Oxford and Oxfordshire news, sport and information updated throughout the day

Stories for 01 April 2003

Oxfordshire Education

Parents who go private criticised

The debate over whether it is ethical to send children to private schools has been re-ignited by a controversial new book by an Oxford academic.   more...

Marked improvements noted by inspectors

A village school identified as the fourth most improved in the country has earned the praise of Government inspectors.   more...

Sale of school will take year

The site of Windmill First School, in Margaret Road, Headington, will be sold at Easter next year at the earliest, according to Oxfordshire County Council.   more...

Citizenship gets Caribbean boost

Children learned about the culture and traditions of other places when their school held a Caribbean week.   more...

Children skip all day for healthier hearts

Pupils at Charlbury Primary School took it in turns to skip all day to raise money for the British Heart Foundation.   more...

Memorial for pupil Connor

Pupils helped plant and weave living willow branches into a large living igloo in memory of one of their friends.   more...

'Beautiful' building opens

Pupils at St Christopher's School in Cowley have celebrated the opening of a new school building.   more...

Healthy way to raise cash

Pupils at Queen's Dyke Primary School hopped, skipped and jumped circuits around the school hall in a bid to stay healthy.   more...

Oxfordshire News

Travellers don't deserve bad reputation, unit says

Only a small percentage of travellers deserve the bad reputation they get, according to staff at a new unit aimed at defusing conflicts with local communities.   more...

Libraries `preferred to pubs'

Libraries are ranked higher in importance by people in Oxfordshire ahead of pubs, leisure centres and cinemas, a poll has shown.   more...

Transport discounts

Staff at Oxfordshire County Council who travel to work by public transport or bike could end up with extra money in their pockets.   more...

Demonstrations at advice surgeries

Protesters to target MP in day of action Anti-war protesters plan to step up their campaign against Cabinet minister and Oxford East MP Andrew Smith over his support for the conflict.   more...

Will Straw supports Lib Dem call to axe student fees

Oxford University student leader Will Straw has backed the Liberal Democrats' policy of scrapping top-up tuition fees.   more...

Guerrilla war delays help for civilians

Vital humanitarian aid for Iraqi civilians is being held up by the guerilla tactics of forces loyal to Saddam Hussein, according to an Oxford aid worker.   more...

Few people rush for new hospital bus

More councillors than passengers boarded a new bus service launched yesterday to cut congestion at two Oxford hospitals.   more...

Village hall opens after £80k revamp

Instead of flourishing a sword, actor James Cosmo -- who played a grizzled warrior in the film Braveheart -- settled for a pair of scissors when he opened a refurbished village hall.   more...

Protesting pupils block road

Pupils blocked a busy road on March 31 in a protest against the closure of their school.   more...

Students prepare to start recycling

Oxford University students have welcomed the city council's launch of a pilot recycling scheme at two colleges.   more...

Six-month sentence for downloading child porn

A contracts manager from Abingdon has been jailed for six months for child pornography offences.   more...

Grandmothers picket embassy

Grandmothers from Oxford staged a demonstration against the war by protesting outside the US embassy in London's Grosvenor Square.   more...

Police link purse snatches

A spate of purse thefts in the centre of Oxford are being linked by police.   more...

Ride on the side

Motorcycle and sidecar combinations enjoyed a heyday in the 1950s when wages were low and few families had the money to buy a car.   more...

Boy badly beaten up

A Witney teenager is in intensive care in hospital after being violently attacked on the town's Henry Box School playing fields on March 28.   more...

Mothers enjoy extra treat

A group of lucky Oxford mothers had a second bite at a traditional treat when they were offered a meal to mark Mothers' Day -- 24 hours after the event.   more...

Three charged

Three youths have been charged with robbing an Oxford supermarket.   more...

Return to `old days' of policing ruled out

A police chief has rejected a call to return to `old fashioned basics' with a bobby on every street corner.   more...

Rug trade looks fair

Carpets on display at St Mary's Church, Banbury, have been described as the 'ultimate fair trade products'.   more...

Sale of school will take year

The site of Windmill First School, in Margaret Road, Headington, will be sold at Easter next year at the earliest, according to Oxfordshire County Council.   more...

Devoted sisters at 100

Hilda Willis celebrated her 100th birthday on March 31 -- and matched her sister's achievement of living for a century.   more...

Ex-manager's name adopted by centre

An advice centre in Oxford is to be renamed in memory of a former manager who has died of cancer.   more...

Citizenship gets Caribbean boost

Children learned about the culture and traditions of other places when their school held a Caribbean week.   more...

Museum stages timely display

Staff at the Museum of History and Science in Oxford were kept busy over the weekend putting not one but 50 clocks an hour forward.   more...

Council calls for lifesavers

More lifeguards are to be employed by Oxford City Council to extend the Hinksey Pool summer season.   more...

'Beautiful' building opens

Pupils at St Christopher's School in Cowley have celebrated the opening of a new school building.   more...

Young performer gets National break

Oxford High School pupil Madeleine Woolgar has been selected to take part in a national dance, drama and music project.   more...

Memorial for pupil Connor

Pupils helped plant and weave living willow branches into a large living igloo in memory of one of their friends.   more...

Bus hits the trail

A bus service for walkers exploring the Ridgeway starts later this month.   more...

Want not, waste not in village

Residents had the opportunity to swap unwanted items and help the environment.   more...

Show must go on

The show will go on in Witney of a production of The Sound of Music even if stage manager Glyn Rees is ordered to go to the Gulf.   more...

Computers close store

Sainsbury's supermarket in Witney had to close for nearly two hours on March 29 after a computer failure shut down the tills just after 2pm.   more...

Last bid to block superstore

A last-ditch bid to rally opposition to a proposed town centre superstore in Wallingford has been launched.   more...

We fix wall row

A damaged wall is to be repaired after a six-month wait, thanks to the Oxford Mail.   more...

Our appeal for whippet aids musical

A problem that dogged an operatic society's plans for a performance of a modern musical has been solved -- following an appeal in the Oxford Mail.   more...

98% of shared homes in east Oxford are `unsafe'

Landlords have transformed east Oxford into a "crime and grime" neighbourhood, with 98 per cent of shared homes found to be unsafe and unin- habitable.   more...

TWR rescue hopes hit by site sale plan

Attempts to find a buyer for troubled Oxfordshire firm TWR's auto engineering business could be undermined by a separate plan to sell its factory.   more...

Granite seats in Cornmarket 'look like tombstones'

Seats being designed for Cornmarket Street in Oxford look like tombstones, it has been claimed.   more...

  
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