People in an Oxford flat had a lucky escape when fire ripped through a picture framing shop in Summertown.

Thousands of pounds worth of damage was caused when Frames and Art, in Banbury Road, was gutted on Saturday morning.

A smoke alarm alerted the occupants living upstairs and they managed to escape.

A passing taxi driver raised the alarm at 5.30am after seeing flames through the shop window.

Five fire crews, together with specialist support units, were called out to tackle the blaze, caused by an electrical fault. Ssurrounding properties were evacuated.

Divisional Officer Steve Wain said the shop did not have any smoke detection equipment.

"Had it done so the fire would have been detected much earlier, and the damage caused as a result would have been significantly less," he said.

Police put out a small fire in the window display of Anker and Partners estate agents, in High Street, Banbury, on Friday night.