Blackthorn

10°COvercast

• Today: 12° / 6° · 24% rain
• Tomorrow: 11° / 7° · Patchy rain nearby

Source: WeatherAPI

Sunrise 07:00Sunset 16:35

9h 34m of daylight today

Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec

Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk

25US AQI · Good

Main pollutant: ozone

Source: WAQI · Oxford St Ebbes, United Kingdom

• 6.8 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
• 5.1% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution

Lower is better for both figures.

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024

15 reported · August 2026▲ 36% YoY

• Violence & sexual offences11
• Anti-social behaviour1
• Criminal damage & arson1
• Other theft1

Neighbourhood team: Bicester Rural · Thames Valley

Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)

197 reported road collisions (2025)

57 killed or seriously injured · 259 casualties · 12.2 collisions per 10,000 residents

Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)

15 food businesses within 2 miles

• 15 rated 4–5 ★ (12 top)
• 0 rated 0–2 (poor)

Source: Food Standards Agency

• Nearest station: Bicester Village (4.4 km)
• 1 bus stops within ~½ mile

Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail

£355,981 average▲ 2.6% YoY

Across Cherwell · to 2026-08

Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)

£1,304 average monthly rent▲ 2.2% YoY

• 1 bed £975
• 2 bed £1,217
• 3 bed £1,470

Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08

9.3× house price to earnings

A typical home costs 9.3 times median annual pay (10.0× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).

Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025

2,110 property sales in the last 12 months

12 months to May 2026

A busier or quieter market is not by itself good or bad. Monthly counts are small and volatile, so only the annual total is shown.

Source: HM Land Registry UK HPI, 12 months to 2026-05

• Cheapest petrol: 168.9p · Asda (5.2 km)
• Cheapest diesel: 140.8p · AppleGreen (5.4 km)

3 stations within ~8 miles

Source: CMA fuel price scheme

26 charging locations within ~8 km

• 1 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
• Fastest nearby: 75 kW
• Nearest: Launton (3.4 km)

Source: Open Charge Map

• Sports pitches1
• Playgrounds2

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

• Hearing dates for Local Plan announced· 30 Oct 2026
• The government has announced new minded-to decision for three new unitary councils· 29 Oct 2026
• Cherwell up for two awards as glass recycling tops 2,000 tonnes· 29 Oct 2026
• Government announces plans to progress with a mayoral strategic authority for the Thames Valley· 28 Oct 2026
• Celebrating one year of Banbury Playzones· 28 Oct 2026

Source: Cherwell Council

161,012 residents in Cherwell · 274/km²

• Under 16: 19%
• 16–64: 64%
• 65+: 17%

Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)

• Moves in from elsewhere in the UK10,469
• Moves out to elsewhere in the UK9,717
• Net moves+752

Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025

Among the least deprived areas in England

Ranked 244 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)

Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025

£2,583 a year · Band D, 2026-27

Most homes here are Band C (27% of 72,260)

Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27

74 schools · 24,283 pupils

53 primary · 9 secondary · 12 other

Ofsted: 20 of 22 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (91%)

67 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)

Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Cherwell

672 CQC-registered services

• Care homes149
• GP practices107
• Dentists167
• Homecare agencies173
• Hospitals & hospices16

CQC ratings: 92% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 3 Inadequate

Source: Care Quality Commission · Oxfordshire

• Not in the Green Belt
• 14 listed buildings within ~1.5 km

Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)

251 applications decided

89.2% granted · 224 granted, 27 refused

Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2

Calum Miller

Liberal Democrat

Bicester and Woodstock

Source: UK Parliament

Liberal Democrat / Green / Independent coalition

• Lab 8
• Con 8
• LD 18
• Grn 4
• Ref 6
• Oth 4

Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)

• Schools1
• Parks & greens2

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

8,725 active business enterprises in the area

Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)

27 jobs advertised · £37,937 avg

e.g. Electrical Supervisor, Vacancy: End of Lease Cleaners, Infrastructure Engineer

Source: Adzuna

£784 median full-time weekly pay

2.3% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits

£27,182 disposable income per head (2024)

Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI

53% of homes rated EPC C or above

Most common band: C · 75,407 certificates

9% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)

Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty

29% low-carbon electricity

Gas 69% · Wind 16% · Biomass 8% · Nuclear 6%

281 gCO₂/kWh · very high intensity

Latest estimate for South England · National Grid ESO

Life expectancy: 85.5 yrs women · 81.5 yrs men

Healthy life expectancy (Oxfordshire): 66.6 women · 65.4 men

57% of adults overweight or obese

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025

• Life satisfaction7.6
• Feeling worthwhile7.8
• Happiness yesterday7.5
• Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)2.7

Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23

2 GP surgeries · 1 pharmacy in OX25

• Bicester Medical Centre
• Hmp Bullingdon

Source: NHS Organisation Data Service

Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in Bicester and Woodstock:

• Stop plans to use MoD sites for asylum seekers without full local consultation3,103 local signatures · 23,862 nationwide
• Hold a UK-wide briefing on climate and nature risks317 local signatures · 127,144 nationwide
• Protect legal right to support for children with SEND248 local signatures · 111,357 nationwide
• Launch a public inquiry into illegal migration in the UK191 local signatures · 78,478 nationwide
• Support the Ceramics Industry and protect British manufacturing jobs and skills190 local signatures · 111,154 nationwide

Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05

• 
  Blackthorn, Oxfordshire · 0.0 km

  Blackthorn is a village and civil parish in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire about 3 miles (5 km) southeast of Bicester. The parish is bounded by the River Ray to the south, tributaries of the Ray to the east and…

• 
  Blackthorn railway station · 1.1 km

  Blackthorn railway station was a railway station serving the village of Blackthorn, Oxfordshire, England. It was on what is now known as the Chiltern Main Line.

• 
  Arncott Bridge Meadows · 1.5 km

  Arncott Bridge Meadows is an 8.7-hectare (21-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Arncott in Oxfordshire.

• 
  Ambrosden · 1.6 km

  Ambrosden is a village and civil parish in Cherwell, Oxfordshire, England, 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Bicester to which it is linked by the A41 road, and 13 miles (21 km) from Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the par…

• 
  Arncott · 2.2 km

  Arncott or Arncot is a village and civil parish about 3+1⁄2 miles (5.6 km) southeast of Bicester in Oxfordshire. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,738.

• 
  HM Prison Bullingdon · 2.2 km

  HM Prison and Young Offenders Institute Bullingdon is a prison in Oxfordshire, England. It is a public sector prison operated by HM Prison and Probation Service.

Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)