Archive for category: News

The next parish walk is on Sunday 19 April, 1000hrs.

Meet in the car park in Stokenchurch by the fire damaged Kings Hotel in the centre of the village. The walk is 4.5 miles long and is very varied passing through Beech Woods and along ancient pathways,

It was selected as a route which is recommended at this time of year as it is dry when others can be very wet and muddy. There are a few inclines but no stiles.

We will make a brief stop halfway round so please bring water and a light snack. Wear walking boots or walking shoes.

Please meet at 0950hrs for a 1000hrs start; expect to be back by 1215hrs. Unfortunately, the café in Stokenchurch is closed but the Cherry Tree in Kingston Blount will be open after the walk.

The walk is organised by the Aston Rowant Footpath and Amenities Group and Thame and Wheatley Ramblers but is open to all comers.

Peter Hetherington

07767 647714

Residents who receive garden waste collections in South Oxfordshire and the Vale of White Horse are being reminded to buy a new permit if they wish to continue receiving collections from 1 April through to 31 March 2027.

South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils introduced the garden waste permit scheme in spring 2025. More than 69,000 residents across both districts signed up in the first year, helping to support a reliable and sustainable garden waste collection service.

Brown bin permits expire on 31 March each year and residents must buy a new one annually to keep receiving the service. The quickest and easiest way to buy a new permit to do so online at southandvale.gov.uk/gardenwastepermit

Anyone who needs help to buy a permit can call the councils’ Customer Services team on 01235 422422.

When residents receive their new permit sticker, they are asked to keep their current permit on the bin until after their final March collection. The new permit should then be placed on the bin lid ready for April collections.

Spring is coming – and so is your chance to give your garden a natural boost. South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils are inviting residents to collect free, nutrient-rich compost at special giveaway events this March. It’s the perfect way to recycle, reduce waste and grow something great!

Event Details:

• Saturday 7 March – 9am to 11am – Howbery Business Park, Benson Lane, Wallingford, OX10 8BA
• Sunday 8 March – 9am to 11am – White Horse Leisure and Tennis Centre(overflow car park), Audlett Drive, Abingdon, OX14 3PJ

The councils’ Waste and Recycling Team will be on hand to answer your composting questions and share top tips for greener living.

How it works:

• Bring your own bags and spade.
• Collect up to three bags of compost per household.
• Available while supplies last.

Helping residents access compostable material recovered from the waste process is part of the councils’ Rethinking Waste – Waste Resources and Street Cleansing Strategy 2024, which focuses on the key themes of reduce, reuse, recycle and recover.

By turning food and garden waste into compost at home, it helps to reduce the amount of waste that needs to be collected.

From SODC:

The government has launched a consultation on options to reorganise local councils across Oxfordshire and West Berkshire. Local Government Reorganisation is a government-led reform to change how councils in two-tier areas are structured, replacing county and district councils with single unitary structures responsible for local services.

The upcoming consultation asks residents for their views on each of the three proposals put forward for Oxfordshire.

This consultation will inform the government’s decision later in the year on which proposal to implement. The change in council structures provides an opportunity to transform how councils work to deliver services, drive economic growth and support local communities.

In late 2025, a clear consensus emerged when five councils in Oxfordshire and West Berkshire formally supported a proposal for two new, innovative, responsive and locally accountable unitary authorities to address current inefficiencies, enhance services, and save millions.

These councils agreed that the two-unitary model offers the best outcomes for local residents and have urged the government to adopt it when making its decision later in the year.

The clear benefits of the two-unitary proposal put it ahead of the other options:

• Delivering better services: The proposal responds to what residents, businesses and public sector partners say needs improving, from highways and social care to planning.
• The best financial outcomes: Delivers significant potential savings (£59.8m annually) and carries the lowest financial risk of all three proposals, helping to protect key services, avoid cuts and ensure long-term stability across Oxfordshire and West Berkshire.
• Boosting both rural and urban economies: Drives fast-paced, sustainable growth across Oxford, market towns and rural areas, creating more jobs, better transport and the right homes in the right places.
• Creates councils more responsive to their communities: Keeps councils close to all local communities and tailored to their specific needs, ensuring strong local accountability and representation.

Forming two unitary councils has the potential to save money by re-imagining and redesigning services across a sensible geography, making use of scale and local delivery where it works best. The two-unitary approach would create authorities that are big enough to be efficient, stable, and reliable, but small enough to care for and be responsive to communities.

During decision-making last year, the councils raised concerns about the other proposals.

For the single-unitary proposal, they expressed concerns that it was too large and too remote from communities and that it did not show the ambition local communities and businesses deserved. Additional concerns have since been raised about whether services with a county-wide footprint, such as highways maintenance, are sustainable and can be funded at that scale, given cuts proposed in recent budgets.

For the three-unitary proposal, they expressed concerns that it would not create financially sustainable councils, would fail to meet the government criteria, and would negatively impact Oxford and damage the green belt.

The government intends to decide on which structure is implemented in Oxfordshire before the government’s summer recess in July. The preferred model is expected to be fully operational in 2028, replacing the current councils.

Residents can take part in the consultation by visiting https://consult.communities.gov.uk/local-government-reorganisation/oxfordshire

The consultation is open from 5 February to 26 March 2026.

Residents can read the full two-unitary proposal or a shortened version on the website www.twocouncils.org. The proposal covers all the key points, including how services will be run, financial modelling, implementation plans, and the vision for the future.

The other two proposals can be found at:

• Single unitary proposal – www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/oneoxfordshire
• Three unitary proposal – www.oxford.gov.uk/three-councils