Author: Launton Parish Clerk

Grit bins in the village

Salt is available in all the grit bins in these snowy conditions:

– by the bus shelter on Station Road:
– by the Bull on Bicester Road:
– by the bus shelter on Bicester Road near Sherwood Close: and
– on the Bicester Road railway bridge towards Bicester.

Please do use it at the junctions to help entry and exit into side roads and and on the bridge.

While the salt is publicly available – it is not for personal use.

To clear drives and private roads, dishwasher salt or even soda crystals spread very sparingly works really well.

Pavement repair

The pavement outside Costcutter has now been repaired by the County Council.

The deterioration was partly because cars were parking there.

To allow pedestrians to walk on the pavement, please avoid parking on the verge or the pavement.

Temporary Pedestrian Lights

We are pleased to say that the A41 Roadworks Team has agreed to provide the village with a temporary pedestrian crossing, with the associated parking restrictions, outside Launton School while there is so much traffic coming through the village because of the works on the A41.

This will make sure that the children and carers needing to cross the road will be able to do so more safely, but it will mean that cars will not be able to park on Bicester Road near the school.

We realise that it is not an ideal solution for the whole village, but we are trying our best to help!

EWR – truck movements

East West Rail has asked the Highways team at Oxfordshire County Council for permission to take HGVs through the village as part of their ongoing reinstatement works currently being undertaken at the A2 compound by Grange Farm.

They are required to carry out this programme of final material movements as part of the Transport and Works Act Order.  It will mean a number of HGV journeys between the A2 compound on Station Road and the final position adjacent to the A1 compound.

As some of the railway track has now been laid, there is no option to use the ‘haul road’ but this is expected to be the last of the series of HGV movements to this location as the work should be fully complete.

To have the least amount of impact on the village and the roads, they would like to carry out the initial HGV movements through Launton during the half term period to get these movements carried out as quick as possible.

The works will be carried out in two phases:

Phase 1 is the majority of the effort and will be from Monday 24 October to Friday 28 October.

Phase 2 will commence from Monday 7 November to Friday 18 November and will be for any residual topsoil not required to complete the site. Any journeys required in this time slot are likely to be minimal and they will be scheduled for outside school drop off/pick up times.

During these HGV movements, the EWR Team will install traffic ambassadors at the crossroads at Bicester Road and Station Road to monitor driver behaviour. Please note that they will also have a fulltime sweeper to mitigate mud on the road as best as they can while these HGV movements are carried out.

All the drivers will follow the route shown on the map below and the blue line outlines the route that will be taken by our HGVs. They will continue to remind all of the drivers to follow the agreed route, adhere to the required speed limit and always show courtesy to other road users.

As usual, any questions or concerns should go to publicinformation@ewralliance.co.uk or call the 24 hour helpline on 03457 11 41 41

HGV movements map

HGV movements map

Village Roads

Councillors Sanders and Turner, together with the Clerk, met with an Oxfordshire County Council Highways officer in September to discuss the issues with the crossroads and to see if a way forward could be found.

The Officer spent a great deal of time listening and discussing the issues and then took measurements in order to draw up plans. The concerns he hopes to address include the vision splay at the exit from Station Road, the cars parking too close to the crossroads junction together with the speed of the traffic through the village.

He will investigate the possibility of a ‘speed pillow’ over the entire crossroads area together with double yellow lines to deter parking close to the junction – particularly up Station Road and along the northern side of Blackthorn Road – which he thinks will also assist with pedestrian safety.

Further to these proposals, the Officer is suggesting looking at extending the weight limit – which currently starts at Blackthorn Road – so that it starts at the Charbridge Lane roundabout, which would act as a deterrent to HGVs using the village as a cut through; however, all access for deliveries to the village would still be possible.

The Parish Council has already applied for the 20mph speed limit promoted by Oxfordshire County Council and it is hoped that the consultation costs for the crossroads work and the speed limit would be able to be combined.

Further to all this, the Parish Council has asked for a temporary pedestrian crossing, similar to the one which EWR installed while Charbridge Lane was closed, to be provided by the developers working on the A41 roadworks, but this is yet to come to fruition.

We have also set up a village Speedwatch group. The group has already had a couple of sessions, but we do need more volunteers. If you would like to put yourself forward to volunteer please contact David Jones, the Speedwatch Co-ordinator, at speedwatch@launton-pc.gov.uk and he will be pleased to send you all the information.

Please be assured that we are taking the issue of the traffic very seriously, but we have to acknowledge that the roads are provided by Oxfordshire County Council and are, therefore, their responsibility. We also need to remember that the roads are available for all – whether the users live in the village or not – and we have no way of limiting that use.

Any concerns with the condition of the roads, signage etc. should be reported, as usual, via FixMyStreet – https://fixmystreet.oxfordshire.gov.uk/.  More strategic concerns may be directed to our County Councillor, Ian Corkin, at ian.corkin@oxfordshire.gov.uk.

Bicester Heritage – 8 January Scramble

Bicester Heritage will be opening their doors again on Sunday 8 January 2023.

The Scramble promises visitors the chance to experience historic motoring at its best, through a curated display of classic cars, open workshop doors and lots of surprises for the family along the way.

You will be able to visit the 45 industry-leading specialist businesses based in their restored historic buildings at Bicester Heritage. Family and dog friendly, the Scramble is a wonderful way to while away the weekend hours in the company of some spectacular machines.

Local residents and their families are more than welcome to attend the event and make the most of a 50% discount on full price tickets with the promocode: BristolBoxkite

Go to https://bicesterheritage.co.uk/events and click on the ‘find out more’ button to book tickets.

For further information see https://www.facebook.com/BicesterHeritage, or contact the events team directly at: events@bicestermotion.com

Keep an eye on the Bicester Heritage website and social media pages for the latest information and release of tickets.

Condolence Book

A Book of Condolence is now available in St Mary’s Church for those wishing to leave a message. The table is at the end of the aisle to your right as you enter Church.

The book will be closed at the end of the mourning period and will probably be sent to the County archive to form part of the County commemoration.

The Church will be open between 8am and 7pm to sign the Book and for quiet reflection.

Death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second

21st April 1926 – 8th September 2022

Launton Parish Council offers its condolences to the Royal Family on the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Her duty, service and devotion to the people of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth was unparalleled. We have lived in a truly golden Elizabethan age, the likes of which we will never see again.

Launton Parish Council joins with people around the world in mourning her loss.

A book of condolence will be available for residents to sign at St Mary’s Church

The book will comprise loose pages and will form part of the Official Book of Condolence for Oxfordshire.

Join the Council – make a difference!

Following Kyle Michael’s resignation, the Parish Council now has a Councillor vacancy.

The Parish Council needs Councillors in order to function.

The Parish Council is often the place that people in the community come to for guidance.  By standing as a Parish Councillor, you become someone your community may look to for help, guidance and support.  You will also have the support of an experienced professional Clerk and training will be given.

Parish Councils make all kinds of decisions on issues that affect the local community.  Among a variety of things, we are the village’s voice on planning matters, we are supporting the village Speedwatch Campaign, we arrange the village grass cutting, we are working on the village Emergency Plan and we are the liaison between East West Rail, the District and County Councils.

We’d love to be able to do more, but with fewer Councillors, it is much harder to make the village’s voice heard.

Please think about whether you can help.  See the information on the Becoming a Councillor page at https://www.launton-pc.gov.uk/becoming-a-councillor/ and join us on 1 September in the Parish Hall.  The agenda and meeting papers are always published on the website at https://www.launton-pc.gov.uk/agenda-and-minutes/2022-2023-agenda-and-minutes/ .

Yew Tree Field Footpath Closure

Oxfordshire County Council has informed the Parish Council that the footpath linking Yew Tree Close and the Playing Fields will be closed for surfacing and culvert project repairs/works between 15 and 31 August 2022.

This is the next phase of the works which OCC and CDC are doing to improve the area.

This is the map and this is the notice