South Oxfordshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Oxfordshire, England. Its council is temporarily based outside the district at Abingdon-on-Thames pending a planned move to Didcot, the district's largest town. The areas located south of the River Thames are within the historic county of Berkshire.
The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, covering the area of six former districts, which were abolished at the same time:[1]
The two Wallingford districts had previously been part of the administrative county of Berkshire, whilst the other four districts had been in the administrative county of Oxfordshire. The new district was originally given the name "Wallingford".[2] The shadow authority elected in 1973 to oversee the transition requested a change of name to "South Oxfordshire", which was approved by the government before the new district formally came into being in 1974.[3]
The River Thames flows for approximately 47 miles through South Oxfordshire,[4] forming the historic county boundary between Berkshire and Oxfordshire. It is also joined by the River Thame within the district. A characteristic of the rivers within the district is that they have wide floodplains with few houses on them so that fluvial flooding is a lesser problem than flash flooding.[5] Towns in the district are Didcot, Henley-on-Thames, Thame, Wallingford and Watlington.
See List of civil parishes in South OxfordshireThe larger villages in the district include:
The 2001 Census recorded a population of just over 128,000 in the district. This was an increase of 7% since 1991. By the 2021 Census, the figure had risen to over 149,000.[6]
Much of the district is rural in nature, with the land in agricultural use and around 70% of the district has a green belt or AONB designation (The northeast of the district forms part of the Oxford Green Belt). 50% of the district's population lives outside its four main towns of Didcot, Henley-on-Thames, Thame and Wallingford.
| South Oxfordshire District Council | |
| Logo Pic: | South Oxfordshire District Council logo.svg |
| Logo Res: | 200 |
| Logo Alt: | South Oxfordshire District Council Logo |
| House Type: | Non-metropolitan district |
| Foundation: | 1 April 1974 |
| Leader1 Type: | Chair |
| Leader1: | Kellie Hinton |
| Party1: | Henley Residents |
| Election1: | 16 May 2024[7] |
| Leader2 Type: | Leader |
| Leader2: | David Rouane |
| Party2: | Liberal Democrat |
| Election2: | 7 October 2021[8] |
| Leader3 Type: | Chief Executive |
| Leader3: | Mark Stone |
| Election3: | 2017[9] |
| Seats: | 36 councillors |
| Structure1: | File:UK SouthOxfordshire DistrictCouncil 2023.svg |
| Structure1 Res: | 250 |
| Political Groups1: |
|
| Term Length: | 4 years |
| Next Election1: | 6 May 2027 |
South Oxfordshire District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Oxfordshire County Council. The whole district is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.[10]
Since 2008, the council has shared staff with neighbouring Vale of White Horse District Council.[11]
The Liberal Democrats have held a majority of the seats on the council since the 2023 election.[12] Despite having a majority, they form a joint administration with the Green Party, continuing a coalition which they had formed in 2019 when the council had been under no overall control.[13] [14]
The first election to the district council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until it came into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[15]
| Party in control | Years | |
|---|---|---|
| 1974–1976 | ||
| 1976–1995 | ||
| 1995–2003 | ||
| 2003–2019 | ||
| 2019–2023 | ||
| 2023–present | ||
The leaders of the council since 2003 have been:[16]
| Councillor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ann Ducker | May 2003 | 21 Sep 2014 | ||
| John Cotton | 16 Oct 2014 | Apr 2018 | ||
| Jane Murphy | 19 Apr 2018 | 16 May 2019 | ||
| Sue Cooper | 16 May 2019 | 7 Oct 2021 | ||
| David Rouane | 7 Oct 2021 | |||
Following the 2023 election, the composition of the council was:[17]
| Party | Councillors | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | |||
| 8 | |||
| 3 | |||
| 3 | |||
| 1 | |||
| Total | 36 | ||
The next election is due in 2027.[18]
See main article: South Oxfordshire District Council elections. Since the last full review of boundaries in 2015, the council has comprised 36 councillors representing 21 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[19]
The council was initially based in various premises across the district in Henley, Thame, Wheatley, Wallingford and Didcot inherited from its predecessor authorities.[20] In 1981 the council moved to a purpose-built headquarters on Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford, near Wallingford.[21]
On 15 January 2015, an arson attack destroyed the district council's main offices in Crowmarsh Gifford.[22] As the fire started in the early hours of the morning there were no fatalities or injuries.[23] Immediately after the fire, the council was temporarily based in Abingdon, in the neighbouring Vale of White Horse district.[24] From later in 2015 until 2022 the council was based at Milton Park, sharing a building with Vale of White Horse District Council.[25] The Council initially intended to return to Crowmarsh,[26] but in October 2020 it was announced that both councils plan on relocating to a new building in Didcot, to be built on a site known as Didcot Gateway opposite Didcot Parkway railway station, aiming for completion in 2023.[27] In 2022 the councils vacated Milton Park and returned to Abingdon, again on a temporary basis, whilst waiting for the Didcot Gateway scheme to be ready.[28]
In terms of television, the area is served by BBC South and ITV Meridian broadcast from the Oxford transmitter. [29] However, southern parts of the district which includes Henley-on-Thames is served by BBC London and ITV London broadcasting from the Crystal Palace transmitter. [30]
Radio stations for the area are BBC Radio Oxford, BBC Radio Berkshire (covering Henley-on-Thames), Heart Thames Valley, and Jack FM.
Local newspapers are Oxfordshire Guardian, Oxford Mail and Henley Standard.
In May 2006, a report commissioned by British Gas[31] showed that housing in South Oxfordshire produced the 5th highest average carbon emissions in the country at 7,356 kg of carbon dioxide per dwelling.
See also: Energy efficiency in British housing.