Clarion Weekly, 11 October 2024

This week's top stories

Campaigners for Grandpont Nature Park have secured a judicial review into the proposed new Oxpens River Bridge for pedestrians and cyclists. The Friends of Grandpont group has so far raised £11,647 from a £35,000 target. They argue the bridge is “unnecessary and has no mandate”.

Oxford City Council responded that “we are disappointed by the delays this will inevitably cause”. They continued: “[The bridge] will have a positive impact on the city’s connectivity and environmental goals. We will not comment on the specific details of the case at this time.”

But the argument is about more than just a bridge. We were surprised that our tweet on this story has become our most viewed by far (300,000 and still counting) as people asked whether the planning system makes it too easy to delay “basic infrastructure”. We examined the arguments for and against the bridge in a long read in April.

1450 new houses have been approved for Bayswater Brook on the outskirts of Oxford, across the A40 near Barton. South Oxfordshire District Council’s planning committee voted 5-2 to approve the application by Dorchester Residential and landowners Christ Church.

The site runs behind the existing Barton Park development and continues to Oxford Crematorium. The plans also include 120 assisted living units, 500sqm commercial use, and a new primary school. The existing Wick Farm buildings will be repurposed for community use. (See the developers’ brochure website for more.)

A separate planning application is to be considered by Oxford City Council next week for those parts that impinge on the city boundary, principally the highway connections – which include a long-awaited pedestrian and cycle bridge over the A40, for residents of Barton Park as well as the new site. SODC, too, has yet to consider the bridge, having run out of time at the first planning meeting.

Debate at the meeting focused on flooding and sewage concerns. The committee was told the Environment Agency had withdrawn its flooding objection, but that since it continued to object to wastewater discharge, a planning condition would be imposed requiring adequate provision for sewage from the development. The EA had written:

Oxford Sewage Treatment Works has insufficient Flow to Full Treatment capacity for the population served. Further flows into Oxford STW before improvement to it may lead to deterioration of the […] ecological status and/or prevent elements of the [Northfield Brook] achieving Good Ecological Status.

Speakers from local parish councils also opposed the application. Andrew Clark from Stanton St John called it a “spreadsheet development” rather than a community. Ginette Camps-Walsh, for Beckley and Stowood, said “this was the worst site in the Local Plan”. Eugenie Buchan from Elsfield raised flooding issues, saying “We’ve been commenting religiously on applications for this site for nearly eight years.”

But there was also enthusiasm for the site’s proximity to Oxford. Jo Robb (Green, Woodcote) said “It’s literally a stone’s throw from Oxford City: people can get in by sustainable means.” Peter Dragonetti (Green, Kidmore End) explained “It was in our Local Plan, forced through by the Secretary of State – there’s no point in doing Local Plans if we don’t then follow them. The pressure’s on from the Government to meet Oxford’s unmet need.”

(Cllr Dragonetti went on to say “We will look like complete idiots if we don’t approve it”, which led to a debate about whether calling fellow councillors “complete idiots” was appropriate language…)

In contrast to the national debate on house-building, the eventual vote didn’t split along party lines. The five in favour included LibDems, Greens, Labour and Henley Residents, with two LibDems against and two Greens abstaining.

The developers have promised “an exemplary drainage scheme which we will combine with flood alleviation measures to reduce existing flooding issues”. But sewage issues are less easily resolved. After the meeting, Labour city councillor Mike Rowley tweeted:

I'm deeply dismayed that South Oxon District Council has just approved a proposal that would potentially allow discharge of sewage into Bayswater Brook. Kids lay in the brook and every year it overflows into people's homes. I'd like to thank [LibDem councillor] Tim Bearder for helping make sure his residents & mine were at least properly heard. Planning decisions are strictly non-party, of course. I feel bound to say, in a strictly non-party way, that I think this one was disgraceful.

Henley & Thame MP Freddie van Mierlo, in whose constituency these houses would sit, echoed this concern in a statement to the Clarion:

There is clearly a need for additional homes to address the housing crisis. However, I have deep reservations that this plan was approved in its current form with an outstanding objection from the Environment Agency. We need the Government to force Thames Water to upgrade the Oxford Water Treatment Plant now to ensure new homes can be delivered for residents.

The City Council planning meeting for the A40 bridge is next Tuesday evening. If this planning application interests you, we explored Oxford's housing shortage, and the impact on neighbouring councils in a series of long reads recently.

Road collisions within the Cowley Low Traffic Neighbourhoods have dropped by 59% since the LTNs were installed, according to an analysis of new Government data by Oxfordshire’s CoHSAT [Coalition for Healthy Streets & Active Travel].

The data compares averages for 2015-2019 (pre-LTN) with 2022-2023. Collisions on six boundary roads decreased but by a smaller amount, 16%. The findings mirror studies assessing collisions in London’s LTNs.

Robin Tucker, co-chair of CoHSAT, said “There has been a dramatic reduction in harm – from which both residents and drivers benefit.” Cllr Charlie Hicks (Lab, Cowley) added: “These routes are used by hundreds of children every day to walk, cycle or wheel to school. That’s fewer families receiving dreaded calls from the police, fewer people being injured, and less strain on our John Radcliffe A&E department.”

Hundreds gathered in peace, remembrance and unity for a vigil for peace on Sunday. It was led by Bishop Steven and Imam Monawar Hussain, as co-chairs of the Oxfordshire Civic, Community and Faith Leaders' Group.

Those gathered heard prayers and readings from Oxfordshire’s diverse communities before a two-minute silence was held, lit by candlelit. In a poignant moment, the Revd Naomi Gardom, accompanied by Jack Evans, sang the protest song ‘Where have all the flowers gone?’ and people spontaneously joined in. 

Welcoming those who attended, Bishop Steven said: “Our purpose is simply to be together, and to be here. Thank you for being here, for doing something in the face of the helplessness that we all feel, in the face of these terrible events.” Louise Gordon, co-vice-president of the Oxford Jewish Congregation, shared this prayer: “Yet in sharing our pain we share also our prayer. Praying in our distinctive faith and value systems, languages and voices but with the single message; we pray for peace even as we hold our breath dreading the prospect of more conflict and bloodshed ahead. We reach across the things that could divide us, clasping hands in friendship and clinging to hope.” You can read more about the vigil here.

Around the city

• Monday was the Full Council meeting at Oxford City. And it was Quite Something. So much so, that rather than dissect the individual motions and issue them piecemeal for clicks, we went full Clarion and rounded them up in this long read. At times it was more like a Monty Python sketch than a council meeting, but do read it to understand where your councillors, who after all are running a £7bn city, prioritise their efforts. The answer may surprise you.
• The show will go on, say Oxford City Council, as they issue a permit for a scaled back fireworks event in South Park. Additional safety measures will be in place to protect the ground at South Park, including strict controls on vehicle access, an aluminium roadway, and no bonfire. The event may be cancelled if there is adverse weather. It will take place on Saturday 2 November, with tickets available from the Round Table website. We reported on the original application here.

• An application for an electronic advertising screen outside Oxford station has been turned down by Oxford City Council. Planners called it “a harmful and discordant feature that would be unduly prominent and dominant [and] would detract from the visual amenity of the area”. The screen operators, Pulse Smart Hub, describe their product as “the smartest of street furniture… a network of beautifully designed and engineered hubs that digitally enable their environment and deliver next generation connectivity”. Several similar applications have been refused in the last two years, including at appeal. The advertising screens also act as a wifi hub, but planning officers wrote that they “do not consider the proposed development to fall under the realms of telecommunication equipment”.
• The Angel & Greyhound on St Clements is to revert to its 1970s name of Oranges & Lemons, according to Oxford CAMRA. The pub has been taken over by Morgan Pub Co, who already run the Grapes on George Street and the Gardeners Arms on North Parade.
• A new music centre, ‘Lucy’s Room’, has opened at the Warneford Hospital. The space will host music therapy sessions for adult mental health patients. It has an indoor room with instruments and bean bags, and an outdoor area with seating. Six years’ fundraising went into the development. Lucy, who passed away in 2018, received care at the Warneford and missed a space to play and make music. Her mother Lesley called the room “a beautiful space where patients can be somewhere they can feel safe and creative”.
• Additional bollards have been installed at the junction of Barnet St, Essex St and Silver Rd in the East Oxford Low Traffic Neighbourhood. The new bollards stop smaller cars being driven onto the pavement to get past. The pavement is a popular walking route to a nearby nursery.
• Oxford City Council has refused an application for the Bridge nightclub on Hythe Bridge Street to open daily at midday, and close at 3am Sunday to Wednesday, against a background of strong resident and police objections. Residents on nearby Upper Fisher Row objected saying “the thunderous bass feels like a small earthquake” and “Bridge patrons use Upper Fisher Row as a lavatory & lowlife hotel”. Thames Valley Police also objected on the grounds of increased anti social behaviour in a mixed neighbourhood.
• A campaign to build a playground in Oxford city centre has won over 1,000 signatures and attracted cross-party support. OxPlay say that “children not having a safe and engaging space to play is a barrier to families spending time in the city centre”. The nearest playgrounds are at Friars Wharf (by the river) and Jericho. Cities including Paris, Oslo, Barcelona and Ljublana have central play spaces. The petition asks Oxford City Council to “consider establishing a playground or series of small playspaces in the city centre”. Labour councillor Louise Upton said “Having spaces for care-givers and young children to play is absolutely vital for healthy development.” LibDems, Greens and Conservatives have also supported the campaign, which hopes to trigger a City Council debate.
• Work to repair the riverbank at Longbridges Nature Park has been completed. The previous concrete wall had deteriorated, with sections falling into the river. The improvements will protect the area from further erosion and improve safety, say Oxford City Council.

• Residents on Magdalen Road in East Oxford have launched a ‘Worth Travelling For’ campaign to encourage visits to the businesses on the street, which range from bakeries, cafés and restaurants to a tropical fish shop and a piano repairer. Magdalen Road was described by the Sunday Times’s Best Places to Live guide in 2023 as “packed with indie shops and places to eat”. A different business will be highlighted each week until Christmas on the road’s Facebook group. The campaign has begun by highlighting the Goldfish Bowl, trading for nearly 70 years. The shop regularly hosts school tours and visits from nearby Helen & Douglas House. Owner Barry Allday called the street “one of the most diverse commercial roads in the country”.

Around the county

• A new 104-place school is proposed in Faringdon for children with a diagnosis of autism or Social Emotional Mental Health needs. Faringdon Special Academy will be run by the Gallery Trust, who already run seven special schools across Oxfordshire. The site is the former location of Faringdon Infant School, which was replaced by the new Folly View Primary School in 2022. A planning application is currently with Vale of White Horse District Council with responses open until 31 October. If approved, the school could open in 2026. Oxfordshire County Council says that two more special schools are currently planned for Didcot, including one for children with autism or SEMH needs: these are expected to open in 2027-2028. The process for academy trusts to bid to run these schools has not yet begun.
• An Iron Age settlement and the remains of Iron Age burial pits have been discovered by homebuilders Barratt Homes and David Wilson homes on a site just south of Banbury. Finds included scrapers, cutting flakes, knives, and ten complete skeletons. Some of the skeletons indicated infection from tuberculosis and a variant of syphilis, while the placement of two individuals indicated they may have been bound when they entered the ground.
• 20mph limits were approved for the villages of Cholsey, Drayton, Drayton St Leonard, Duns Tew and Langford at this week’s Oxfordshire County Council highways meeting. The speed limit on parts of the A420 near Faringdon and Shrivenham was also dropped to 50mph.

University and research

• Archaeologists believe they have discovered the original eastern defensive line of late-Saxon Oxford by Oriel College, confirming that the early town was significantly smaller than its later medieval extent. The discovery aligns with an 1899 dig outside the Bodleian (pictured). Ben Ford of Oxford Archaeology explained: “Using specialist equipment, we have identified the profile of a large infilled ditch over 3m deep and about 20m wide. It was probably constructed around 880–950AD, which exactly aligns with the time Oxford is thought to have been founded.” Oxford City archaeologist David Radford called it “a significant breakthrough in terms of understanding Oxford’s emergence”. The discovery was made as part of Oriel College’s project to rebuild the college kitchens and refurbish its bar.
• Times Higher Education has ranked Oxford the best university in the world for the ninth consecutive year, out of over 2,000 institutions assessed. Cambridge was fifth and Imperial ninth, with all others in the top 10 being US universities. In individual subjects, Oxford was first for Clinical & Health and Computer Science, and third for Social Sciences, Life Sciences and Education. For the second year, it scored a perfect 100 for its research environment.
• The Principal of Hertford College, Tom Fletcher, is to lead the UN's global humanitarian mission. He became Principal of Hertford College in 2020. He was previously foreign policy adviser to three UK Prime Ministers and the UK’s Ambassador to Lebanon.
• A wider “Oxford Valley” is emerging as a “collective vision around innovation in Oxford”, according to University of Oxford Vice-Chancellor Irene Tracey. She named Culham and Harwell laboratories, Oxford Brookes, and the Ellison Institute of Technology as other parts of the collaboration. Speaking in her annual Oration at the Sheldonian this week, she said that together with city and county councils and regional businesses, “we are now actively working on a collective narrative for what we believe we can achieve in collaboration here in the Oxford Valley”. She highlighted the number of spin-out businesses formed by Oxford researchers, saying: “We often tease our Cambridge counterparts that they were our first spin-out… followed by Oxford University Press.”

Trains and buses

• Chiltern Railways is refurbishing its long-distance fleet at a cost of £12m. The first came into service this week. The refurbished trains have USB sockets, improved wi-fi and a revised blue livery. Chiltern, which runs services to Marylebone from Oxford, Parkway, Bicester and Banbury, has the oldest fleet of any train operator at an average of over 30 years old. These Class 168 trains, the first ordered after privatisation in 1996, will be refurbished over the next two years. A tender has been issued for new trains but with no guarantee it will be taken up.
• CrossCountry Trains say restoring a half-hourly service from Oxford to Banbury and Birmingham remains only an “aspiration”. At a meeting organised by Railfuture Thames Valley this week, they were unable to commit to reinstating pre-Covid frequency in next May’s timetable change. Four trains each way will however return to the timetable in November, addressing gaps such as the current 16.40/18.12 in northbound departures. CrossCountry is receiving 12 off-lease Voyager trains, but several more will remain in store without Government approval to lease them. Railfuture’s Dave Richardson said he was “disappointed”:

It is the Government that decides what CrossCountry can and cannot do, and we call on the Department for Transport to allow it to lease more Voyager trains from next May. The overcrowding I have witnessed is simply unacceptable; I have even seen people standing in toilets and rammed up against doors. This can put off people from ever travelling by train. A fit-for-purpose rail network is essential to get traffic off the roads.

• Plans to build a “strategic railfreight interchange” at Heyford, just by M40 junction 10, are being revived. The project was paused in 2023 because of concerns about its impact on nearby roads. The site would fit between the Heyford Park housing development and the Chiltern main line railway. The promoters say “Work is ongoing to prepare updated information to hold a Stage 2 consultation”. As a nationally significant project, any planning decision would be taken by central Government rather than local councils. The project could employ up to 9,500 people.

Walking and cycling

• A new pedestrian and cycle bridge is planned to link Blackbird Leys with Cowley, the Tesco supermarket, and the ARC Oxford business park. The bridge would cross the Cowley Branch railway line next to the projected new ‘Oxford Cowley’ station. The selected design has shallow ramps for wheelchair users, and large turning circles for cyclists. A timber-concrete composite design “has become increasingly popular in other Northern European countries”, but architects say this would be the first of its kind in the UK. The bridge site is entirely within Oxford City Council and Network Rail land. It would connect to the existing A40 underpass to the north. The bridge is still at the proposal stage: no funding has yet been identified nor a planning application lodged.
• More bike parking is to be installed in central and north Oxford, on Broad Street, Brasenose Lane, Ship Street, Queens Lane, Leopold Street, Observatory Street and South Parade. The decision was signed off at an Oxfordshire County Council meeting on Thursday. The £55,000 cost is funded by developer contributions via the City Council, as we reported in July, but had to be approved by the County Council as highways authority. The ‘Sheffield stands’ will be installed on the main carriageway, in some places replacing parts of car parking bays.

Oxfordshire politics

With conference season over, our MPs got straight back to parliamentary business:

• Banbury’s Sean Woodcock attended the Banbury Canal Festival and has been out on the doorsteps. He called for a memorial for the pilots and navigators of the WW2 Photographic and Reconnaissance Unit. In Parliament he voted to ban no fault evictions and “to invest more money in state Schools”. He was extremely cutting about the two remaining Conservative leadership candidates. On 7 October he lent his voice to the Labour Friends of Palestine & the Middle East in their call for the release of the hostages and a ceasefire.
• Oxford East’s Anneliese Dodds congratulated Hertford College Principal Tom Fletcher on becoming the UN's new Head of Humanitarian Affairs – a neat Oxford connection to her Government role as Minister of State for Development. On 7 October she highlighted the city's interfaith vigil for peace.
• Oxford West & Abingdon’s Layla Moran set out a controversial position on the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, and recommended everyone interested in the issue of assisted dying (soon to go through the Commons) read this as a primer to the issue. She tabled a motion in Parliament on World Homelessness Day, calling the repeal of the Vagrancy act, which criminalises rough sleepers. She campaigned against Thames Water price hikes. She highlighted specialist Admiral dementia appointments being held in Abingdon. On 7 October, she recommended this piece on the Middle East by the BBC’s Jeremy Bowen [and so do we]; in a moving interview together with Alex Sobel MP, who has Israeli heritage, they both called for peace in Israel/Palestine.
• Bicester & Woodstock MP Calum Miller marked World Mental Health day by calling for an end to the stigma on mental health issues and signposting resources available in his constituency. On 7 October, in a long thread, he reflected on the horrors of the day and called for an immediate and bilateral ceasefire in the Middle East
• Henley & Thame's Freddie van Mierlo was protesting against a planned concrete crushing site last week. This week he celebrated victory as the application was withdrawn. He shared startling footage of flooding in Wheatley, and invited residents to respond to a county council investigation on the flooding in order to ensure it didn’t happen again. He met with the Renters Reform Coalition. On 7 October he called for all Israeli hostages in Gaza to be released.
• Witney's Charlie Maynard shared this reel of his long walk though the constituency (and did indeed show us his dog. Perhaps he read our last roundup?). He flagged up the downsides of Brexit to small businesses in the wine trade. On 7 October he attended a memorial in Parliament, and highlighted an AP article on the conflict in Gaza.
• Didcot & Wantage MP Olly Glover spoke in Parliament about his experience of renting, and about receiving an eviction notice the day after he was elected. He met with representatives of MND the Motor Neurone Disease charity, as a former MND volunteer himself, and also with CAMRA who are calling on the Chancellor to use the budget to support community pubs and breweries. [The Clarion is always happy to support community pubs and breweries.] On 7 October he too lent his voice to calls for an immediate bilateral ceasefire.

The Conservatives, of course, are in the throes of a leadership election: local councillors watched the result live and discussed it. It is fair to say they were not expecting the final two to be Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick.

Local Conservative leader Eddie Reeves and former Oxford West & Abingdon candidate Vinay Raniga are both backing Kemi Badenoch. Cllr Reeves told the BBC: “Kemi Badenoch has a lot of potential – whether upwards or downwards we know not at this time.”

But Liam Walker, councillor for Hanborough & Minster Lovell, expressed concern. Speaking to the Guardian, he said: “The centre ground is where we win elections, and it’s where we managed to more or less wipe out the LibDems here in the past. This feels like a lurch to the right. Immigration is an issue among voters here but it’s fair to say that leaving the ECHR isn’t really something that comes up on the doorstep.”

This weekend

• Oxford’s Beer & Cider Festival started on Thursday at the Town Hall. 40 breweries and cider producers are represented, including 10 from Oxfordshire – from the well-known Tap Social Brewery, Little Ox and Loose Cannon to smaller breweries like Craftsman and Barn Owl. The festival aims to show that Oxfordshire brewing remains “buoyant” despite the closure of Wychwood in Witney. Anneli Baxter of Abingdon’s Loose Cannon said: “The Oxford festival will allow breweries from Oxfordshire and further afield to engage with a new audience.” The festival runs from 3–11pm Thu, 11am–11pm Fri, and 12–9pm Sat. With 140 real ales, 20 ciders and 40 craft keg beers on offer, organisers say there will be plenty left to try on Saturday. Entry is £18 including a glass and £10 of tokens.
• The Oxford Half Marathon takes place this weekend. A pancake flat and therefore super fast course, it winds through historic Oxford, taking in Old Marston Village, the River Cherwell and finishing on Parks Road. Expect road closures, the smell of sweat, Deep Heat and adrenaline, and the odd discarded banana skin. Good luck to all those running and marshalling.

Notes from Clarion HQ

We have been musing on the announcement from Reach, one of the three companies that dominate local newspaper publishing, that their journalists will now have a story target of eight per shift. We extend our sympathies to local journalists everywhere: that can be a tough ask. Some days we have barely anything; some days we are inundated with things we feel you need to know. All this is unhelpful to the mysterious gods of the algorithms, so know that we do really appreciate every like and share from the wonderful community of readers we seem to have built. Thanks for sharing the Clarion love.