The Clarion, 27 October 2026

The Oxford Green Fair in the Town Hall this weekend. (Photo by Roger Close.)

Pubs, poplars, a penny farthing, public transport, (free) parking, the best of politics. Give ‘P’s a chance with your ever-varied Clarion this Tuesday lunchtime.

This week’s long read

Deep in the South Oxfordshire countryside lies a country estate which makes regular, intriguing appearances in the Clarion’s event listings. Song weekends. International film festivals. Art exhibitions. “Experiences out of the mainstream.” What, exactly, is going on at the mysterious Braziers Park? Anand Madhvani tells all.

This week’s top stories

The Oxford student branch of Reform UK has invited self-styled “race realist” Nathan Cofnas to speak. Cofnas, whose Substack was linked to the hounding of Jason Arday, said he aims to be “head of eugenics and race science at Harvard”. Emmanuel College (Cambridge) cut ties with him after he stated that Black people were less intelligent than other groups, and he has since been suspended by Ghent University.

Reform have booked a room at Oriel College. In a carefully worded statement, the college says “the event is a student booking by a registered university society”, and cite their “legal obligations and procedures relating to freedom of speech” – a nod to the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, introduced by repeatedly dismissed Conservative education secretary Gavin Williamson. Oriel’s provost Lord Mendoza, however, added:

“Cofnas has publicly expressed views about race and racial differences that many will find deeply offensive and distressing. We understand that members of our community are concerned about the event and recognise that those who may feel personally targeted by his views are likely to be particularly upset.”

In its Michaelmas termcard, the Oxon Universities’ Reform Society (which has not been established long enough to use ‘Oxford University’ in its title) takes hard-right positions beyond even those of the national party. In the context of legal migrants, it asks: “How do we obtain an electoral endorsement for mass deportations? What are the practicalities of ensuring an effective programme of removals?” Its President, Vittorio P. Cuneo-Flood, adds “the people of this nation are set to be a minority within our lifetimes”. A whole page of regulations strictly forbids making recordings at society events, threatening legal action against anyone who tries.

Oxford Stand Up To Racism has announced a protest at 5pm on 17 November in Oriel Square. Student newspaper Cherwell has reported that another booked speaker for the Reform society has already pulled out in protest at Cofnas’s appearance.

Lime hire bikes have disappeared from Oxford’s streets. The operator has left the city after Oxfordshire County Council awarded a new ‘micromobility’ contract, covering hire bikes and e-scooters, to competitor Voi. The new deal will see e-bikes rolled out to Didcot, Bicester, and potentially Abingdon. A Lime spokeperson said:

“We're sad to be leaving Oxford following Oxfordshire County Council's decision to move to a single operator. We've loved serving the community since we launched in September 2024, and it has been a pleasure to help thousands of residents choose greener travel – more than 210,000 trips this year alone. Thank you to everyone who rode with us, and to the council for working with us.”

Local people are being shut out of decisions on their area, says Vale of White Horse District Council. A debate at last week’s council meeting centred on the proposed Cearn Solar Farm, Botley West Solar Farm, and White Horse (Abingdon) Reservoir, all of which count as ‘nationally significant infrastructure projects’ and will thus be determined by central Government rather than elected councillors.

VoWH says that the number of such projects in its own area is “unusually high”. Council leader Bethia Thomas (LibDem) said:

“If they’re wholly decided in London, the impact on local people can’t be properly taken into consideration. These represent major planning and socio-economic changes in the Vale. We know better than national government what is best for our communities, but we have little control in the approval process.”

The sole Conservative councillor on VoWH, Lee Evans, complained that his motion had been “hijacked”, and bemoaned a LibDem amendment to remove his contention that solar panels should go on rooftops and industrial sites. (LibDem county councillor for Abingdon North, Nathan Ley, recently criticised the ‘rooftop first’ argument in a densely argued Substack piece.)

Actual cheese. (See ‘Around the county’ for more.)

Local government cheese news, part 738. Oxfordshire’s councils have signed up to an elected Thames Valley Mayor, also encompassing Berkshire and Swindon. A letter was submitted in time for Wednesday’s Budget, when a Government announcement is expected.

The elected mayor would take control over strategic housing and transport issues. PM Andy Burnham was of course formerly mayor of Greater Manchester, and sees devolution to elected mayors as a major part of his programme – with the unspoken threat that areas without mayors will miss out on funding. Oxfordshire County Council has voiced disappointment that the projected area will include Swindon, but not Buckinghamshire, as well as expressing concern at the rushed nature of the proposals.

Meanwhile, a decision is expected soon on the (paused) programme to carve up Oxfordshire into three councils: Greater Oxford, Ridgeway, and runt-of-the-litter North Oxfordshire. The process was halted in September after several incumbent county councils threatened legal action, but the three-council split is still believed to be the frontrunner. Oxfordshire County Council has continued to press Government to publish the thinking behind its decision.

Around the city

Queen Street outside the Westgate Centre has reopened after a month-long closure to resurface the road. Pedestrians had been corralled into a narrow walkway along the Westgate frontage, while buses had been diverted along Castle Street. The previous paved surface, commissioned at a time when the intention was to fully pedestrianise the road, had suffered damage from buses including heavy electric ones. However, bus companies appealed against the closure to the (then) transport secretary Chris Grayling, who overruled the pedestrianisation plan.

The Oxford Oratory, Oxford’s city centre Catholic church on Woodstock Road, is undertaking a £3.3m restoration project with the aim of reinstating its high altar in the original location. So far, the church has raised £1.3m towards its target and donations are invited. The altar was moved forward in the 1970s and the original decoration painted over. The restorers write:

“The old altar has been completely dismantled and its concrete foundations are now visible. The old flooring has been salvaged. The walls crossing the sanctuary supported the floor and will support the new one. The ledge that formerly held the tabernacle has been taken down. It was surrounded by (now rare) English alabaster pieces recycled from the original altar; these are too small to form any part of the new altar, but they’ve been saved to be reused for something else in the future.”

The Rumble Museum at Cheney School held a Victorian Festival last week, which saw the arrival of a Ferris Wheel in the centre of the school. Students and visitors enjoyed Victorian-themed activities. including blacksmithing demonstrations and penny farthings. Further entertainment was provided by the History of Science Museum who brought a range of Victorian toys; the Bodleian, who brought a tabletop printing press; the Walking Forest, who ran activities themed on the suffragettes; and the Isis Lacemakers, who ran demonstrations on lacemaking. The Rumble Museum is the only Arts Council accredited museum in a school. Cheney School's Ofsted report rated it ‘good’ with the report citing the school's rich curriculum.
The Prince of Wales pub in Iffley has been awarded an AA Rosette for culinary excellence. The accolade marks a milestone for the pub, which reopened in 2023 after eight months, and hosts community events including games nights and a monthly sip and paint evening. Mathew, who heads the kitchen, introduces a new menu each season built around seasonal produce and cooked from scratch on site. (We want the warm mushroom salad and we're not even vegetarian.) He said: “We’re incredibly proud. When we took the pub on, the food was always going to be at the heart of it, and to have that recognised by the AA means a huge amount to the whole team.”
Oxford has Britain’s 10th best ‘pub scene’, according to an analysis by Capital on Tap. The rankings showed the city’s pubs had “the highest online search demand per capita in Britain”, but also the most expensive pints (£6.75) outside London (£7.00). Sunderland was cheapest at £3.25. Oxford has 3.92 pubs per 10,000 residents, half that of overall winner Brighton & Hove.

All the fun of the Green Fair. (Photos by Roger Close.)

The weekend saw Oxford's 45th Green Fair, an annual market organised by the local branch of the Green Party. 80 stalls were set up in the Town Hall, including local independents offering wares ranging from pottery, jewellery, books to Palestinian olive oil and chocolate. Half of the stalls exhibited community campaigns and charities like Cyclox, the Oxford PSC, Green New Deal Rising, Shotover Wildlife, and Make Votes Matter. The organisers estimate around 800 visitors came by to mingle, get informed, shop and eat homemade food provided by volunteers. Next year’s Green Fair will be held on 20 November 2027.

Around the county

Puy du Fou, the French historical theme park company proposing to open a resort near Bicester, have submitted a whole tranche of new documents to persuade Cherwell District Council to give permission. The changes, which are intended to respond to consultation feedback from local councils and others, include improved habitat connectivity between areas of ancient woodland (OUFC fans may be allowed a wry chuckle at this point); an overall reduction in the size of the development; and improvements to the cycleway along the B4100 from Bicester. Puy du Fou say that the result is that the resort will be “less visible and better integrated within the surrounding landscape”. No date has yet been set for a final decision.
Wallingford is staking its claim on the missing final panel of the Bayeux Tapestry. Local volunteer embroiderers will assemble tomorrow to stitch three final scenes, including Archbishop Stigand swearing allegiance to William the Conqueror in the town in November 1066. Wallingford’s declaration of fealty allowed William to cross the Thames unopposed on his way to his coronation at Westminster Abbey. The new panel was designed by local councillor and medieval historian Katharine Keats-Rohan, who said: “What was accidentally lost in the hurly-burly of the French Revolution will be recreated here in Wallingford.” The finished panel will be displayed at Wallingford Museum as part of 2027’s ‘European Year of the Normans’.
“Prove it before you proceed”: A community campaign group is mounting a legal challenge to the Government’s decision not to carry out a full Environmental Impact Assessment for the proposed asylum accommodation development at MOD Bicester Site A. The challenge has been brought by Bicester Countryside & Communities CIC, the legal entity supporting Wrong Plan Wrong Site, a non-political campaign group representing more than 50,000 residents opposing the proposal.
The Government issued an Urgent Crown Development application, allowing it to bypass normal planning rules – but Wrong Plan Wrong Site believes that in rushing to get the application through, the Government failed to consider the potential environmental effects of the development. A spokesperson said: “There are credible concerns about potential significant environmental effects. These include protected wildlife, wastewater, artificial lighting, traffic and other impacts. We want the Court to examine whether the Government lawfully concluded that an EIA was unnecessary. Our message is simple: Prove it before you proceed.”
The return of the black poplar, Britain's rarest tree species; restoration of a chalk grassland in the Cotswolds; and a wildflower meadow restoration project in Eynsham are among six significant nature recovery projects lined up for further work in the county. Cllr Laura Gordon for Oxfordshire County Council said: “These projects are built to last, with plans to sustain their impacts well beyond any single funding cycle. Publishing these projects is just the first step. We will continue working with and through the Local Nature Partnership to help these projects unlock the funding they need.”

The Bell in Faringdon. (Photo by Colin Smith at geograph.org.uk, CC-BY-SA.)

A historic coaching inn in Faringdon could be converted into flats with a ground-floor coffee shop. The Bell was (probably) built on the site of a 13th century hospice run by Cistercian monks from Beaulieu Abbey, and has significant 17th-19th century phases; it has been closed since 2023. (Take a look at these amazing interior photos.) The applicants call the proposal a “light-touch” conversion which “does not require extensions or significant additions”. Vale of White Horse council officers have asked for evidence to prove that the pub is no longer a viable business, and expressed concern that the ground floor will be split up. Local councillors Bethia Thomas and Lucy Edwards (LibDem) said: “This is a tough call as everybody would want to see The Bell Hotel to return to being a thriving pub and hotel. However, we also don't want to see such an iconic building empty and decaying. We will do what we can to influence the decision: sadly the Labour government has just made significant changes to the planning process which limits our ability to influence as much as we could before.”
The Reluctant Cheesemonger, the new venture from Oxford Cheese Company founder Baron Robert Pouget de Saint Victor, has begun trading in Milton-under-Wychwood between Chipping Norton and Burford. It opens Thursday–Saturday selling cheese made with milk from “small farms where animals are respected”. The shop is in Groves Yard, between an old-fashioned hardware store and the Rise & Flour cafe.

Oxfordshire politics

Banbury MP Sean Woodcock (Lab) wrote for LabourList in anticipation of a Thames Valley Mayor announcement, saying it would turbocharge growth. Alongside other rural MPs, he met the Prime Minister to discuss priorities for people in small towns and villages. Not to be outdone by the county’s LibDem MPs, he joined 28 Labour members to demand the PM nationalise Thames Water. On a lighter note, he has a competition for local children to design his constituency Christmas card.

Bicester & Woodstock MP Calum Miller (LibDem) is back on the MOD Bicester beat, writing to the planning minister saying that the government must not push through a decision before the legal challenge posted by Wrong Plan Wrong Site is resolved. He spoke out in Parliament against the Sustainable Farming Initiative which farmers in his constituency rely on, asking that the 2027 round is run and funded better. He celebrated the announcement that LibDem-run Oxfordshire County Council has committed £10m to secure the London Road underpass in Bicester, in anticipation of East West Rail running ~~more~~ any trains across the level crossing.
Witney MP Charlie Maynard (LibDem) called on the Government to block stamp price rises until delivery targets are met by the Royal Mail: so far this year they delivered only 74.9% of first-class mail on time, vs a target of 93%. (The minister said no.) He too spoke out against the Sustainable Farming Incentive, which he said left many small farmers without support they were relying on: the first-come-first-served fund ran out within six hours.

Anneliese Dodds and campaigners in Cutteslowe which, last we looked, was in Oxford West and Abingdon. Speculations as to why to news@oxfordclarion.uk

Oxford East MP Anneliese Dodds (Lab) spent the week warning about the dangers of AI. She took part in a discussion on the speed and scale of change and the need for regulation, going on to celebrate Government support for the AI Security Institute, the National Cyber Shield and the National Exposure & Real Time Vulnerability (Nerv) Centre. (We’re getting She-Ra in Grayskull vibes here.) If there’s an upside to working on digital sovereignty, it is needing to work closer with allies such as France, which former MEP Dodds is advocating.

Oxford West & Abingdon MP Layla Moran (LibDem) met the First Secretary of State, Louise Haigh, to discuss how to tackle child suicide – the leading cause of death for people under 35 in the UK. Rates among 15 to 19-year-olds are now at their highest in 30 years. In more local news, the Health Secretary agreed to meet her to discuss a new maternity unit at the John Radcliffe. (Can't come soon enough. We have views on this one.)

Olly Glover with Vale Councillor Hayleigh Gascoigne at the Culham Glow Ride.

Didcot & Wantage MP Olly Glover (LibDem), Oxfordshire’s foremost plant-forward food blogger, clearly picked up on our disappointment at no food content last week; this week he has been at Wantage's surplus food cafe, Planted Plates in Signal Yard, and the Vine & Spice in Long Wittenham. Back on his bike, he attended the Glow Ride around Didcot as part of the campaign highlighting the need for safer streets and better cycle routes for everyone, all year round.

Van Mierlo visiting Thames Valley Air Ambulance HQ (not, in fact, an extra on *Midsomer Murders*).

Henley & Thame MP Freddie van Mierlo (LibDem) visited the fire service last week and the Thames Valley Air Ambulance this week, so we can only assume he will have a meeting with the police next week. (As perhaps will Nigel Farage.) In Parliament, he raised concerns to funding cuts that threaten Harwell Campus.
Thames Valley Police & Crime Commissioner Matthew Barber (Con) is encouraging residents across the Thames Valley to ‘Lock it. Light it. Hide it. Report it’ in a new campaign to prevent burglary, launched as the clocks go back and evenings become darker. He chaired the Thames Valley Retail Crime Forum, bringing together retailers, improvement districts and local councils, who discussed how improved reporting by retailers leads to increased conviction rates for shop theft and assaults on staff.

University and research

The University of Oxford has launched a new interdisciplinary MSc in Law, Governance and AI, beginning in October 2027. It will be taught by academics with expertise spanning computation, data law, public law, politics and international relations. Ben Ansell, Professor of Comparative Democratic Institutions, says social impact must be considered alongside the computational framework underpinning LLMs: “What do these things do? And how can we make them do things that would be useful for societal purposes?”
Consider how the wildflowers grow: Another Oxford college is converting its lawn to a wildflower meadow. Jesus College says that watering the lawn is no longer sustainable given the increased frequency of summer heatwaves and droughts. Seeds will be sown this month in order to bloom next summer.
Robin Niblett has been installed as 47th warden of New College. A former civil servant and international relations expert, he was joined by his 94- and 90-year old parents for the ceremony. The college choir sang a specially composed anthem featuring the word ‘Welcome’ in all the languages represented in the current college community.

Purl of a story: Designer Emma Vining has created knitting patterns inspired by the hexagonal architecture of the modernist 'Beehive' at St John's. The patterns are published in The Knitter this month, and Clarion readers are invited to a free workshop at the college. And a DPhil student has knitted a sweater recreating a famous view of Oxford by J.M.W. Turner (not to be confused with his contemporary William Turner of Oxford). 'The High Street, Oxford' (1810) was saved for the Ashmolean with the help of a public appeal in 2015.

Business and tech

Kidlington-based ColdQuanta has won Government funding to develop a compact, mobile quantum radio system that can locate signals with high accuracy. It could support operational intelligence in the military, strengthen the resilience of critical infrastructure such as airports, and help emergency responders locate distress signals. The Government announced investment of £50m in quantum tech with real world applications last week.
OXCCU, the University spin-out developing sustainable aviation fuels, has applied for an environmental permit for a demonstration plant producing up to 100 tonnes per year at Oxford Airport. The demonstrator, called OX2, uses a proprietary catalytic oligomerisation process to assemble fuel molecules methane, carbon dioxide and hydrogen. The OX2 demonstrator will build on OXCCU's OX1 demonstrator, which has been producing up to 1kg of SAF per day since 2024. OXCCU is based in Kidlington.
Biotech boost: OMass Therapeutics, based at ARC Oxford on Garsington Road, has announced an oversubscribed £230m Series C funding round. This will move its drug for congenital adrenal hyperplasia through clinical trials and support a wider drug discovery pipeline. OMass is a spin-out of the University of Oxford and specialises in drug discovery and development through proprietary cell-free approaches and mass spectrometry.
An Oxford-based firm which concentrates sunlight to heat air, and stores the heat in rock beds for industrial use, is one of 10 innovators chosen to receive a £100,000 investment from impact investor Blue Earth. Odqa, yet another university spin-out, says its aim is “to replace fossil flames in the world’s most carbon-intensive sectors”.
Harwell’s new CO:LABS life sciences hub has signed up Oxford University Innovation to join Agilent and the Rosalind Franklin Institute as founding members. The hub provides space for start-up to mid-sized businesses, including labs, meeting and social spaces.

This way to Oxford City Farm (Fisher Studios)

Trains and buses

NHS staff and teachers in Oxford are to get subsidised bus travel to and from work, as well as free parking at Park & Rides. The benefits are funded by Oxfordshire County Council’s congestion charge scheme, now replaced by the traffic filters. Hospital express buses from the Park & Rides are expected to start early next year. Luke Marion from Oxford Bus Company said: “The congestion charge was a success in reducing traffic on Oxford’s roads and it’s essential that the funds raised support initiatives to encourage more sustainable travel.” Eligible staff at hospitals and schools can apply online using their work email address.
A new railway station at Wantage & Grove would be “more than usually complex” but could readily attract 500,000 passengers a year, or more when new housing is built. A study for Oxfordshire County Council prices it at £44m, but cautions that track and signalling upgrades could raise the cost. The study considered ten possible locations. The railway here is 2-track in some places, 4-track in others. Fitting stopping trains in among the expresses to Bristol and Cardiff is viewed as a challenge, especially as Network Rail has classified the line as “likely congested infrastructure”. For OCC, Cllr Gareth Epps said: “The report shows Wantage & Grove is ripe for rail investment and justifies our calls for a station.” Local MP Olly Glover said: “I will continue to champion this campaign, which is so important for the growing communities of Grove and Wantage.”
All aboard for the Oxford City Farm, which is newly showcased on the back of an Oxford Bus Company bus as the runner-up in their 2026 Brand the Bus competition. Cath Wilson, co-chair of Oxford City Farm, said: “We grow communities as well as food and many who come to the Farm say how vital it is to their wellbeing. We are delighted at the opportunity it gives us to spread news about our charity across the whole of Oxfordshire.” Oxford City Farm can be reached by multiple buses serving Freelands Road and Cornwallis Close bus stops.
Witney’s bus co-op is aiming to join the bus fare cap scheme. West Oxfordshire Community Transport has not yet taken part in the Government-funded reduced fares, but says that with £2 fares starting in January, “we are doing all we can to try and make sure we can be a part of the programme”.
Yesterday marked 40 years since bus deregulation, the Thatcher-era reform that took bus operation out of the hands of state-run companies. Oxford was a fiercely-fought frontline in the resulting ‘bus wars’, with plucky startup Thames Transit – renowned for its blackbird-liveried minibuses – taking on the venerable City of Oxford Motor Services. The two companies were each acquired by bus groups in the mid-90s, becoming Stagecoach Oxford and GoAhead’s Oxford Bus Company respectively. As if to mark a symbolic postscript to the competitive era, the two operators together, plus Oxfordshire County Council, have been shortlisted in the ‘Partnership for Excellence’ category at this year’s UK Bus Awards for the project introducing a 173-strong electric bus fleet to the county.

Notes from Clarion HQ

Our online alert for “news stories containing the word ‘Oxford’ ” has been ringing non-stop this week – not with the imminent flurry of major Government announcements about the city (council cheese, Thames Valley Mayor, Growth Commission report, development corporation), but with the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street, London. We leave capital commentary to London Centric, of course, but it’s a delight to see such an iconic street become a space to stroll, meander and gather once again. Maybe it will give Oxford’s politicians the confidence to ask what’s to be done with the High? Have a great week.