Oxford Clarion
@oxfordclarion.bsky.social
News for Oxfordshire. Est. 2022.
Email newsletter twice a week: https://oxfordclarion.uk
For stories: news@oxfordclarion.uk
Email newsletter twice a week: https://oxfordclarion.uk
For stories: news@oxfordclarion.uk
Pinned
Clarion Weekend, 21 November 2025
Weekly weekend warmth from the Clarion right this way. It may be cold, but in here are gems of stories to warm your heart. Plus the latest on the illegal rubbish dump in Kidlington and bird flu in Wit...
oxfordclarion.uk
Your Oxford Clarion weekend newsletter is out! Featuring:
🎾 Green Belt padel court refused
🛻 Who will clean up the Kidlington dump?
👩👧 SEND latest
☕️ Vaults & Garden on the move…
📚 …and Waterstones reopening imminent
Come for the cats, stay for the best in local news: oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-week...
🎾 Green Belt padel court refused
🛻 Who will clean up the Kidlington dump?
👩👧 SEND latest
☕️ Vaults & Garden on the move…
📚 …and Waterstones reopening imminent
Come for the cats, stay for the best in local news: oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-week...
A 25-hour church organ marathon is taking place in Bicester today for the Royal School of Church Music. Their director Hugh Morris is playing a selection of organ pieces and hymns, with singing by choirs from around Oxfordshire and elsewhere. www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYwN...
The Director’s Challenge 2025 – Part 3 – 9am to 6pm
YouTube video by The Royal School of Church Music
www.youtube.com
November 22, 2025 at 2:40 PM
A 25-hour church organ marathon is taking place in Bicester today for the Royal School of Church Music. Their director Hugh Morris is playing a selection of organ pieces and hymns, with singing by choirs from around Oxfordshire and elsewhere. www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYwN...
Early signs suggest an outbreak of bird flu (H5N1) in Oxfordshire. Following a dead swan in Witney which was subsequently confirmed by testing to have avian influenza, cases were confirmed yesterday in Blenheim and on Port Meadow.
November 22, 2025 at 9:33 AM
Early signs suggest an outbreak of bird flu (H5N1) in Oxfordshire. Following a dead swan in Witney which was subsequently confirmed by testing to have avian influenza, cases were confirmed yesterday in Blenheim and on Port Meadow.
Once more for the weekend long read crowd 👇
Your Oxford Clarion weekend newsletter is out! Featuring:
🎾 Green Belt padel court refused
🛻 Who will clean up the Kidlington dump?
👩👧 SEND latest
☕️ Vaults & Garden on the move…
📚 …and Waterstones reopening imminent
Come for the cats, stay for the best in local news: oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-week...
🎾 Green Belt padel court refused
🛻 Who will clean up the Kidlington dump?
👩👧 SEND latest
☕️ Vaults & Garden on the move…
📚 …and Waterstones reopening imminent
Come for the cats, stay for the best in local news: oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-week...
Clarion Weekend, 21 November 2025
Weekly weekend warmth from the Clarion right this way. It may be cold, but in here are gems of stories to warm your heart. Plus the latest on the illegal rubbish dump in Kidlington and bird flu in Wit...
oxfordclarion.uk
November 22, 2025 at 7:35 AM
Once more for the weekend long read crowd 👇
Thank you to everyone emailing us with cats we've missed.
We will continue to update the article. We have the very best readers. 😻🐾
oxfordclarion.uk/college-cats...
We will continue to update the article. We have the very best readers. 😻🐾
oxfordclarion.uk/college-cats...
College cats of Oxford
Once upon a time, we featured an image of Magdalen's kitten, Ozymandias, in our newsletter. We figured it might be a gentle contrast to our regular diet of planning and local politics.
The grey ball ...
oxfordclarion.uk
November 21, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Thank you to everyone emailing us with cats we've missed.
We will continue to update the article. We have the very best readers. 😻🐾
oxfordclarion.uk/college-cats...
We will continue to update the article. We have the very best readers. 😻🐾
oxfordclarion.uk/college-cats...
Trains to Oxford in the run-up to Christmas will be disrupted. The RMT union has announced industrial action on CrossCountry services – which include Oxford to Banbury, Birmingham and Reading – on Saturdays in December. www.rmt.org.uk/news/rmt-ann...
RMT announces strike action on CrossCountry
RMT will take strike action on CrossCountry next month after the company failed to resolve long-running issues on pay, staffing and previously agreed commitments.
www.rmt.org.uk
November 21, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Trains to Oxford in the run-up to Christmas will be disrupted. The RMT union has announced industrial action on CrossCountry services – which include Oxford to Banbury, Birmingham and Reading – on Saturdays in December. www.rmt.org.uk/news/rmt-ann...
It is absolutely freezing. Market traders across Oxfordshire will freeze their feet off to bring you fantastic local produce this weekend. We're sure they'd love lots and lots of smiling customers. Here's our market directory - find your nearest one. 👇
oxfordclarion.uk/oxfordshire-...
oxfordclarion.uk/oxfordshire-...
Oxfordshire Market Directory
Looking for fresh food, affordable clothes, or simply fed up with trudging round supermarkets? Oxfordshire’s markets might have the answer.
We’ve taken a look at the history of the county’s markets i...
oxfordclarion.uk
November 21, 2025 at 4:39 PM
It is absolutely freezing. Market traders across Oxfordshire will freeze their feet off to bring you fantastic local produce this weekend. We're sure they'd love lots and lots of smiling customers. Here's our market directory - find your nearest one. 👇
oxfordclarion.uk/oxfordshire-...
oxfordclarion.uk/oxfordshire-...
Paw-sitively golden: ODS, Oxford City Council's service company, has been awarded the RSPCA's prestigious PawPrints Gold Award, recognising dedication to protecting and caring for the city's stray and lost dogs. This is the second year running Oxford has won this award.
November 21, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Paw-sitively golden: ODS, Oxford City Council's service company, has been awarded the RSPCA's prestigious PawPrints Gold Award, recognising dedication to protecting and caring for the city's stray and lost dogs. This is the second year running Oxford has won this award.
* Mariah Carey voice* IT'S TIIIIME!
Oxford's Christmas market is almost complete and ready to welcome visitors. It opens tomorrow - there's a countdown clock here www.christmasinoxford.co.uk
It will feature, as you can see, a carousel, a Ferris wheel, an alpine bar and more, including live music.
Oxford's Christmas market is almost complete and ready to welcome visitors. It opens tomorrow - there's a countdown clock here www.christmasinoxford.co.uk
It will feature, as you can see, a carousel, a Ferris wheel, an alpine bar and more, including live music.
November 21, 2025 at 3:37 PM
* Mariah Carey voice* IT'S TIIIIME!
Oxford's Christmas market is almost complete and ready to welcome visitors. It opens tomorrow - there's a countdown clock here www.christmasinoxford.co.uk
It will feature, as you can see, a carousel, a Ferris wheel, an alpine bar and more, including live music.
Oxford's Christmas market is almost complete and ready to welcome visitors. It opens tomorrow - there's a countdown clock here www.christmasinoxford.co.uk
It will feature, as you can see, a carousel, a Ferris wheel, an alpine bar and more, including live music.
The Government of Pakistan has gifted a major contemporary Islamic artwork to the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies — the first time Pakistan is represented in the Centre’s permanent collection.
November 21, 2025 at 1:40 PM
The Government of Pakistan has gifted a major contemporary Islamic artwork to the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies — the first time Pakistan is represented in the Centre’s permanent collection.
Your Oxford Clarion weekend newsletter is out! Featuring:
🎾 Green Belt padel court refused
🛻 Who will clean up the Kidlington dump?
👩👧 SEND latest
☕️ Vaults & Garden on the move…
📚 …and Waterstones reopening imminent
Come for the cats, stay for the best in local news: oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-week...
🎾 Green Belt padel court refused
🛻 Who will clean up the Kidlington dump?
👩👧 SEND latest
☕️ Vaults & Garden on the move…
📚 …and Waterstones reopening imminent
Come for the cats, stay for the best in local news: oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-week...
Clarion Weekend, 21 November 2025
Weekly weekend warmth from the Clarion right this way. It may be cold, but in here are gems of stories to warm your heart. Plus the latest on the illegal rubbish dump in Kidlington and bird flu in Wit...
oxfordclarion.uk
November 21, 2025 at 12:18 PM
Your Oxford Clarion weekend newsletter is out! Featuring:
🎾 Green Belt padel court refused
🛻 Who will clean up the Kidlington dump?
👩👧 SEND latest
☕️ Vaults & Garden on the move…
📚 …and Waterstones reopening imminent
Come for the cats, stay for the best in local news: oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-week...
🎾 Green Belt padel court refused
🛻 Who will clean up the Kidlington dump?
👩👧 SEND latest
☕️ Vaults & Garden on the move…
📚 …and Waterstones reopening imminent
Come for the cats, stay for the best in local news: oxfordclarion.uk/clarion-week...
Plans have been lodged for 200 new homes and a community building – which could potentially house a doctor’s surgery – on the site of a golf course in Shrivenham. Bloor Homes also propose an ‘active travel corridor’, new zebra crossings, and cycle lanes to the site.
November 21, 2025 at 10:41 AM
Plans have been lodged for 200 new homes and a community building – which could potentially house a doctor’s surgery – on the site of a golf course in Shrivenham. Bloor Homes also propose an ‘active travel corridor’, new zebra crossings, and cycle lanes to the site.
ICYMI 😺
Walter de Staplecat, Simpkin IV, Teabag, Balthasar and Benny D Cat take the stage as we meet the college cats of Oxford. And, of course, Magdalen’s Ozymandias. Read on for our photo special. (Includes a cat map.) oxfordclarion.uk/college-cats...
College cats of Oxford
Once upon a time, we featured an image of Magdalen's kitten, Ozymandias, in our newsletter. We figured it might be a gentle contrast to our regular diet of planning and local politics.
The grey ball ...
oxfordclarion.uk
November 21, 2025 at 6:53 AM
ICYMI 😺
A dead swan found at Witney Lake has tested positive for bird flu (H5N1). A second swan has since died. Witney Town Council says it is working with the appropriate agencies and has asked people not to collect or touch dead birds, but to contact the Defra helpline.
November 20, 2025 at 4:41 PM
A dead swan found at Witney Lake has tested positive for bird flu (H5N1). A second swan has since died. Witney Town Council says it is working with the appropriate agencies and has asked people not to collect or touch dead birds, but to contact the Defra helpline.
Apparently we missed a cat. With apologies to Green Templeton's Vincent, we have now included you. Constantly striving for purrfection at Clarion HQ.
Walter de Staplecat, Simpkin IV, Teabag, Balthasar and Benny D Cat take the stage as we meet the college cats of Oxford. And, of course, Magdalen’s Ozymandias. Read on for our photo special. (Includes a cat map.) oxfordclarion.uk/college-cats...
College cats of Oxford
Once upon a time, we featured an image of Magdalen's kitten, Ozymandias, in our newsletter. We figured it might be a gentle contrast to our regular diet of planning and local politics.
The grey ball ...
oxfordclarion.uk
November 20, 2025 at 3:31 PM
Apparently we missed a cat. With apologies to Green Templeton's Vincent, we have now included you. Constantly striving for purrfection at Clarion HQ.
Chiltern Railways has confirmed Oxford to Milton Keynes services will not start this year. The delay, first reported by the Clarion in September, has been picked up by national media this week. Chiltern says “We understand this will be disappointing to people looking forward to using the new route.”
November 20, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Chiltern Railways has confirmed Oxford to Milton Keynes services will not start this year. The delay, first reported by the Clarion in September, has been picked up by national media this week. Chiltern says “We understand this will be disappointing to people looking forward to using the new route.”
Oxford City Council’s planning committee has rejected a plan by two colleges to build padel courts and new footpaths because, among other reasons, it “fails to preserve the openness of the Green Belt”. The City Council is currently bidding to enlarge its area so that it can build on the Green Belt.
November 20, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Oxford City Council’s planning committee has rejected a plan by two colleges to build padel courts and new footpaths because, among other reasons, it “fails to preserve the openness of the Green Belt”. The City Council is currently bidding to enlarge its area so that it can build on the Green Belt.
Wait, there are college dogs?!
We need more details. Also we do not discriminate between cat people and dog people. It’s fine if you like both. Or neither.
#WearealltheClarion
We need more details. Also we do not discriminate between cat people and dog people. It’s fine if you like both. Or neither.
#WearealltheClarion
I'm sure that we would all appreciate a run down of the college dogs. Surely there's space for @reubencollege.bsky.social's beloved Scrumble!
November 20, 2025 at 12:05 PM
Wait, there are college dogs?!
We need more details. Also we do not discriminate between cat people and dog people. It’s fine if you like both. Or neither.
#WearealltheClarion
We need more details. Also we do not discriminate between cat people and dog people. It’s fine if you like both. Or neither.
#WearealltheClarion
Walter de Staplecat, Simpkin IV, Teabag, Balthasar and Benny D Cat take the stage as we meet the college cats of Oxford. And, of course, Magdalen’s Ozymandias. Read on for our photo special. (Includes a cat map.) oxfordclarion.uk/college-cats...
College cats of Oxford
Once upon a time, we featured an image of Magdalen's kitten, Ozymandias, in our newsletter. We figured it might be a gentle contrast to our regular diet of planning and local politics.
The grey ball ...
oxfordclarion.uk
November 20, 2025 at 11:44 AM
Walter de Staplecat, Simpkin IV, Teabag, Balthasar and Benny D Cat take the stage as we meet the college cats of Oxford. And, of course, Magdalen’s Ozymandias. Read on for our photo special. (Includes a cat map.) oxfordclarion.uk/college-cats...
“Effective progress” is being made on special educational needs in Oxfordshire, according to Government inspectors sent in after the county failed its inspection in 2023. Parent/carer organisation OxPCF says “This is the beginning of a journey – but many families may not yet feel the benefits.”
November 19, 2025 at 7:03 PM
“Effective progress” is being made on special educational needs in Oxfordshire, according to Government inspectors sent in after the county failed its inspection in 2023. Parent/carer organisation OxPCF says “This is the beginning of a journey – but many families may not yet feel the benefits.”
Marking Road Safety Awareness Week, MP for Banbury Sean Woodcock joined Minister for Local Transport Lilian Greenwood, and Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander, to support Labour’s upcoming Road Safety Strategy, billed as the first national plan in over a decade to address the challenge.
November 19, 2025 at 6:48 PM
Marking Road Safety Awareness Week, MP for Banbury Sean Woodcock joined Minister for Local Transport Lilian Greenwood, and Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander, to support Labour’s upcoming Road Safety Strategy, billed as the first national plan in over a decade to address the challenge.
Thames Valley Police (TVP) & Crime Commissioner (PCC) Matthew Barber is asking residents to share their views on which priority areas they would like to see the policing element of council tax used for in the 2026/27 budget by completing his ongoing local crime survey.👇
Have your say on Thames Valley Police budget
This survey is an opportunity for residents to share their experiences and have a say in how policing services are shaped in Thames Valley.
www.thamesvalley-pcc.gov.uk
November 19, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Thames Valley Police (TVP) & Crime Commissioner (PCC) Matthew Barber is asking residents to share their views on which priority areas they would like to see the policing element of council tax used for in the 2026/27 budget by completing his ongoing local crime survey.👇
Politicians across Oxfordshire have been petitioning the government to urgently act on the illegal dump in Kidlington.
Bicester & Woodstock MP Calum Miller, on Monday, raised an Urgent Question to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...
Bicester & Woodstock MP Calum Miller, on Monday, raised an Urgent Question to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...
November 19, 2025 at 5:08 PM
Politicians across Oxfordshire have been petitioning the government to urgently act on the illegal dump in Kidlington.
Bicester & Woodstock MP Calum Miller, on Monday, raised an Urgent Question to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...
Bicester & Woodstock MP Calum Miller, on Monday, raised an Urgent Question to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...
Oxford's Vaults & Garden is moving across the High to King Edward St. The café closes next Thursday after a long dispute with the University Church. It will reopen on the site of the same owner's Chick Pea falafel shop, which will then move to the High Street. www.crowdjustice.com/case/save-th...
November 19, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Oxford's Vaults & Garden is moving across the High to King Edward St. The café closes next Thursday after a long dispute with the University Church. It will reopen on the site of the same owner's Chick Pea falafel shop, which will then move to the High Street. www.crowdjustice.com/case/save-th...
“Improved active travel facilities” at Oxford Parkway station have been promised by East West Rail as part of their latest project update. Other design changes in Oxfordshire could include a turnback siding at Parkway and an overtaking loop for freight trains at Islip.
November 19, 2025 at 2:35 PM
“Improved active travel facilities” at Oxford Parkway station have been promised by East West Rail as part of their latest project update. Other design changes in Oxfordshire could include a turnback siding at Parkway and an overtaking loop for freight trains at Islip.
Oxford biologists have modelled the evolutionary history of kissing behaviour, defined as “non-aggressive, directed, mouth-to-mouth contact... that doesn't involve food transfer”. Shared oral microbes imply that humans and Neanderthals may have kissed together. theconversation.com/when-did-kis...
When did kissing evolve and did humans and Neanderthals get off with each other? New research
Humans are not the only animal to kiss.
theconversation.com
November 19, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Oxford biologists have modelled the evolutionary history of kissing behaviour, defined as “non-aggressive, directed, mouth-to-mouth contact... that doesn't involve food transfer”. Shared oral microbes imply that humans and Neanderthals may have kissed together. theconversation.com/when-did-kis...