A MUSEUM dedicated to the history of the armed forces in Oxfordshire is a step closer to reality after councillors decided to charge no rent for it.

Oxfordshire County Council’s cabinet this week recommended leasing the land to The Soldiers of Oxfordshire Trust on a “peppercorn rent”.

The new £4m building will go on the site of the Oxfordshire Museum in Park Street, Woodstock, and tell the story of the armed forces from the 1700s.

It comes after the council this week pledged £100,000 to become only the second local authority in the country to adopt the Armed Forces Community Covenant, giving rights to forces personnel such as council tax discounts.

Trust project manager Major Hugh Babington Smith explained the “peppercorn rent”. He said: “In English law, for something to be a contract, some form of payment has to change hands.”

And he joked: “The council decided the value of the land, in this case was a peppercorn, should they wish it. So we’ll always keep one to hand. Everything is all gradually moving forward and I would be unhappy if we didn’t start digging by August.”

The building work is expe-cted to take between 18 months to two years and access is likely to be through the Oxfordshire Museum, run by the county council.

Major Babington Smith, 63, said: “We think about Oxfordshire as being away from war, away from the beaches and it’s true, the Battle of Britain was not fought over Oxfordshire.

“But conflict affects people’s lives, it’s a sad fact of life.”

He said there had been a county military presence since the Romans.

“We have lots and lots of stories to tell. This is about having somewhere to tell them.”

Jim Couchman, cabinet member for finance and property, said: “It will make the Oxfordshire Museum much more attractive for people to visit.

“And they’ve got a huge story to tell. It’s not just going to be old uniforms and pictures, it’s going to be telling real stories of Oxfordshire at war.”