THE damaging effect of traffic and house extensions in an historic Oxford village have been highlighted in a new report.

The Old Headington Conservation Area Appraisal looked at the village in detail to identify its special interests and character, to help preserve them in the future.

The report said although “Old Headington retains the character of a quiet rural village largely built between the 17th and 19th centuries”, there were a number of negative features.

Among those were the impact of traffic signs, wheelie bins and the intrusion of the chimney from the John Radcliffe Hospital.

The chairman of the Friends of Old Headington, Sarah King, said: “This is important because it makes people aware of what the place is like at the moment and records things which are particularly good about Old Headington, as well as potential threats to its character.

“It is a special place and has grown from what was once a rural farming community.”

The history of Old Headington can be traced to the mid 12th century and it was first designated as a conservation area in 1971. It has since been extended, the last time being in December 1998.

Mrs King said: “One threat is any building in between Old Headington and the ring road, which would be detrimental to the conservation area.

“One of the biggest threats is Ruskin College wanting to build on its fields. That would be the thin end of the wedge, with others thinking ‘if Ruskin can build, so can we’.”

Another issue would be plans to build student accommodation or housing above the Headington car park on Old High Street.

A public consultation into the appraisal was held early this year and it was discussed at an east area planning committee on Wednesday Mrs King said: “This appraisal is full of information about Old Headington from every conceivable point of view. It tells about its founding, the history and details important buildings.

“As a committee, we are not against development.

“You have to have buildings being built, but we try to stop things that are going to be very detrimental to the area.”

To see the appraisal, undertaken by Oxford City Council last year, go to the conservation page on oxford.gov.uk