Headington Neighbourhood Plan

The City Council Executive Board designated the proposed Headington Neighbourhood Forum as a neighbourhood forum for the Headington Neighbourhood Area at its meeting on Wednesday 10 September 2014.

• Online consultation which will be used to develop planning policies specifically for Headington
• The agreed area
• Headington Plan: Website and Twitter and Facebook

Background

• Agenda Item 6: Supporting Documents at 10 September 2014 meeting
• Oxford Mail, 22 April 2014:" Headington boundaries decision
  can kickstart Neighbourhood Plan"
• Oxford Mail, 25 February 2014: “Working out the exact
  boundaries of Headington for neighbourhood plan”

• Oxford Mail, 15 October 2013:
  “Local plan to advise city council on new building”
• Oxford Mail, 6 June 2013:
  “Residents aim to pinpoint where Headington is”
• Oxford Mail, 2 March 2013:
  “Neighbours sign up to shape future of Headington”

Headington Hill Park

Friends of Headington Hill Park

The Friends of Headington Hill Park held their inaugural meeting on 26 March 2014:

• Oxford Mail, 19 November 2013:
  “ Friends urged to unite to nurture a ‘haven of peace’”

The siting of new fitness equipment in the park was criticized:

• Oxford Mail, 8 April 2014:
  "Park lovers fume over fitness apparatus sites”

Dairy Lodge, and adjacent buildings

This group of buildings comprising (1) the house called Dairy Lodge, (2) the adjacent barn and former public toilets; and (3) the workshop and garage were sold for development in 2012, following the granting of the planning permission detailed below for the latter two. The whole site was marketed by Kemp & Kemp at a price of £1,150,000.

• Oxford Mail, 23 August 2012: “Headington Hill park buildings on sale with £1.1m price tag”

(1) Dairy Lodge

This was owned by the city council until 2008, when the widow of the last tenant was forced to move out in order to “secure Dairy Lodge as a public asset”, which was sold shortly afterwards to a private individual. A planning application to insert a new opening in the boundary wall was submitted in October 2014:

• Approved planning application 14/02777/FUL
• Oxford Mail, January 2008:
  “Death leads to loss of house”

(2) Dairy Barn and toilets

Plans to convert Headington Hill Park’s toilet block into a studio apartment and the adjacent old dairy barn into two one-bedroomed properties (11/00283/CT3) were approved at the Area Committee meeting of 17 March 2011. The site was then sold by the city council for £200,000. Planning application 13/03029/VAR varying Condition 2 was approved in January 2014.

• Pictures of the Victorian dairy
• Oxford Mail, 11 February 2011:
  “Council puts buildings up for sale”

(3) Workshop and garage

Portico Property were granted planning permission (12/00155/FUL) in 2012 to convert the workshop and garage of Dairy Lodge on Headington Hill to form 1x1 bedroom dwelling and 1x2 bed dwelling.

Elections in 2014

City Council elections in May

In Headington & Marston, there was no change in these four wards: Barton & Sandhills, Churchill, Marston, and Quarry & Risinghurst.

In Headington ward, Mohammed Altaf-Khan succeeded David Rundle as the LibDem councillor; and in Headington Hill & Northway, Farida Anwar (Labour) succeeded Mohammed Altaf-Khan (LibDem).

• Candidates and votes in the six Headington and Marston wards
• Candidates' statements, compiled by TonyOX3
• Full Oxford results: see Oxford Mail election page
• Oxford Mail, 2 June 2014:
  “So proud, says city's first Bangladeshi councillor”

European elections in May

Oxford is in the South East region, whose ten MEPs are now as follows: four UKIP, three Conservative, one Labour, one LibDem, and one Green:

• Oxford result (PDF) and the candidates
• European Parliament Election 2014 (Wikipedia)

Quarry & Risinghurst by-election in September

Laurence Baxter (Labour) stepped down on 7 August 2014 after seven years of representing Quarry & Risinghurst on the city council because he was taking up a post teaching history in Prague.

Chewe Munkonge (Labour) was elected the new city councillor for the ward on 18 September 2014.

• Oxford Mail, 26 August 2014:
  “Outspoken academic to battle by-election”

Slade House

On 4 July 2013 Connor Sparrowhawk (18) drowned in the bath at Slade House, a care facility for people with serious learning disabilities at Horspath Driftway, Headington. The unit was told in November 2013 to stop taking admissions following a damning inspection; but improvements were noted after an unannounced inspection the following month:

• Oxford Mail, 25 February 2014:
  “Teen’s death at health unit could have been prevented, says damning report” with full report here. See also Connor’s mother’s blog
• Oxford Mail, 17 January 2014:
  “Inspection notes improvements at Slade House”
• Oxford Mail, 28 November 2013:
  “‘Shocking state of affairs’ found at Oxford
  care unit for people with disabilities”

Sixth Blue Plaque for Headington

A Blue Plaque for Elizabeth Bowen (1899–1973), writer, was unveiled at The Coach House, The Croft, Old Headington, by Professor Dame Hermione Lee, President of Wolfson College, on 19 October 2014.

• The seven Headington and two Marston blue plaques

RIBA National Award for Headington building

The £132m John Henry Brookes Building in Headington won a Royal Institute of British Architecture national award in 2014 (only two were awarded in the South area), but was not shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize:

• Oxford Mail, 18 July 2014:
  "Brookes misses out"
• Oxford Mail, 19 June 2014:
  "University’s ‘inspirational’ building wins a top award”

Two other educational buildings in Headington were also on the original RIBA shortlist for the South region:

• Isis Building (EF International, Pullens Lane)
• Nuffield Department of Medical Research Building (University of Oxford Old Road Campus)

First World War 100-year remembrances: 1914

Conscription did not start until 2 March 1916, so the four men killed in 1914 joined the services voluntarily, probably in all these cases before the war started.

September 1914

Captain Rosslyn Curzon Evelegh (29): career soldier of the OBLI who lived in The Ridings: killed in action in France on 19 September 2014 when struck by a piece of shell while seeing his men into shelter: buried in Soupir churchyard

October 1914

Able Seaman Ralph Nutt (26): sailor whose parents lived at 46 Windmill Road: died on 28 October 1914 when HMS Monmouth was hit by a German shell while taking part in the Dover patrol: buried at the Haslar Royal Naval Cemetery, Portsmouth

November 1914

Able Seaman Frank Bateman (29): printer who lived at 37 Lime Wal: died on 1 November 1914 when the Cape of Good Hope was sunk off Chile at the Battle of Coronel: remembered on the Portsmouth Naval Memorial

Boy 1st Class Joseph Rushton (17): boy sailor who lived in Perrin Street: died on 1 November 1914 when HMS Monmouth was sunk off Chile at the Battle of Coronel: remembered on the Plymouth Naval Memorial

Biographies of all 120 who died

Oxonbike is back

Headington’s bike hire pilot scheme Oxonbike was relaunched with a new operator, HourBike, on 19 June 2014:

• Oxonbike website
• Oxford Mail, 18 June 2014:
  “Bikes bring new meaning to park and ride”

Initial registration costs £1, and hire is free for up to half an hour. There is an improved keypad system to unlock the bikes.

Bikes are located at Thornhill Park and Ride, the John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington Shops (outside St Andrew’s Primary School), the University of Oxford Old Road campus, the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre. Bikes will shortly also appear at the Churchill Hospital and Oxford Brookes’ Gipsy Lane site.

The scheme is fully funded by the Government via the Local Sustainable Transport fund, and will continue to March 2015. The scheme temporarily closed down when Grand Scheme Bike Share, the original operators, went into liquidation.

• Oxford Mail, 3 April 2014:
  “The brakes go on for return of Boris Bikes”
• Oxford Mail, 28 February 2014:
  “‘Boris bikes’ set to ride again with new operator”

SUPERMARKETS IN HEADINGTON

Tesco Express

Tesco opened on 29 July 2014 at 83 and 83A London Road. These two shops were formerly occupied by the Oxford Furniture Store and the Up & Running shop: both were given notice to quit when their leases ran out but were able to find premises elsewhere in central Headington. (The lease of the adjoining Oxfam shop does not run out until 2017.)

• Oxford Mail, 9 May 2014:
  “Tesco gets go-ahead to join store wars in Headington”

Sainsbury

Sainsbury’s opened on 20 February 2014 at 98 London Road in the former Peacock’s store, which closed at Christmas 2013 (nearest branch now at Templars Square, Cowley).

“Little Waitrose” at petrol station

Waitrose took over the convenience stores at Shell petrol stations in the UK, and on Thursday 14 August 2014 the one on the London Road reopened as a “Little Waitrose” on.

• Approved application for signs 14/01477/ADV
• Approved application for air-conditioning units 14/01373/FUL

They also transferred the Shell licence, making no substantive changes; so sale of alcohol for consumption off the premises remains 24 hours per day, seven days a week.

• Licence transfer application 14/02382/MVPREM

Supermarket tally

Following the closure of Morrisons in November 2014 after just one year, Headington still had six supermarkets (Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Waitrose, Co-op, Iceland, and Little Waitrose), as well as smaller food shops.

• Oxford Mail, 4 February 2014:
  “ ‘Supermarkets are swamping area’ ”
• Oxford Mail, 11 September 2013:
  “Headington traders ordered to quit as big-name grocers eye sites”
• Oxford Mail, 18 June 2013: “Supermarket sweep
  as big five eye move to same Headington area””

School planning applications 2014

Cheney School

The following planning application for Cheney School was approved: “Erection of two-storey science building, together with accompanying works including bridge link to Russell Building, remodelled entrance to Wainwright Building, amended pedestrian access to Gipsy Lane, replacement perimeter railings and marking out of car parking spaces. Erection of temporary classroom for period of construction”.

• Approved application 14/01282/FUL

Windmill School

City council planners "raised no objection" to county plan to build two-storey, four-classroom extension to Windmill School:

• Approved application 14/01486/CC3

Cultivate VegVan comes to Headington

Cultivate’s mobile shop, the VegVan, came to Headington for the first time on 29 March 2014. It is on the corner of London Road and Old High Street, outside Barclays Bank, every Saturday from 10am to 4pm.

It sells fresh, locally-produced food in and around Oxford and has a full range of fresh, local, seasonal and organic fruit & veg, local honey, jams and preserves, free-range organic eggs from the University Farm, fairly-traded tea and coffee, etc.

• Cultivate Oxford VegVan webpage
• Follow Cultivate Oxford on Facebook
• Follow Cultivate Oxford on Twitter

Classics Centre at Cheney School

From September 2014 students at state schools in Oxford have been able to study for an A-level in Classics at the East Oxford Community Classics Centre at Cheney School:

• Oxford Mail, 27 December 2013:
  "Pupils at comprehensive to study for an A-Level in Latin"

The Classics Centre was officially opened by Professor Mary Beard at Cheney School, Headington on 24 October 2013. All classes (for adults and children) are free and open to the public, but you need to book.

• East Oxford Community Classics Centre
• East Oxford Community Classics Centre on Facebook

Application for 295–301 London Road refused

A planning application in relation to the Sikh Temple building at 295–301 London Road was refused in 2014. It was for “Erection of replacement single storey rear store. Sub-division of existing offices (Use Class B1) into 2 x shops (Use Class A1)”.

• Refused application 14/00623/FUL

Lift for Bury Knowle House

The lift in Headington Library in Bury Knowle Park was installed in 2014, and the children's library refurbished.

On 21 August 2013 county council planners decided to “raise no objection” in their planning application R3.0075/13 to the city council’s Section 73 planning application 13/01520/CC3 (county council application R3.0005/12) amending the earlier plans for “Erection of extension to provide wheelchair access to rear of Library building, including: Creation of a platform lift; accessible wc; a new door opening between the existing Library building and new entrance and other associated works”. This follows the approval of the associated city council applications 12/00063/CC3. and 12/00064/CC3

 

First floor and basement of library

The city council’s leisure department moved out of the first floor of Bury Knowle House, and the Freshwater Habitats Trust moved in

• VSL & Partners Ltd: “Rare opportunity for character offices in quiet Headington location”
• Oxford Mail, 9 January 2012:
  “Office move sparks fears for future of library”

Bayard’s Hill School to become academy

Bayard’s Hill Primary School became an academy, sponsored by Cheney School. It was one of the ten primary schools named in 2012 as likely to be turned into an academy because it had consistently fallen below government standards.

• Oxford Mail, 9 April 2014:
  “School link aims to boost achievement”
• Oxford Mail, 7 February 2012:
  “Ten primary schools named as likely academies”

Former Brambles shop

Planning permission was granted in 2014 for the following changes to the former Brambles shop (now the Oxford Furniture Warehouse):

“Erection of a first floor to existing building. Partial change of use of retail unit, workshop and storage area to provide 1 x 1-bed flat, 1 x 2-bed flat and 1 x 1-bed maisonette. Formation of terraced areas to side and rear elevations. Retention of use as retail unit at front of ground floor. Provision of bin and cycle storage.”

• Approved application 14/00084/FUL

OTHER SHOPS AND BUSINESSES

Caffè Nero (formerly Londis)

Londis closed down on 27 July 2014 and reopened as a Caffè Nero on 20 October 2014. Its a planning application for “Display of 1 x externally illuminated fascia sign, 1 non illuminated fascia sign, 4 non illuminate fascia logos and 2 externally illuminated projecting signs” was approved:

• Approved application 14/02645/ADV

Oxford Designer Blinds

Oxford Designer Blinds put up their sign in July 2014 at the former Caffe Corsica/Toscano/Pizza shop at 113 London Road, an A1 retail shop which had been closed since January 2013, and appeared to open partially just before Christmas 2014.

The Caffe Corsica (Pizza), which opened in August 2012 in the former Caffe Toscano shop at 113 London Road, closed in January 2013. The shop (including the flat above) was for sale with Chancellor's for £575,000 (rental £20,000 p.a.).

The Hub in Headington

The former Oxfordshire Family Mediation Service building at 125 London Road near Bury Knowle Park has been leased by Neil Holdstock since 1 June 2014, and once building works are complete he plans to turn both the ground and first floor into an enterprise/business centre.

Downstairs will be hot desk space, rentable by the hour/day/week, with a boardroom / meeting room at the back for use by businesses (whether renting hot desk / office space or not) and local groups that need space for meetings / training, etc.

• More information from Neil Holdstock on Neighbourhood Forum
  and the Hub's Facebook page

Skipton Building Society

On 15 December 2014 the Skipton Building Society moved from the High Street in Oxford into the former Ripples Bathroom Showroom (closed 2012) at John Leon House (138/140 London Road)

Their application for change of use to A2 (office) was deemed lawful under new legislation. Connell's Estate Agents, who applied for a similar change of use in 2008, went to appeal when it was refused, but the Planning Inspector dismissed the case.

• Skipton application 14/01728/CPU

Meanwhile the offices on the first floor of John Leon House were granted approval to be converted into flats:

• Application 14/01500/B56

Headington School dance studio/fitness suite

The East Area Planning Committee on 8 January 2014 to granted planning permission to Headington School for its application for “Removal of existing portacabin and temporary buildings. Extension to existing sports hall to provide dance studio and fitness suite. Provision of replacement car parking and external works”.

• Approved application 13/02697/FUL
• Oxford Mail, 11 January 2014:
  “School dance studio will mark centenary”

Foxwell Drive Town Green application

The Planning Inspector dismissed the attempt to turn land at Foxwell Drive, Northway as a Town Green, following Oxfordshire County Council's Town Green public inquiry in September/October 2014. The access road between Headington and Barton Park will now pass through this land.

• Oxford Mail, 22 December 2014:
  "Town green bid is thrown out"
• Oxford Mail, 1 March 2014:
  “Town Green bid could scupper housing plan”

 

Red telephone kiosk in Old High Street

This K6 telephone kiosk outside Headington Baptist Church was saved in December 2013. Local residents helped by councillors have persuaded BT not to remove it, and it has been adopted by the registered charity Headington Action.

It is the only red telephone box in Oxford outside the centre, and is praised thus in the Old Headington Conservation Area appraisal:

Traditional street furniture including the red post-box, red telephone box and black painted “Lucy and Dean” street lamps are a positive element of the village’s historic character.

• Cllr Ruth Wilkinson:“Red phone box saved!”
• Oxford Mail, 18 December 2013:
  “BT puts call box removal on hold after residents’ sit-in”
• Red telephone kiosks in Oxford

Care home for Pullen’s Lane rejected

Carebase was hoping to build a care home to replace Hillslope at 1 Pullen's Lane (the newish house next to the allotments).

A public exhibition was held at Cheney Community Centre on 3 March 2014, but the  planning application was submitted on 28 March for “Demolition of existing house and flat. Erection of 55-bedroom care home facility on three levels, together with 17 car parking spaces, landscaping and associated works” was rejected.

• Rejected planning application 14/00983/FUL
• Oxford Mail, “‘Rural tranquillity’ fears of care home proposal”