AN APPEAL was launched yesterday to put names to eight dead bodies police have been unable to identify for up to 42 years. Thames Valley Police, UK Missing Persons Bureau, and Crimestoppers, launched Operation Nightingale at the force’s headquarters
KYNAN Isaac hit a hat-trick as Banbury United defeated Nuneaton Town 3-0 in the Birmingham Senior Cup second round last night. Isaac fired Banbury ahead on 27 minutes and doubled the lead three minutes before half-time. He completed his treble
THE death of Ian Simpson was shocking in its violence and many people may think: There, but for the grace of God... Mr Simpson’s family have borne his loss with great dignity and his death was nothing more than a tragic accident. But if anything
THE FAMILY of a man killed in an oil drum explosion have called for more awareness over the dangers of working with old barrels. Horspath villager Ian Simpson died when he cut into a 45-gallon drum with an angle grinder in July. He was making
BADVENT suspect number 12 is an Oxford woman suspected of making-off with more than £580 worth of cosmetics. Hannah Wooloff is wanted by police in connection with two shoplifting offences in the Boots store in Headington. Her face has been
A PARKING free-for-all in Witney has prompted calls for wardens’ shifts to be extended into the evening. West Oxfordshire District Council’s community wardens work between 8am and 6pm, leading to parking on double yellow lines out-of-hours.
This year’s Oxford Mail senior citizen film festival got off to a flying start yesterday when its screening of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel played to a sell-out audience. Entertainments editor Jeremy Smith said: “What a great start. It was a
