CAN you imagine a world where you can store time in a bank? That’s the concept behind the Cowley Time Bank, which has reached full membership one year on from its launch. The free scheme allows people to earn ‘time credits’ by helping out in
Alice Powell column My season is coming to a climax. It is the penultimate race of the F3 Cup season this weekend at Donington Park. I am leading the championship by a narrow margin of ten points. You could say the pressure is on, which
THE daughter of former deputy prime minister Michael Heseltine, has raised £75,000 for the hospital that saved her husband’s life. Alexandra Williams, 58, pledged to raise £50,000 for Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital after Nick Williams was treated
A CELEBRATORY concert will mark the 20th anniversary of a group of singers based at an Oxford sports centre. The OXSRAD singers are putting on a special show tonight to honour their founding member, Olga Nicholls, who is in hospital this month
A GROUP of friends raising cash for breast cancer research in memory of mum-of one Bethan Reading saddled up for 24 hours yesterday. Called Bethan’s Pink Ladies, Dr Reading’s sister Anna Reading, Charlotte Wilson, Jude Barber, Liz Wilson, Lyndsey
A DEPLETED Oxford United dug deep to extend their superb away record with victory at Hartlepool United. A classy finish from Ryan Williams put the under-strength visitors in front early on, but Luke James levelled just after half-time. The
London Welsh 40, Plymouth Albion 9 LONDON Welsh opened their home account in the Greene King IPA Championship with a bonus-point victory over Plymouth Albion today. Welsh stayed second in the table, with Rotherham holding on to top spot after
A PRISON education manager from Abingdon cycled the length of the country for his friends’ son, who has a rare liver disease. Mark Fisher, who manages the offender learning service in six prisons in the South East, was inspired to ride 972 miles
WALLINGFORD could soon have a disability football club for the first time. More than 30 local footballers with a range of disabilities turned up to a trial session at Wallingford Town AFC last Friday. Specialist coaches from MK Dons and Reading
THEY biked 500 miles. And after a pint and some grub they biked 100 more. Oxford surgeons James Ramsden and Mahmood Bhutta have joined 10 of the county’s top paediatricians in a mammoth cycle ride from Glasgow to London, stopping off at the UK’
GIRLS’ football has seen a surge in popularity in Oxford with the membership at Oxford City FC almost quadrupling in a year. The England women’s team has been inspiring young players, thrashing Turkey 8-0 in a World Cup qualifer on Thursday.
A WITNEY secondary school will hold a large reunion for all previous students next month to mark its 60th anniversary. Wood Green School first opened its doors in the spring of 1954 and across the academic year it is holding events to celebrate
CHILDREN were delighted when they were visited by a member of an RAF rowing crew soon to set off on a 3,000-mile race across the Atlantic. Sgt Jane McIntosh, of 216 Squadron based at RAF Brize Norton, took her team’s 29ft ocean rowing boat to Springfield
Good afternoon everyone and welcome to the sunny north east, where Oxford United are visiting Hartlepool for the first time since January 2003. The visitors have been hit by injuries and suspensions as they attempt to bounce back from defeat to
4:07pm A second bonus-point win in a row for Welsh after a powerful second-half display 4:02pm Ross converts for 40-9 4:01pm
VILLAGERS living near Didcot say they are fed up with an eight-week water leak on their high street. The water pipe burst in South Moreton in July, and has been leaking water across the road ever since, eroding the tarmac and rotting a garden fence
A DETECTIVE leading an investigation into TR Rogers & Sons scrap metal yard has admitted his team breached police guidelines by wiping video evidence. Det Sgt Gavin Collier appeared as a witness yesterday in the trial of five men accused of
YOUNGSTERS are being given lessons by university professors to help them uncover local history in East Oxford. Youth project The Oxford Foundation has arranged for 24 pupils to research stories from ethnic minority residents living the area.
A GUEST house owner says a child sex ring exploited the layout of his Oxford hotel to abuse young girls in the bedrooms. Nanford Guest House manager John Cronin said he is now going to look at making structural changes to ensure the sickening crimes
A CASH pot used to pay for cancer drugs has saved lives the Prime Minister said in a visit to Oxford today as he announced an extension to its funding. David Cameron said the Cancer Drug Fund, worth £200 million a year, had been accessed by 35,000
OXFORD’S crowds tempted a Warwickshire-based artist to drive a 140-mile round trip to capture the city’s charms. Professional artist Gerald Green named Oxford among his favourite places to paint — not for its dreaming spires, but for the people
A FLAGSHIP plan by Oxfordshire County Council to tackle the bed-blocking crisis has cost taxpayers £2.5m, it has emerged. Bed-blocking happens when patients are clinically well enough to be discharged but not well enough to return home. They are
WE struggle to see how the programme to assess patients and cut down on bed-blocking can be deemed to fail because it has treated too many people compared to official targets. Claiming there are too many patients causes concern that box-ticking
THE partner of a cyclist killed on Oxfordshire’s roads is to become an ambassador for a national road safety group. Eynsham’s Nicci Saunders will lead Brake’s county road safety week in November and could visit schools to speak to children.
A 73-year-old woman is due to appear in a murder trial on Monday charged with perverting the course of justice and assisting an offender. Jennifer Creasey, of Hale Road, Benson, will stand trial at Reading Crown Court in connection with the death
A JURY has found a 43-year-old man guilty of trying to steal thousands of pounds worth of steel from a company. Andrew Fitzsimons, of St James Cottages, Grove, near Wantage, was convicted on one count of burglary at Field Barn Farm, near Abingdon
Hundreds of food lovers will descend on Thame town centre today for the sixth Thame Food Festival. The free event, which runs from 9am to 6pm, promises cookery demonstrations by top chefs and more than 100 stalls selling everything from fruit and
Former Westlife star Brian MacFadden, right, dropped into a Witney dance school to rehearse ahead of a performance on ITV tonight. Mr MacFadden and his wife Vogue visited the Jill Stew School of Dance, in Bridge Street Mill, with choreographer
A MAN has told a jury the allegations that he sexually abused a young girl for a number of years are not true. Bradley Antill, of Fulmar Place, Grove, near Wantage, has been charged with one count of rape, five counts of sexual assault and eight
Jewellery, cash, keys and three laptops have been stolen on a raid on an East Oxford home. Police said the Cowley Road burglary happened sometime on Thursday and appealed for anyone with information to call 101.
KETTLES went into overdrive as the county hosted more than 1,500 of the Macmillan World’s Biggest Coffee Mornings yesterday. Now in its 23rd year, The World’s Biggest Coffee Morning is cancer charity Macmillan’s main fundraiser. Last year,
Greenpeace activist Phil Ball has been detained in Russia for two months pending a piracy investigation. The 42-year-old from Chipping Norton was detained along with other activists while aboard the boat Arctic Sunrise after allegedly trying to
A man and a woman have been arrested on suspicion of drink-driving after a car overturned in Banbury. The blue Volkswagen Polo lost control along Ermont Way at about 11.50pm on Monday. Police said the people in the car left the scene but were
A burglar got in to an East Oxford house through an unlocked door and stole two laptop computers. The break-in happened in Aston Street between 11.30pm on Wednesday and 1.30am on Thursday. Call police on 101 with information.
The behaviour of a protein in the body that sometimes boosts tumour cell growth and at other times restricts it has been explained by Oxford scientists. Their groundbreaking research could lead to the creation of new cancer drugs. It concerns
A man has pleaded not guilty to hitting a driver over the head with a bike lock. Luke Wilmshurst, of Banbury Road, Oxford, was charged with actual bodily harm and criminal damage after an incident in Parks Road, Oxford, on June 15 this year.
Chloe Oswald and India Weller starred in a 36-medal haul for Abingdon at the regional levels and International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) Championships in Reading. Oswald was crowned level 3 (15+ years) champion after winning gold medals on vault
Abingdon's Eddie Pepperell is still in the running at golf’s prestigious Aflred Dunhill Links Championship event in Scotland. The Frilford Heath player is 12th after following his six-under-par 66 in the first round at Kingsbarns with a 67 on the
A MAN has been charged with raping a 15-year-old girl in Carterton last Saturday. Perry Griffith, 22, of Newland, Witney, was charged yesterday and is due to appear at Oxford Magistrates’ Court this morning.
ONE out of every 11 drivers in Oxfordshire has penalty points on their licence. More than 36,000 motorists have points, new figures show – with 903 of them having nine or more points. Watlington has the highest proportion of drivers caught
Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship Oxford's Jason Plato has written off his chances of securing a third title as the penultimate round takes place at Silverstone tomorrow. The two-time champion stands in fifth spot, 62 points behind
Bradley Smith had to settle for the 13th quickest time after two rounds of practice for tomorrow’s penultimate round of the European phase of the World Championship campaign at Motorland Aragon. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider, from Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire's Adela Hussain, Hayley Perrin and Lucy Hooper struck team gold at the English Schools’ Combined Events Championships at Alexander Stadium, Birmingham. They were crowned national champions in the senior girls’ heptathlon with 11,405
Horspath Hammers were pushed all the way before securing a 101-78 home victory over Birmingham in the Elite League. Myke Grimes, Scott Millward, Chris Timms and Mark Winwood kept Hammers on their toes as the final scoreline didn’t reflect the closeness
Martin Kirk took the honours in the FTB tackle shop Open, fished by 54 anglers on the Folly and Donnington stretches of the Thames. Despite a multitude of rowing boats and canoes, plus walkers and cyclists, the venues fished well and plenty of
Head coach Justin Burnell continues to rotate his squad as London Welsh play their first home game of the Greene King IPA Championship campaign today. The Exiles, second in the table, entertain Plymouth Albion at Oxford’s Kassam Stadium this afternoon
London Welsh must bring their A game every week in the Greene King IPA Championship if they are to be in contention for a top-four finish, says club captain Matt Corker. The Exiles made it two wins from two last Sunday with victory over Nottingham
Rob Lewis believes the London Welsh squad is the strongest that he has known. And that, he accepts, means players are going to be disappointed on match days. Scrum half Lewis, who started the previous two matches, is left out for today’s clash
Michelin Ginetta GT Supercup Fergus Walkinshaw is relishing the prospect of his Chipping Norton-based sportscar team, FW Motorsport, making their home circuit debut in the penultimate round at Silverstone this weekend. Launched in January 2013
ORGANISATIONS often have rather offbeat ideas. Blue-sky thinking is one of the buzz phrases given by creative types who sit around shooting out ideas in a scattergun-style, hoping for that spark of genius to justify their excessive salaries. Coming
A FOLK band has begun its journey through Oxfordshire and is hoping strangers will offer them somewhere to stay. German string band Ensemble Unterwegs is relying on the hospitality of strangers as they make their way to Oxford for a concert.
Sean Rigg is prepared to push himself and play 90 minutes to help a weakened Oxford United get a result at Hartlepool United this afternoon. The winger tore a hamstring last month and only returned to the squad a week ago. He played 40 minutes
POLICE are investigating a suspected arson attack at a telephone exchange in Bicester yesterday. Firefighters from Bicester were called to the blaze in Queens Avenue at 9.39am. There were no injuries. The fire, which involved cable drums
THE funeral of Oxford gymnast Thomas Franklin will take place on Monday. Mr Franklin, 23, from Abingdon Road, was found in Hinksey Park last Saturday morning with serious head and upper body injuries. He died later in hospital. His funeral
MORE than 100 postal workers went on strike yesterday to protest about the sacking of two colleagues. The 130 Communication Workers Union (CWU) members from the sorting office in Sandy Lane, Oxford, which serves 45,000 homes, say that the posties
OXFORDSHIRE’S repatriation officials have vowed to never stop holding ceremonies to mark Britain’s war dead after a MOD document suggested their profile should be lowered. A Freedom of Information request has revealed MOD officials considered looking
MILEAGE claims have shot up after Thames Valley Police gave staff a 40 per cent rise to 65p-a-mile. Since April 2012, most officers and staff at the force have been eligible to claim 65p per mile if they use their own car for police business.
AN expert will give a presentation about minor strokes at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust’s annual general meeting. Oxfordshire residents are being urged by trust consultant Dr Matthew Giles to act on the warning signs of strokes to prevent
MORE ambulances have been stationed near Faringdon following the sacking of a volunteer paramedic for breaking the speed limit on his way to an emergency. Godfrey Smith’s 15-year service as a community first responder with South Central Ambulance
PARKING permits could be the answer to clogged streets in Oxford’s Wood Farm and Lye Valley areas, according to a senior transport officer. Residents raised concerns about commuter parking and traffic congestion at a meeting that was organised
AFTER growing up in Didcot, Matt Richardson has enjoyed a whirlwind journey from stand-up comic to flying first-class to Antigua with Take That singer Gary Barlow. Now the 22-year-old from the Ladygrove estate is presenting the latest series of
