THE home town of the Mini will be the theme of Mini UK's stand at the British International Motorshow next week.

Mini UK, a subsidiary of German company BMW, has built a quadrangle, reminiscent of those in many Oxford University colleges, in which to show off its entire range.

For the first time in Britain, the most expensive and fastest Mini will go on display to the British public at ExCeL in London's Docklands from Wednesday until August 3.

Described by Mini UK as a race car for the road, it can reach 62 mph in just 6.5 seconds The £20,995 car, the Mini John Cooper Works, was developed by the Cooper Car Company of East Preston but is produced at Oxford's Cowley plant.

It will go on sale in UK from Tuesday, although first deliveries of the Clubman edition will not takle place until early next year.

Alongside the fastest Mini will be the greenest: the Mini Cooper D, which the company says can achieve 72.4 mpg with an ultra-low-carbon emission figure of 104gm per kilometre. Mini UK has named its stand at the show the Miniversity. Mini owners can visit an area called The Union to meet fellow owners. Prospective buyers can walk through the Faculty of Engineering to discuss the many ways of personalising a Mini.

Andy Hearn, of Mini UK, said: "Miniversity is a great concept as our stand will not only present Mini's personality, but also educate visitors to Mini's green credentials."

The Cooper Car Company started producing a range of tuning kits and accessories soon after the new Mini was launched in Oxford in 2001. The new Mini John Cooper S has extras such as 17-inch alloy wheels and aerodynamic styling.

Visitors to the show are also being invited to attend the Institute of Minimalism, where new technologies to cut back on fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions are displayed.

Minimalism technologies, which are the same as those used in the EfficientDynamics systems of Mini owner BMW, include brake energy regeneration and auto start-stop.