robbery

Headington Headlines #201

TonyOX3

Here’s my weekly round-up of local news for 9 – 15 February.

An article in the Oxford Times threw a little more light on the rumours about the future of the Headington Post Office, but its future is still unclear.

Three women accused of robbing another woman in Headington in December 2013 were found not guilty at Oxford Crown Court this week.

The East Area Planning Committee met on Wednesday and approved ‘reserved matters’ for the @BartonPark_ development, including street designs, parking, drainage, landscaping, footpaths, cycle paths and parks. They also agreed minor changes to the A40 junction leading to the estate.

Jonathan Martin Mills of Risinghurst died in a fire in a public toilet in Faringdon on Monday.

Our new branch of the Skipton Building Society was oficially opened on Wednesday by Oxford’s Lord Mayor Mohammed Abbasi.


Picture: @FennPaulfenn

The Wine Club at @TheWhiteHartH restarted on Wednesday evening after the year-end break. Eight wines to taste, and take a bottle home.

A woman was taken to hospital with serious injuries yesterday (Sunday) morning after being assaulted at a house in Warren Crescent (off Girdlestone Road). A 38-year-old man has been arrested.

The Headington Neighbourhood Plan Forum met on Tuesday. The minutes have not yet been published.

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

  • Housing Policy
  • Community Networking & Integration evening
  • Headington Post Office
  • Car Parking in New Headington
  • Headington Hill Park Friends
  • Pub on Barton Park?
I cover news from the OX3 postcode in Headington and out as far as Barton, Sandhills and Risinghurst (see map). To feed into next week’s summary you can comment on this article, or tweet either with the hashtag #ox3 or @mentioning @TonyOX3.

Headington Headlines #195

TonyOX3

Here’s my round-up of local news for the two weeks 22 December – 4 January.

A Happy New Year to all readers!

Has your Christmas tree dropped all its needles? Is it languishing outside looking brown and forlorn? Well, there are five places in this area where you can take it for recycling, where the nice people from @OxfordCity Council will shred it into tiny pieces to use as a mulch in the city parks and gardens.

Headington’s live advent calendar was declared a success, and organisers are already planning to repeat it in 2015.

The Quarry Morris dancers and mummers performed their traditional play and dances around the pubs of Quarry on Boxing Day. A good crowd turned out to watch despite the cold damp weather. @Howard_S took this video.

It’s the new year, and roadworks start again today on the London Road, the A40 at the Headington roundabout and (a new one) reconfiguration of The Plain to make it nice and safe for buses and cars, but not for cyclists. There are new timetables operating on bus routes 8 & 9 to allow for delays.

There was an armed robbery at Risinghurst Post Office at around 8pm last Tuesday (30th). Cash was taken but no-one was injured. @ThamesVP issued a description of two suspects and are appealing for witnesses and any information. Two men have been arrested in connection with the robbery and have been released on police bail.

The house at 14 Holyoake Road, previously known as Hillsboro House, where C S Lewis lived with Mrs Moore before moving to The Kilns, has been under threat of redevelopment for a while. However, a new planning application (ref 14/03474/FUL) shows the house being retained with two 5-bedroom houses being built in the space to the left of the existing house. Click the link on the planning reference to see details and to comment to the City Council. The Oxford Mail article is here.

The application by some Northway residents for part of the green space on Foxwell Drive to be declared a Town Green was rejected by the Planning Inspector after a two week hearing. Local campaigners are reported to be considering applying for a judicial review.

The Orders of St John Care Trust, who run the Townsend House residential care home on Bayswater Road, Barton invite everyone to a meeting on 5 February to discuss ways of integrating their residents more closely with the community around them. Cheese and wine are promised! More information on the e-democracy forum.

Headington and the OX3 area drew a blank in the New Year’s honours list, although several Oxford academics were honoured.

A planning application has been submitted for a change of use for the old Trade Exchange shop, from ‘retail’ to ‘retail and restaurant/café’.

Bury Knowle Club in Windmill Road (above two shops near the crossroads) is on the market for £300k freehold.

Speculation continued that @Oxford_Brookes might be planning close the Wheatley campus and move its business school and 2500 students to Headington. As yet the University has not made any statement.

My favourite Headington-related tweet of the week:

Active posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum over the last two weeks:

  • no lights
  • One Rule for One
  • Rat Runs etc
  • Alternative Access to Barton park
  • Dunstan Rd Speed Humps
  • Morrisons and Trade Exchange shop
  • Happy Christmas 2014 + useful information
  • Request by Stephanie for information about south headington.
  • Montreal unveils new plans for urban boulevard to replace Bonaventure Expressway | Montreal Gazette
  • Integrating older folk in care homes into the community
I cover news from the OX3 postcode in Headington and out as far as Barton, Sandhills and Risinghurst (see map). To feed into next week’s summary you can comment on this article, or tweet either with the hashtag #ox3 or @mentioning @TonyOX3.

Headington Headlines #193

TonyOX3

Here’s my weekly round-up of local news for 8 -14 December.

Roundway traders say they have been badly affected by the London Road roadworks, especially as it seems the project is suffering significant delays.

A man was assaulted and robbed by ‘a gang of teenagers’ on Margaret Road on Friday 5 December.

Two further robberies on Monday, in Quarry Hollow and Bury Knowle Park, are being linked by @TVPolice.

Again on Monday a man had an unknown substance sprayed into his face in a robbery which happened in the alley between Cinnaminta Road and Leiden Road in Wood Farm. The victim was carrying £3500 in cash which he was taking to the bank for his employer.

The John Henry Brookes and Abercrombie Building at Oxford Brookes, and the Maggie’s Centre at the Churchill, are among 147 buildings nationally nominated for the 2015 Civic Trust Awards (scroll down the linked document to South East Region).

Headington Community Action opened a new bike shelter at the Headington Community Centre in Gladstone Road.

After two unannounced inspections by the Care Quality Commission earlier this year, the Albany Care Home was rated ‘Inadequate’. The care home is on the London Road opposite Headington Prep School. One of several problems which the home seems to have failed to cope with was the departure of all their staff nurses, who had to be replaced with agency nurses. The Oxford Mail has more on the story. The company that runs the Albany, Four Seasons (Bamford) Ltd runs a large number of other care homes and has an outstanding CQC warning at a home in Manchester that they must make improvements within a given timescale.

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

  • no lights
  • Smoking at JR Hospital
  • Transport and the social divide
  • Pub on Barton Park?
  • Barton Rd development
  • Bicycle hazard – Headington Hill
  • Oxford-HM Forum needs your financial support!
  • Does YourNextMP have your constituency right?
I cover news from the OX3 postcode in Headington and out as far as Barton, Sandhills and Risinghurst (see map). To feed into next week’s summary you can comment on this article, or tweet either with the hashtag #ox3 or @mentioning @TonyOX3.