A WEEK-LONG festival to celebrate community spirit in North Hinksey has begun.

Bunting and stalls selling jewellery, homemade cakes, framed pictures and jams and chutneys lined the West Way shopping centre in Botley on Saturday.

The fourth festival organised by the people behind North Hinksey’s Parish Plan, it features music, arts and craft activities. Emma Barley and Champ the pantomime horse – recruiting for Botley Community Theatre – are pictured greeting a visitor at the shopping precinct.

Festival chairman Jenny Barker, 60, said: “We have more stalls than before and they’ve been busy.”

An art and craft exhibition was held in St Lawrence Church, followed by cream teas on Sunday. Barbershop singers will be performing at SS Peter and Paul Church today, with an arts and craft show on Saturday.

Ms Barker added: “We have a lot of social clubs but not have many community events, so the aim is to bring people out and build that community.”