ENVIRONMENTALLY-minded volunteers will come together to clear ponds and wetlands in a working party this weekend. The Wild Oxford project is organising the event, at Raleigh Park in North Hinksey on Saturday, to scythe areas of the wetland and clear
A TRIAL into an alleged rape at a city backstreet has entered its closing stages as jurors began to hear final arguments. In his closing speech to the jury today one defence barrister called the case 'a bit seedy' while prosecutors said the accused
FLATS and homes will be built on a former sports field despite outcry from residents that the development is too large and will cause traffic problems. The 86-home development at William Morris Close was approved by Oxford City Council’s east area
POLICE urge people to be 'vigilant' as burglaries have taken place in a village near Chipping Norton. Two burglaries in Kingham have been reported and police say offenders are gaining entry through open windows. ALSO READ: Burglars flee after
A REMEMBRANCE service will be held at All Saints Church, Didcot, on Sunday November 10. The service will begin with communion at 8am, with the Remembrance Sunday service at 9.30am. A service for the 11th Explosive Ordnance Disposal Regiment will
A GROUP which is working to make sure new houses, businesses and roads are set up properly in Oxfordshire wants public input for its future decisions. There are three weeks left for people in Oxfordshire to give their views on the Oxfordshire Growth
A BURGLAR broke into a business in Oxford by smashing the glass of the door. Tip boxes containing cash were stolen from the reception area of a business property in Banbury Road, at some point between 5pm on Tuesday and 7am on Wednesday. Police
AN ELDERLY woman returned home to find two men smashing the glass pane of her front door. The woman, aged in her 80s, caught the men just in time yesterday and confronted them. They fled on foot from the house in Burford Road, Chipping Norton
A WOMAN who threw a pack of biscuits at a bank customer was fined, a court has heard. Janet Carol Anne Millikin, 63, of Fitchett Yard, Abingdon, admitted breaching a criminal behaviour order in Barclays Bank, Abingdon, on August 27. ALSO READ
EDDIE Pepperell made a solid start to his campaign at the Turkish Airlines Open. The golfer from Abingdon carded a two-under-par 70 to stay in the middle of the pack after the first round in Antalya. Pepperell made a fantastic start, picking
OXFORD United’s home game with Ipswich Town next weekend has been postponed. The Sky Bet League One leaders have made the decision after receiving four international call-ups, one more than the minimum required to call a game off. It means
If there’s one thing Geoff Norcott can’t stand, it’s being told what to do. A star of Live at the Apollo, Mock the Week and, The Mash Report, Geoff is political – but he directs his frustration at all parties and anyone who he feels his bossing
A SMALL ceremony where a 'flaming poppy' will be lit will take place next Monday to remember soldiers who have fallen. Soldiers and members of staff from The Defence Explosive Ordnance Disposal, Munitions and Search (DEMS) Training Regiment is
TARIQE Fosu has been voted as the League One player of the month for October. The Oxford United winger topped the supporters' poll, run by the PFA, after an impressive spell which included three goals. His nearest challenger was teammate Cameron
Oxford City Council has reduced its carbon emissions by more than 900 tonnes in the last year, according to the council’s own figures. This reduction is the equivalent amount of CO2 produced by a single car driving 2.9 million miles. The latest
A PUB company’s ‘pizza maestro’ is one of 16 finalists from over 200 entries at this year’s National Pizza Awards. Oakman Inns runs The Crown & Thistle in Abingdon, The Blue Boar in Witney and The Old Post Office in Wallingford. Alex Balan
FRIENDS and supporters of a father who broke his neck falling from a balcony are halfway to raising enough money for life-changing equipment for him. Darren Houghton's friends are calling for more help as they're almost halfway to raising £10,000
CONCERNS over staff, medication and how risks were being assessed at a town care home prompted a surprise inspection by the national health watchdog. Abingdon Court was rated as 'requires improvement' following a visit by the Care Quality Commission
LIKE missionary magpies, volunteers at two Oxfordshire churches have starting amassing hoards of secondhand mobile phones, sat navs and computers. The keen collectors at Corpus Christi RC in Headington and Our Lady of Lourdes in Wheatley are pleading
MARY Rose Spiller, the first female presenter of BBC TV series Gardeners’ World, has died at the age of 95. Miss Spiller was born and raised in a house in Cowley that was built by her grandfather who was once a landlord of The Old Tom pub in St
In penning my recent paean of praise to the JD Wetherspoon pub group – which attracted satisfying opprobrium from a significant number of readers – I deliberately omitted any reference to its successful (and ever-growing) chain of hotels. This might
JEREMY Clarkson has been given permission to build a lambing shed and farm shop on his Oxfordshire estate. The television star, of Top Gear fame, has gained planning approval from West Oxfordshire District Council to build at his Diddly Squat
ADAM Smith came off the bench to fire an extra-time winner as Oxford United started their FA Youth Cup campaign. The 103rd-minute header was the only goal of a tight game at Reading City. And it sent the U's through to a second round meeting
OXFORD'S Wagamama branch is giving away 100 free katsu curries today - but only to students. The first 100 customers through the doors of the Japanese restaurant in Market Street will be eligible for the offer, if they can offer a valid student
A WOMAN claiming to be collecting for charity stole £250 from a man who donated to her cause. According to a post on the Wantage and Grove Community Facebook page, the distraction theft happened yesterday outside the Sainsbury's store in Wantage
HEAVY rain has left pools of standing water on some roads and triggered a series of flood alerts covering Oxfordshire. Downpours hammered the county overnight and, although no further rain has been forecast yet today, four flood alerts remain active
GEORGE Munsey is bidding to put the disappointment of not being drafted in English cricket’s ‘The Hundred’ behind him. None of the eight teams picked up the former Oxfordshire batsman in last month’s draft ahead of next summer’s inaugural tournament
TWO charities have joined forces to host a fireworks night tomorrow. The Hummingbird Centre and The Launton Playing Fields Association (LPFA) have teamed up to stage a family fireworks event at the playing fields ground, off Bicester Road in Launton
AN ANIMAL rescue centre is fundraising for a hedgehog hospital, after an influx of the spiky critters came into its care. Oxfordshire Wildlife Rescue has launched a campaign to raise £5,000 for the facility. Hedgehog intake at the centre, in
SPRINKLERS installed at an Oxford tower block have proved their worth after preventing a 'significant fire' from spreading. Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service said a sprinkler fitted as part of the refurbishment of the city's five tower blocks
SIMON Anderson says lessons will be learnt after Oxford City Stars lost against Bracknell Hornets. The home side won the first two periods and went into the third 5-3 up. But Stars then shipped five unanswered goals to suffer a 8-5 reverse.
ROISIN Browne proved a class apart as she claimed victory in the first round of the new season at Bicester Heritage. The Cherwell Runners member crossed the line in 25mins 31secs to triumph in the ladies’ race on the flat but testing course.
VIEWS are being sought on potential plans to build hundreds of homes at a site in north Oxford. It comes as changes have been made to a planning document where the homes were originally proposed to be built in the south east of Woodstock. Building
OXFORD City’s upturn in results have taken the pressure off their search for a new manager. The Vanarama National League South side parted company with Mark Jones last month. An interim team of Andy Ballard, who was Jones’s assistant, general
Eddie Pepperell is back in action at the Turkish Airlines Open, which starts today. The Frilford Heath member travels to the Montgomerie Maxx Royal club in Antalya looking to improve on his world ranking of 47. Pepperell goes into the event on
MASONS Arms moved five points clear in the Oxford & District Division 1 table after a 5-1 win over Berinsfield. Mick Murphy and Alan Lowe both won twice, with Dave Rose also triumphing. John Boal saved the whitewash. Staff Club won 4-2 at home
OXFORD United are ‘going in blind’ to this weekend’s Emirates FA Cup first-round tie after their scouting preparations were disrupted. Karl Robinson’s men visit Hayes & Yeading United in a game which has been moved to Sunday so it can be broadcast
A HISTORIC building's long-term future rests on a £4.5 million upgrade with a dedicated charity now formed to help the scheme become reality. Plans for a major refurbishment of Abingdon's Abbey buildings were first unveiled last year, with heating
THOUSANDS of visitors pounded the pubs, shops, schools and libraries across the city to take part in a unique science-themed festival last month. With the 11-day annual extravaganza IF Oxford now at an end, festival director Dane Comerford says
A WOMAN has been charged with causing a Christmas Eve bomb scare at a Banbury superstore. Cheryl Nolan, of Stone Barton, Plymouth, is accused of one count of communicating false information in the form of a bomb hoax. It is alleged that the 59
A GROUP of friends wanted to continue playing their game of cards after a man was found dead in the same flat. Oxford Coroner's Court held an inquest yesterday for Owen McTaggart, who died at a flat in Banbury on April 25. The court heard that
OXFORD author Zoe May - who has just celebrated the release of her latest book As Luck Would Have It - talks about the perceived 'snootiness' behind her genre of romantic comedy writing. I was sitting in an Oxford pub once, reading a book. I had
A MUM has raised more than £1,500 to help meet the cost of a specialist helmet for her daughter which will help her head grow normally. Theresa Lovegrove set out on a mission to raise cash for the helmet after her one-year-old daughter Robyn was
AN Oxford University college has restored a permanent tribute to the birthplace of the city’s car industry. Last year New College removed photographs and memorabilia of car manufacturer William Morris for storage as building work started on revamped
A MAN accused of raping a woman in a city backstreet told jurors she 'took advantage' of him because of his age. As the trial into the alleged rape at Turl Street on May 4 continued yesterday one of the accused men - Victor Alvizu, 20, of Green
OXFORD MAGISTRATES’ COURT DAVID ROBERT KURITA-MAY, 50, of Springfield Avenue, Banbury, was convicted of speeding on a motorway on May 1. He was travelling at 96 mph on a road where the limit was 70 mph. He was fined £200 and ordered to pay victim
ONE of Oxford's biggest employers and causes of traffic issues in the city has called for more details about a transport improvement plan due to be funded in part through a ‘levy’ on workplace parking spaces. Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation
CYCLING lane surfacing removed from Cowley Road was a cause for concern at Oxfordshire County Council’s meeting on Tuesday. Councillor Damian Haywood asked why the ‘clear demarcations’ of cycling lanes with a different coloured surface had not been
COUNTY Councillors were advised of a simple step they can take to fight global warming as they discussed their plans for the climate crisis. ALSO READ: Oxford Extinction Rebellion activist appears in court in London Speaking on behalf of Oxford
THE DECISION to downgrade maternity care at Horton General Hospital has been condemned by councillors. Following its meeting on November 5, Oxfordshire County Council has written a letter to the Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group deploring
MORE than 100 homes have been approved for a huge estate on the edge of Wantage. St Modwen has received planning approval from the Vale of White Horse District Council for the development of 102 homes including eight affordable houses on its Kingsgrove
