THE WOMAN who oversaw the battle against the devastating 2014 floods n Oxford has been made an MBE. Julia Simpson, the Environment Agency’s west Thames area manager, marshalled more than 700 people across the county and the Thames Valley in the
HE left for his 500-mile challenge as an apprentice at the New Coronet Bingo Club in Didcot. And impressively Josh Davis was promoted to assistant manager on his return. The 25-year-old, who lives in the town, completed the 500-mile trans-Pyreneeanhike
A CYCLIST died a month after being involved in a crash in Headington. The 52-year-old came off his bike near the junction with Horseman Close at about 1am on May 7. He was taken to the John Radcliffe hospital where he was streated for a serious
A CAR has crashed into the garden wall of a home in The Crofts, Witney, this afternoon. It is understood the crash involved a Volkswagen Passat and no-one was seriously injured. Steve Fletcher who owns the property, who wasn't in at the time
FOR SALE: 1,400 drama costumes, props and accessories. Fur coats, military uniforms, Tudor period dress, bowler hats, axes and tennis rackets are among hundreds of bargains to be picked up this weekend. Oxfordshire Drama Wardrobe, which has
A MAN tried to break into Ducklington service station by smashing thorugh a pane of glass in a door on Thursday morning, police said. At around 1.25am a man attempted to smash the bottom pane of a glass door but was unable to break through, according
A DISPUTE has broken out between Wantage Town Council and a town’s secondary school over plans for a new science block. Councillors said they were worried that King Alfred’s Academy’s planned science block could create “obnoxious fumes” and added
THERE are enough recyclable things in your bathroom to fill a tub with, according to councillor John Tanner. Oxford City Council is raising awareness about what can be recycled from different rooms throughout a home as part of Recycle Week 2015
AN OXFORD University student will share the limelight with Strictly Come Dancing star Claudia Winkleman today as part of the biggest UK first aid lesson. Emma-Jane Hampsheir-Gill, an English language and literature student at Mansfield College,
EIGHT MEN were arrested on suspicion of GBH after a fight broke out in Banbury last night, police have said. Police said at about 9.30pm they were called to reports of a serious disorder in Woodgreen Avenue, involving several men. In total
Want to give your opinion? Email letters@oxfordmail.co.uk
PRIME Minister David Cameron has given his support to a team of 164 parents running the Blenheim Palace Triathlon this weekend for a 10-year-old girl fighting leukaemia. Scarlett Clarkson, who has had acute lymphoblastic leukaemia since she was
Three people have been arrested after a cyclist died following a hit-and-run near Wallingford last Thursday. Thames Valley Police said a man in his 50s from Wallingford sustained serious injuries after being involved in a crash with a dark-coloured
A BLUEPRINT for where development in Cherwell will take place for the next 15 years has been approved by a Government planning inspector. Cherwell District Council’s Local Plan has set aside space for 22,840 homes to be built and 200 hectares of
AN IRISH pensioner has appealed for information about the fate of a man he saved from drowning in Oxford in 1961. Christopher Flynn from Celbridge, County Kildare in the Republic of Ireland, pulled the man from the River Thames at the start of
BLACK, white and red all over may be the punchline to an old joke, but it also forms the striking basis of a charity exhibition. Paintings by Czech artist Vladimíra Hanková are dominating the walls of the Jam Factory in Park End Street to raise
BICESTER Village Station will open in October after work was completed today. Two new platforms and a rebuilt car park have been the main works that have formed the redevelopment of the controversially-named station. Once open, two trains an
SO COUNCIL tenants will benefit from millions of pounds in home improvements (June 10)! What about part-buy part-rent tenants? Oxford City Council doesn’t seem to realise that we work full time so don’t get benefits and we can’t afford new
I HAVE to air my views on the report on page 11of the Oxford Mail on June 9 about fears that the community hospital will be privately run have come true. It would appear to me that the staff at Chipping Norton Community Hospital have been treated
I FOUND it rather ironic that, the day a story was printed referencing council cost-cutting and grass verges, I saw none other than the council or their contractors planting roundabouts. There is an online site called Streetlife and the conversations
YOUR readers may be interested to know that, such has been the success of Oxford Decorative and Fine Arts Society (Oxford DFAS) since its inauguration in 2010, the society is expanding and is currently able to offer membership to new members. Enquiries
I AM not sure that buses are the main cause of congestion as has been claimed. I do, though, think they are the main cause of road damage in Oxford. In both the city centre and in some suburbs, roads that are bus routes often show a lot of
AS SOMEONE that lives alongside the main railway line, I can understand the concerns of Wolvercote residents voiced in your paper when they see their branch line is to be turned into a main line. Some months ago I suggested in your letters column
YOUR report ‘Now you’re facing 16 months of delays on the Bypass with Cutteslowe and Wolvercote roundabout work’ (June 10) gives the supposed reasons for the totally unnecessary and wasteful work on the two roundabouts. It reports: “Transport bosses
GIRLS at Headington Prep School took on science and computing challenges to mark the launch of a new STEM department. A science, technology, engineering and maths activities day was held on Monday ahead of the new department’s arrival in September
The trouble with climbing to the top diving board in a public pool to try out your triple somersault is that you could belly flop. I sensed this trouble after reading a small item in the Oxford Mail that “a food surplus café for Oxford would be trialled
I HAVE rarely met any man who, once acquainted with him, did not wish he was George Bailey. Hard hearts soften, mild envy takes over and smiles are guaranteed. If you don’t know George Bailey you haven’t seen that masterpiece film of the 1940s
A TALKING newspaper has recorded a marked increase in circulation since it moved to new headquarters earlier this year. Oxtalk, which records selected newspaper stories from the Oxford Mail and other papers onto computer memory sticks and sends
A homeless man who punched a random bystander in the face for no reason avoided jail yesterday. Joseph Kibble, of no fixed address, admitted causing actual bodily harm to Thomas Tyler on May 12 in High Street. Jane Brady, defending, said the
Heavy rain and thunderstorms are forecast for Oxfordshire today after the county has been given a yellow warning from the Met Office. From noon today until 7am on Saturday the Met Office said the region is likely to see isolated severe thunderstorms
A BUILD-UP of wet wipes and cooking fat led to a waste pipe being blocked in Marston. Residents said they noticed the brook behind Arlington Drive had turned bright green on Wednesday. Thames Water said its workers had used a green florescent
IT has been graced by the likes of A-Listers Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley as a backdrop for some blockbuster movies. And yesterday a royal visitor joined the list at RAF Bicester to commemorate 50 years since Her Majesty the Queen toured
FAMILY and friends of the Didcot triple-murder victims attended a private funeral yesterday. The funeral of Philip Howard, 44, Janet Jordon, 48 and their six-year-old daughter Derin Jordon was held at Oxford Crematorium in Barton. A ceremony
WOLVERCOTE Primary School has earned itself the title of School of Rock after students recorded covers of classic rock numbers at a recording studio. Flammable is made up of 19 students and is led by Year 5 teacher Mark Hamilton, who says he “could
THOUSANDS of missed appointments at Oxfordshire’s four main hospitals wasted £9.5m in a year. Yesterday Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust revealed that between April 2014 and March this year patients missed 66,638 appointments, resulting in
A GAME of ‘Find the Sausage’ at a dog show in Abingdon was won by a real outsider. Care home activities co-ordinator Chantelle Merritt said the pack of pups eagerly searched the grounds of Bridge House care home on the hunt for the prize, oblivious
CAMPAIGNERS have spurned suggestions that the controversial Castle Mill flats could be demolished in 30 years’ time. Oxford University confirmed it was considering the proposal, put forward by heritage group the Oxford Preservation Trust. The
Oxfordshire skipper Luke Ryan says his side head into Sunday’s Unicorns Counties Trophy quarter-final against Northumberland at Bicester & North Oxford in a confident mood. Despite a dramatic one-wicket defeat to Berkshire last month, Oxfordshire
Cash was stolen in a burglary on Tuesday at a property in Leach Road. Thames Valley Police said burglars got into the building between 6.30pm and 7.30pm via an unlocked back door. A cash box was forced open and an undisclosed amount of money
Forty-two apartments for the elderly will be built in Victoria Road after permission was granted. At a Cherwell District Council planning committee meeting yesterday, councillors voted in favour of the apartments. Churchill Retirement Living
Oxford City Council’s deadline to consider plans to transform Oxford University’s law faculty building is today. It would be the second phase of work at the St Cross Building, in St Cross Road, after the first was completed in 2011. As part
A RECYCLING truck on fire caused delays on the A44 Woodstock Road near Begbroke last night. The truck caught light shortly before 5pm and the road was closed northbound between Spring Hill Road and the Bladon Roundabout. The burning lorry was
5:50pm Police investigating how cyclist died month after crash in Headington 5:41pm A car has crashed into a garden wall in Witney
COMMUNITY activists are asking residents in Headington to give their views on the area’s neighbourhood plan. The draft plan, which has taken nearly two years to produce, has been developed following consultation with hundreds of people across the
THIS incredible image of a grass snake rearing up at a pheasant was captured by wildlife photographer George Reszeter. Mr Reszeter, who retired as astaff photographer at the Oxford Mail six years ago, has lost none of his instinct for a good shot
Oxford RL’s head coach Tim Rumford says his side are more than capable of pulling off an upset when they travel to third-placed Oldham in Kingstone Press League 1 on Sunday, looking to make it three wins on the spin. Blues made it four straight
IAN Crosby believes his side will benefit from a change to timed matches as Oxford look to pick up their first win of the season tomorrow. Oxford travel to third-placed Banbury in Division 1 of the Serious Cricket Home Counties Premier League.
A man facing three assault charges is due to make an application for bail next week. Robbie Stephens, of no fixed address, has been charged with two counts of assaulting a police constable in the execution of his duty at Clark’s House Bail Hostel
RESIDENTS will be given the chance to question a council over plans to convert a £1.25m property into a retreat for families from London. Hackney Council wants to turn a house in Bagley Wood Road, Kennington, into a property offering “families
Woodstock moved a step closer to qualifying for the Aegon Men’s County League Division 1 regional play-offs after defeating Bicester 10-2. Both sides entered the match unbeaten, but Woodstock took home advantage by winning the singles 3-1, before
Matt Sharp and Emma Pallent will be aiming to retain their titles when they compete in the Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research Blenheim Palace Triathlon on Sunday. The event, which in it’s 11th year, is the second largest triathlon in the country and
A £3M cycling scheme linking East Oxford with the city centre remains on track despite Government cuts. Earlier this week the Government announced £23m cuts to the pot which handed money to Oxfordshire County Council for the plans. Oxford was
The deadline for comments on plans that would see Botley lose its petrol station has passed and a decision is expected in the next two months. The application, which would see a coffee shop and restaurant open, is for the second phase of a £15m
SATURDAY CRICKET SERIOUS CRICKET HOME COUNTIES PREMIER LEAGUE Div 1: Banbury v Oxford, Henley v Tring Park, Horspath v High Wycombe. Div 2 West: Aston Rowant v Buckingham Tn, Cove v Great & Little Tew, Shipton-underWychwood v Amersham
Oxford School of Gymnastics enjoyed their best haul from the National Acrobatic Finals, claiming four medals and a national title. Five partnerships from the club qualified for the prestigious event, with Abi Woodliffe-Thomas, Aysha Hutter and
ASTON Rowant are hoping for back-to-back victories tomorrow after ending their winless run in Division 2. Tim Morgan (85) and Josh Smith (77) put on a thirdwicket partnership of 134 as Rowant beat Great & Little Tew by 71 runs last Saturday
A TEN-WEEK consultation on how thousands of shared houses in Oxford are regulated was approved last night. Since January 2011, Oxford City Council has enforced a licensing scheme for landlords renting houses in multiple occupation (HMOs), which
SENIOR councillors last night set in motion plans to regenerate Blackbird Leys to the tune of millions of pounds. Oxford City Council’s executive board has given council officers approval to spend about £300,000 on finding and appointing a developer
A DECISION on controversial plans for further restrictions on busking and begging was delayed last night after a civil rights group threatened legal action. Liberty argued a public space protection order (PSPO) proposed by Oxford City Council was
CUMNOR head into Sunday’s Oxfordshire final of the Davidstow Village Cup with a point to prove, according to captain Matt Lake. The Cherwell League side face last year’s beaten finalists Great & Little Tew in a repeat of 2014’s regional showpiece
DARRYL Woods hit an unbeaten century as Oxfordshire Over 50s beat Herefordshire by 63 runs at Brockhampton in the ECB 50+ County Championship. Woods carried his bat for 117 as Oxfordshire set 275-4. Paul Tew (34), Alec Cunningham (22), Paul
Sam Slocombe intends to do all he can to ensure he starts next season as Oxford United’s No 1. The 27-year-old goalkeeper has put pen-to-paper on a two-year deal at the Kassam Stadium, and is determined to make his mark as soon as the squad report
A charity shop volunteer has received national recognition for her work at the town’s Cancer Research UK shop. Jeannette Milligan has volunteered at the Bury Street shop for eight years. She has raised thousand of pounds for the charity, taking
A BLOSSOMING friendship has brought light to the lives of elderly people from a Blackbird Leys care home and a local community group. Residents at Longlands Care Home, Balfour Road, have been visiting a weekly get-together for the elderly, Friendleys
THERE was tea and triumph as a coffee morning group found a new home after they lost their home at the very charity they supported. But they won’t be raising money for the Red Cross any more. The weekly Tuesday morning meet-up was held in a
HUNDREDS of people are expected to visit the Jericho Street Fair tomorrow. The annual event in Canal Street will feature live music, dance performances and market and food stalls. Activities will be clustered near St Barnabas Church, from noon
