The home of the future will be affordable, green and promote a healthy lifestyle according to Oxfordshire’s residents.

At a special workshop in Oxford last week run by Design Council and supported by the Oxfordshire Growth Board, people from across the county’s communities came together to think innovatively about the homes that they, their friends and their family might want and need in the future

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The public survey for the Oxfordshire Growth Board has now closed. We’d like to thank all those who responded for giving their views and and helping to ensure that growth across the county is managed in the best possible way. Your feedback on issues such as how the Growth Board is perceived, its priorities and membership, how the board communicates and the format of its meetings will now be considered before recommendations are made to the Growth Board in January.

Work to improve the Oxford Canal towpath has begun. Oxfordshire County Council and the Canal and River Trust has started work on a section of route from Aristotle Lane to Godstow Road. The project aims to upgrade approximately 2.3km of towpath and is being funded by the Oxfordshire Housing and Growth Deal to a value of around £750k.

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Transport improvements in and around Didcot will support the creation of new jobs and homes, thanks to a successful grant funding bid led by Oxfordshire County Council and supported by the district councils.

The funding will support the creation of new houses including affordable homes and will improve transport links including walking and cycling routes.

You could win £50 of shopping vouchers by helping shape Oxfordshire’s future.

Your views are sought as part of the Oxfordshire Plan 2050 – a strategic planning policy for the next 30 years – which is being formed by all of Oxfordshire’s local authorities.

A planning application for an extra care housing scheme in West Oxfordshire supported by £2.9 million of funding from the Oxfordshire Housing & Growth Deal, has been approved, subject to conditions.

The new scheme, to be built in Rockhill, Chipping Norton, will comprise of 80 extra care homes – 40 one-bed and 40 two-bed apartments – designed to meet the needs of older people. It will offer a number of communal facilities including gardens, a dining area, lounges and hobby/activity areas.

The Oxfordshire Plan 2050 team has launched a ‘Call for Ideas’ to try to identify areas for new development and environmental protection in Oxfordshire.

The plan team wants to gather public views on which broad locations should be considered within the Oxfordshire Plan 2050.

These could be locations for large-scale housing or employment, infrastructure projects, or for strategic environmental designations.

A bus roadshow will soon be touring the county seeking the views of Oxfordshire.

For five days from Monday 18 February, the Oxford Bus Company vehicle will be visiting towns and villages to encourage people to have their say on the Oxfordshire Plan 2050.

And until Monday 25 March people can read the first draft document and leave their comments online on the consultation website.

The Oxfordshire Growth Board has welcomed the continued and ongoing support from Homes England to achieve their shared ambitions in Oxfordshire, which include the delivery of good quality, sustainable homes where residents need them most, along with the significant improvement of local infrastructure.

Councillor Jane Murphy, Chair of the Oxfordshire Growth Board, was invited to talk about the work being done to deliver new affordable homes via the Housing & Growth Deal.

The £215m Deal, signed with the Government, is the initial down payment of investment to support new infrastructure, housing and jobs within Oxfordshire.

Cllr Murphy delivered a keynote speech at a house building conference held by the Westminster Social Policy Forum in London on Wednesday (January 15).

In her speech, she explained how the Deal meant we could not carry on with business as usual and a radical step change was required in how we work in Oxfordshire.

“A vibrant and ecologically sustainable community where everyone can get a house and a suitable job.”

This was among the exciting visions for the future of the county outlined by representatives of a variety of organisations at an event for the Oxfordshire Plan 2050.

More than 70 delegates from groups spanning the environment, technology, business, planning and government bodies – as well as Oxfordshire Growth Board Scrutiny Committee members – took part in the session on December 18 that examined what the county’s future should and could look like.

Oxfordshire residents will have the opportunity to shape the long-term future of the county with the launch of a major public consultation to develop the Oxfordshire Plan 2050, backed by the six local authorities.

As part of the £215m Housing & Growth Deal secured by the Oxfordshire Growth Board from the Government, the spatial plan will set out the county’s future for the next 30 years.

It will consider what makes Oxfordshire great and look to preserve these qualities, while helping address some of the challenges facing us and secure a better future for our children and grandchildren.

Through consultation with different stakeholder groups and the public, we will listen to what is important to our residents and their families, what aspirations they have for the future and plan for the best way to deliver a better quality of life for all, be it rural, urban or market town communities.

The Oxfordshire Growth Board has published details of the infrastructure projects that will be supported by funding across the five years of the Oxfordshire Housing & Growth Deal, unlocking nearly £500 million of investment that will include contributions from developers.

The £215 million Deal, agreed with Government earlier this year, includes £30 million a year for five years to help accelerate transport infrastructure projects including road, rail, cycle routes and footpaths as well social infrastructure including new schools. The £150 million Growth Deal infrastructure funding has now been earmarked for specific projects. By improving infrastructure in specific locations across the county where it is most needed, this will help ensure that new homes are delivered in a planned and sustainable way.

OGB Infrastructure Projects List

Oxfordshire Growth Board held an event at Didcot Civic Hall on Thursday 18 October for developers and registered providers of social housing to invite them to help deliver new affordable homes across the county supported by funding from the Housing and Growth Deal.

Officers from all four District Councils and Oxford City Council set out details of the three-year programme to deliver at least 1,320 additional affordable homes countywide.

Let’s Build Affordable Homes

Oxfordshire Affordable Homes Prospectus

Application Form

The Oxfordshire Growth Board has called for the government to provide more clarity on its proposals for the route of the Oxford to Cambridge Expressway in Oxfordshire.

The chair of the Growth Board, Cllr Jane Murphy, has written to the Minister for Transport and the project’s director at Highways England explaining how the lack of certainty will affect work the board is doing to help plan for effective and sustainable growth that enhances the quality of life in Oxfordshire.

“you can read copies of the letters here”

Letter to Secretary of State Letter to Highways England