murder

Headington Headlines #323

TonyOX3

Your weekly round-up of local news for 19 – 25 June.

As predicted last week, the start of the Access to Headington work on Headley Way which was due today has been postponed to 24 July to allow Thames Water to carry out sewer replacement work in St Clements first. The St Clements work means traffic lights and closures for two months.

Judy Webb, naturalist, conservationist and leading light of the Friends of Lye Valley @FriendLyeValley received an Oxford City Certificate of Honour “for 16 years of service as a volunteer promoting nature conservation within Oxford”. She was presented with her certificate by Oxfordshire Deputy Lieutenant Lady Helen Baker.

Judy Webb receiving her Certificate of Honour
Judy Webb receiving her Certificate of Honour

Oxford City’s Executive Board ‘made’ (i.e. approved) the Headington Plan. To complete the process it still needs confirmation by the full City Council, which will happen next month.

The Oxford Mail reports that the OU Hospitals Trust is considering installing number plate recognition controls at the hospital car parks.

The day before the new parliament started, Oxford East’s new MP @anneliesedodds was tipped by the Huffington Post as one of ‘nine MPs tipped to shine‘ in the new parliament. They predict a significant role in Labour’s Brexit team.

I was one of a group of 14 locals who enjoyed a behind-the-scenes tour of the Energy Project at the JR Hospital on Thursday. After a short presentation giving an overview of the project we were shown the new boilers and the 4.5MW CHP engine. They’ve managed to fit some impressive equipment and miles of pipes into the existing hospital structure without losing any of the hospital’s working time.

The man who pleaded guilty to the murder in Windmill Road in February (see HH319 and HH305) was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 20 years 10 months. Egidio Da Silva Alves murdered his brother-in-law Domingos Ramalho in a family feud.

Active posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum this week:

  • Strimmer found

Headington Headlines #319

TonyOX3

Your weekly round-up of local news for 22 – 28 May.

I’ve updated my list of election hustings of interest to Oxford East voters. Please let me know of  any others, or if you hear of any candidates confirming they’ll be there who aren’t already listed.

After The Slade, the next phase of Access to Headington will be Headley Way and Cherwell Drive. There’s a public exhibition of the planned works on Monday 5 June at Northway Community Centre, Dora Carr Close, between 2.00 and 6.00pm.

A young woman pedestrian suffered ‘life threatening’ injuries in a traffic accident on the A40 near Headington Roundabout on Friday morning. The air ambulance attended but the casualty was taken by road to the JR hospital. The A40 eastbound was closed for about an hour.

Zippo’s Circus, which was due to make its regular visit to South Park at the end of June, has cancelled. It seems there’s another circus booked in the University Parks immediately beforehand.

Kids of all ages in Marston have a brand new zip wire to play on. It’s in Croft Road Recreation Ground, and has been a pet project of Independent Councillor Mick Haines.

An HMO in Holley Crescent, also available for short-term let on AirBnB, has been labelled a ‘death trap’. The owner is already in trouble with the City’s Environmental Health Department.

The man arrested for the murder in February (see HH 305) of Domingos Ramalho in Windmill Road pleaded guilty at Oxford Crown Court.

The change-of-use application for the ex-Connell’s Estate Agents to become a hot food takeaway (see HH 311) has been approved.

My favourite Headington-related tweet:

Active posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum this week:

  • Frontier Estates Multiple Site London Road / Barton Road
  • Travellers

Headington Headlines #305

TonyOX3

Your weekly round-up of local news for 13 – 19 February.

A man named Domingos Romalho died after a fatal stabbing in Windmill Road on Monday. He was taken to the JR but died in hospital. Windmill Road was closed for some time while police investigated the incident. Egidio Da Silva Alves was arrested the same day and charged on Wednesday with murder. He appeared in court on Thursday, did not enter a plea, and was remanded until April. A Thames Valley Police statement is here.

I wrote last September (see HH 282) about plans to build a new secondary free school, the Swan School, in Marston. Locals are concerned about the extra traffic an 880-pupil school would generate. There are now reports that the school could be delayed by as much as two years. @OldMarstonPC is holding a meeting about it this evening (Monday 21 Feb) at 6.30pm in the Mortimer Hall. Meanwhile at a Cabinet meeting tomorrow (Tuesday 21 February) the County Council will probably decide to sell the site to the Department for Education for £1 (yes, that’s One Pound) and then contribute up to £2m (that’s Two Million Pounds) towards the cost of the school – see item 9 on the Agenda.

The fact that 76 Sandfield Road is up for sale made the local press. Why? Because it used to be the home of J R R Tolkien. Apparently not everyone knows the name. It can be yours for a mere £1.25m.

After last week’s coverage on Radio Oxford the Oxford Mail has an article explaining why the City Council is against expanding parking at the JR Hospital.

A cyclist was taken to hospital with head injuries after a collision with a car in Bayswater Road, Barton on Tuesday. The car didn’t stop. @TVP_oxford have appealed for witnesses (incident number 233).

New Marston Post Office, which is in the Costcutter on Old Marston Road, reopened last week after a refit. It’s open for longer hours than before and offers a wider range of services.

The Nuffield Orthpaedic centre was partially closed for a time on Thursday while emergency services attended a ‘chemical incident’ involving chemicals used in a hydrotherapy pool.

Jacobs Chop House has re-opened after morphing into Jacobs Brasserie.

Active posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum this week:

  • Petition to preserve the Somerset House pub on Marston Road
  • Proposed abolition of Oxford City Council
  • Local Government? Cuts to services? Is it time to bite the bullet?
  • Bells tolling in early hours
  • London Road – cycle path
  • This evening’s meeting with Cllr Roz Smith
  • Hospital parking