The registered charity is aiming to raise £10,500 for Oxfordshire County Council’s museum service to acquire the hoard, which includes a stunning horse brooch that is more than 2,000 years old.

This appeal represents the service’s first ever crowdfunder campaign.

The hoard was discovered in the parish of Rotherfield Peppard near Henley-on-Thames in August 2020 by a metal detector user and, with archaeologists, was then excavated.

Chairman of the Friends of the Oxfordshire Museum, Edward Dowler, said: “Friends of the Oxfordshire Museum has a proud and long standing history of supporting the museum to acquire treasure. We are pleased to enable the museum team to take this exciting new step.

“We hope that the campaign will inspire the many people who want to see Oxfordshire treasures kept in the county, and displayed in its museum, to donate.”

Councillor Neil Fawcett, Deputy Leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said: “This is an exceptional opportunity for our county council museum service to acquire a fascinating collection of objects that tells us so many stories about our iron age forebears from so long ago.

“I hope local people can help us in our quest to conserve these incredibly historic and valuable items for present and future generations of Oxfordshire people.”

The iron age of the British Isles started 800 years BC and it is believed that this hoard was buried in AD 50 to 150, shortly after the Roman invasion.

The hoard was found in a pottery urn, sealed by a quern stone. The contents of the urn included a stunning copper alloy and enamelled iron age horse brooch, an enamelled patera handle, a brooch, one silver roman coin and a lead weight.

Such a hoard is classified as treasure under the national Treasure Act. As the county’s repository for archaeological finds, the county council’s museum service has the first chance to acquire it for Oxfordshire and ultimately save it from going into private hands.

Donors who give over £20 will also be invited to a special viewing of the hoard with the council’s curator of archaeology if the campaign is successful.

Donations made will be used only to support the acquisition and conservation of the hoard for the museum. People donating are urged to opt in for Gift Aid as this boosts the money received and will help reach the target more quickly.

The Friends of the Oxfordshire Museum is a registered charity that supports The Oxfordshire Museum through fundraising and financial support for special events, acquisitions and educational programmes.

The Oxfordshire Museum cares for, safeguards and makes accessible the heritage of the county. Its collections can be accessed through its displays, loans programme and digital catalogue and can be used for research.

Learn more about the Friends of the Oxfordshire Museum and the benefits of becoming a friend by visiting the Friends of the Oxfordshire Museum’s website.

More information and donations can be made by visiting the dedicated crowdfunder’s webpage.

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Covering the medieval market town of Chipping Norton along with Hook Norton, Over Norton, the Rollrights, Salford, and Swerford, it is the 21st volume produced by the Victoria County History of Oxfordshire (VCH), in partnership with Oxfordshire County Council.

VCH is a nationally organised local history project that aspires to create detailed histories for every town and village in the county.

Councillor Neil Fawcett, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community & Corporate Services, said: “From the Cotswolds, Cherwell Valley and Chilterns to the City of Oxford, Oxfordshire is a stunning county with so much history. Victoria County History Oxfordshire allows us to document some of this colourful history.

“After the launch of the 20th volume two years ago, focusing on the South Oxfordshire Chilterns, I am pleased to see the launch of this latest edition on the fascinating history of Chipping Norton.

“This new book draws on four years of intensive work by the small team, working in part with local groups and combining archival research with investigation of buildings and landscape. It will certainly be both a valuable resource, and an interesting read.”

Some of the highlights of this volume include the prehistoric Rollright Stones; the abandoned motte-and-bailey castle at Swerford; deserted medieval settlements; and Chipping Norton itself. Chipping Norton was laid out above a pre-existing Norman castle and church in the mid 12th century and was later famous as the home of Bliss's tweed mill.

The book will be initially made available through public libraries and to buy.

The existing published volumes are available in Oxford’s Westgate Library, various branch libraries and Oxfordshire History Centre. They can be purchased at boydellandbrewer.com, and most can be accessed online on British History’s website.

Hook Norton Brewery hosted the launch as part of its 175th anniversary celebrations and has produced a special limited edition VCH bottle label to mark the occasion.

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The archaeological investigations were undertaken of behalf of Oxfordshire County Council in preparation for the new A34 interchange at Lodge Hill.  Discoveries included deeply buried sediments from the area’s ancient river systems dating back to the Middle Pleistocene period and some flint tools, reflecting early human presence from this era.

Experts from Oxford Archaeology, commissioned by the councils’ contractor, Balfour Beatty, dug 16 trial trenches, 12 test pits and two boreholes. The work was part of a planning condition to explore any potential archaeological remains and any ancient sediments that would be affected by the new interchange. 

Councillor Judy Roberts, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Infrastructure and Development Strategy, said: Archaeological investigations like this are an important part of the process of delivering construction schemes. They help us identify and understand past features and residents of the area and record them for future generations. 

“Oxfordshire has a fascinating history – not just its people, but its geology too. These remains offer a glimpse into the ancient ecosystems that existed here during the interglacial periods.”

 Excavations found evidence of the Lodge Hill Channel, an ancient river system that crosses the site in a southwest to northeast direction. This channel, which is buried beneath a younger layer of gravel, has silty sediments up to 5m deep in places, with remains of ancient fossil material such as snail shells, fish bones and plant matter in its deeper parts. A piece of a Palaeolithic flint handaxe was also found from deposits that directly overlap the ancient channel fill.   

The channel deposits at Lodge Hill are probably part of the same river system as similar deposits found nearby, also in north Abingdon, where Sugworth Lane crosses the A34. The Sugworth Lane deposits have been recognised as of national significance for their fossil faunal remains, which contains an extinct species of vole.

Although no major archaeological remains were identified in the trenches, a few flint artefacts were also found that reflect later prehistoric human activity at the site. Three worked flints were found, probably from the Neolithic to Bronze Age periods.  

The archaeological evaluation also revealed a few undated features, including two small pits, a linear ditch, and a series of postholes, likely of post-medieval or modern origin, along with quantities of Roman pottery and medieval tile fragments. 

Carl Champness, Project Manager for Oxford Archaeology said: “The discovery of a rare lower-middle age handaxe and the interglacial channel deposits at Lodge Hill dating between 600,000-500,000 years ago may provide new insights into a lost landscape. This is only the start of the story, and we hope planned further investigation and detailed analysis of these remains, will help enhance our understanding of the early occupation of Britain.” 

Francis Wenban-Smith of University of Southampton, Palaeolithic specialist for Oxford Archaeology, said: “These are very exciting finds. Artefactual evidence of this period is exceptionally rare in the Upper Thames landscape north of the Goring Gap. The presence of flint tools gives an insight into the mobility of these ancient humans, since flint raw material would not have been available at the site. The human species involved was probably Homo heidelbergensis, who were the ancestor of the Neanderthals, and who periodically occupied Britain in warmer climatic episodes between c. 800,000 and 400,000 years ago.” 

Image provided courtesy of Oxford Archaeology

Image 1 shows the Lower/Middle Palaeolithic handaxe identified in the North drift gravel deposits in Test Pit 21 

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Residents are able to review a 1905 historical survey that recorded all highways and bridges for which the county council was responsible following its establishment in 1889.  The survey was created by County Surveyor Sidney Stallard and was the first of its kind.

Councillor Neil Fawcett, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community and Corporate Services, said: “The materials available at our History Centre are among the numerous resources that highlight our county's heritage. It's fascinating to witness history come alive online and see the extensive changes in Oxfordshire over time.

"As well as vast online collections, including photos and pictures, there are also extensive physical archive collections open to residents that can help to support personal research projects, from small-scale family history to significant local historical events. "

The surveyors prepared the roads and bridges survey on a set of first edition six-inch Ordnance Survey maps on 53 different sheets dating from 1874 to 1881.

In July 1904, Sidney Stallard took over from Henry Tollitt, Oxfordshire County Council’s first ever County Surveyor, and one of Stallard’s tasks was to commission this new and comprehensive survey of the county's roads and bridges.

The maps were produced at the behest of the council’s Roads and Bridges Committee.

Complementing the 1905 roads and bridges survey maps, the centre has also now published high resolution zoomable images of the complete county bridges album on Picture Oxon, the county council’s database of historical images.

This album contains colour sketches of Oxfordshire bridges, dating from 1839 to 1873 and mainly drawn by Sophia Davenport, wife of J.M. Davenport, Clerk of the Peace. The album also includes some engraved prints, photographs and plans of county bridges.

The maps are based on the historical boundaries of Oxfordshire before 1974 when places to the south of the River Thames such as Abingdon were in Berkshire.

The resource can be viewed by visiting Oxfordshire History's website. 

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On 2 December 1983, crowds gathered to catch a glimpse of Princess Diana as she officially opened the facility to the east of Wantage, by planting a sapling in the centre’s garden.

Forty years on and the same mulberry tree now towers over the centre and the service has supported more than 200 adults in that time.

Councillor Tim Bearder, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, said: “Wantage community support service has a long and important history, supporting adults from the town and the surrounding areas.

“From its royal opening to its current form, the centre has been a lifeline for people with additional needs, supporting them to live their best life.”

Back in 1983, Oxfordshire County Council’s Wantage CSS was called Charlton Training Centre and supported adults with learning disabilities. The building was used for various activities, including carpentry and woodwork as well as gardening in the land behind the centre. It would also sell the products it grew and made, bringing in some extra funds to the service.

During her visit, Princess Diana spoke with many of the adults who used the centre, listening to their stories and asking questions about their experiences. Keith Tollett still regularly attends Wantage CSS and was there on the day.

Keith said: “I had a lovely day! Diana was very pretty and kind and lovely to everyone.”

As the years moved on, the centre was adapted for the changing social care needs of the time. Wantage Market Garden was created in the green space behind the service and is now looked after by community action group, Sustainable Wantage, in partnership with care providers Style Acre and the county council.

Charlton Training Centre was renamed Charlton Day Service, before becoming Wantage Community Support Service in 2017, when even more adults were supported to use the centre, including those with aging health conditions such as dementia and people with mental health needs.

A greater emphasis is now placed on supporting people outside of the centre, including recent visits to Oxford’s Natural History Museum and a walk around Ladygrove Lakes.

To celebrate the centre’s 40^th anniversary, the staff at Wantage CSS are hosting an inclusive and accessible disco for the adults who use the service, as well as their family and carers.

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The brand-new resource is free to use and contains a comprehensive catalogue of historical resources, including a wide range of archive documents, books, photographs, maps and much more, relating to the history of Oxfordshire – from ancient artefacts to modern-day landmarks.

Councillor Jenny Hannaby, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services and Safety, said: “This is a brilliant new resource that forms part of our commitment as a council to preserve our county history for Oxfordshire communities to enjoy. It brings together records from across our heritage services images, maps, sound recordings, journals, and even archaeological records from several different databases.

“Whether you’re a historian, a student or simply interested in learning more about the county, this is a great place to start exploring.”

Archaeological finds and many photographs are mapped, with the opportunity to overlay historical maps to allow people to study their local area in more detail.

Heritage Search includes information gathered from Oxfordshire History Centre, Oxfordshire Museums Service and Oxfordshire Historic Environment Record.

Picture Oxon – the council’s online image library of 380,000 records and 160,000 images – is also available through the service. 

Find out more and access the resource for free by visiting the Heritage Search webpage.

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The exhibition is a chance to see the Stoke Lyne Roman coin hoard – the largest in Oxfordshire County Council’s collection – for the first time and learn more about how the museum acquires, catalogues and cares for them.

Councillor Jenny Hannaby, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services and Safety said: “These coins are another exciting find that helps us to discover more about the rich history of our county, and the Roman occupation of early Britain.

“As the largest hoard in our significant collection of coins and artefacts, I am delighted that we’ve been able to bring this exhibition to Bicester. If you have an interest in history and learning more, this is the exhibition for you.”

To mark the start of the exhibition, Bicester Library is also hosting a “Roman Coin Hoard Day” on 3 December featuring activities for both families and adults alike, such as lectures on the hoard, making roman helmets and a question-and-answer session with the Museum Service’s archaeology team.

Those who have made their own discoveries, no matter how small, can also bring along their hoards to Finds Liaison Officer Dr Edward Carswell, who will be on hand to help them learn more about their finds.

The hoard was discovered in September 2016 by a metal detector on farmland. The coins are all thought to date from the joint reign of Valerian and Gallienus (AD 253 to 260) to the reigns of regional emperors Tetricus I and II (AD 271 to 274) and Aurelian (AD 270-5). The hoard also contains several unofficial copies that could post-date AD 274 but cannot be closely dated.

The Bicester area in the Roman era was predominantly rural with notable tribal boundaries at Aves Ditch and the river Cherwell. Nearby Alchester is the site of an ancient Roman town.

Discover more about what’s on at Oxfordshire’s libraries and museums at: www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/residents/leisure-and-culture

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The VCH is a national research project to document the history of every county in England by creating a place by place encyclopaedia of each of the historic counties of England. Michael Wood led a one-off lecture revisiting his groundbreaking ‘The Story of England’ TV series, which focused on a single place throughout English history. It looked at the importance of history from the bottom up through ordinary places and ordinary people, which the VCH project in Oxfordshire aims to do.

Councillor Jenny Hannaby, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services and Safety, said: “I am delighted that Michael Wood was able to come to Oxfordshire and support our Victoria County History project.

“The project allows us to document some of the rich and colourful history of our stunning county – from the Cotswolds, Cherwell Valley and the Chilterns to the City of Oxford.”

In Oxfordshire, the latest VCH volume covers the South Oxfordshire Chilterns and is number 20 out of a planned 23 encyclopaedias that document the history of the county pre-1974. 

This work is led by a small team based in Oxford supported by the VCH Oxfordshire Trust and Oxfordshire County Council as part of its heritage services.

The published volumes are available in Oxford Central Library, various branch libraries and Oxfordshire History Centre.

Most are available online for free at British History Online (British-history.ac.uk).

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Archaeologists in Oxfordshire County Council’s museum service have been recognised at the Society for Museum Archaeology's annual awards for their work in developing a digital access and communication engagement project.

The project sought to better engage with communities in order to increase awareness of local heritage and improve digital access to resources. The society commended the project for the way it thoughtfully and successfully engaged local communities.

Councillor Jenny Hannaby, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services and Safety said: “It’s fabulous to hear about the success of our archaeology team.

“This project, which included several volunteers, has been a vital tool in helping to improve and better engage our local communities, exceeding our expectations along the way. Not only this, but the success has also provided a model for future projects and collaborations within the council. Well done to all!”

The Eynsham heritage day attracted 462 people, with a number of events taking place including two tours of the site of Eynsham Abbey, two tours of Eynsham Abbey around the village, family activities and much more.

As part of the project, over a thousand artefacts in the collection were photographed – images will be accessible later in the year through a new website. Eight 3D models are also available to view on the website sketchfab.

The museum resource centre, near Witney, is the principal store for all archaeological sites excavated or studied in Oxfordshire, apart from those situated on land belonging to Oxford University. Collections include sites and objects from every period of human history – prehistoric, Roman, Anglo-Saxon, medieval and post-medieval. It is open to the public by appointment only.

More information

•  Find out more about the awards by visiting the Society for Museum Archaeology’s website.
• 1,188 artefacts in the Oxfordshire museums service collection were photographed. The images will be accessible and searchable using Oxfordshire County Council’s new heritage web-based search, which goes live later in the year.
• Five co-curators, all residents of Eynsham were recruited for the project.
• 462 people attended the Eynsham Heritage Day on 19 March, with the following events taking place: 
  • Two tours of the site of Eynsham Abbey 
  • Two tours of Eynsham Abbey around the village 
  • Family i-spy handout: architectural features in the centre of the village
  • A pop-up exhibition of medieval pottery and a pop-up exhibition of the ice age 
  • Exhibition at the Bartholomew Rooms of the Eynsham Abbey collection, private stonework and past images of the Eynsham
  • Archaeological finds identification
  • A medieval tile-making family activity 
  • A guided tour of St. Leonards Church
  • Drop-in tours of Eynsham's local pottery and old forge site

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The national award is the culmination of a nine-month application and validation process. The service was assessed on organisational health, collection management procedures, access arrangements and work with partners and stakeholders. 

The accreditation panel recognised the positive progress the service has made through its committed staff and commended its approach to partnership working.

 Mark McCree, Oxfordshire County Council’s Libraries & Heritage Services Manager, said of the award: “I am very proud of the team for regaining this quality standard. The National Archives has recognised the positive progress that the service has made in recent years. These are foundations, alongside the emerging libraries and heritage strategy, for us to build on. 

 “I hope this gives our customers and partner organisations renewed confidence that the rich and valued heritage of the county is in safe hands.”

 Oxfordshire History Centre, the county’s archive and local studies service, based at St Luke’s Church in Cowley, collects, preserves and makes available archives, photographs and printed material related to Oxfordshire and its history. 

 Accreditation by the UK Archive Service Accreditation Committee is the national quality standard, recognising good performance in all areas of archive service delivery. Accredited archive services help to ensure the long-term collection, preservation, and accessibility of archive heritage in Oxfordshire and nationally. 

 It is the second time Oxfordshire History Centre has received accreditation, having first been awarded it back in 2015.

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The Victoria County History (VCH) of Oxfordshire forms part of a national project to create an encyclopaedia of each of the historic counties of England. In Oxfordshire, this latest volume covers the South Oxfordshire Chilterns and is number 20 out of a planned 23 encyclopaedias that document the history of the county pre-1974.  

 This work is led by a small team based in Oxford supported by the VCH Oxfordshire Trust and Oxfordshire County Council as part of its heritage services.

 Work is now underway on the next edition, covering the Chipping Norton area. The Burford and Chadlington areas are to follow.

 In Oxfordshire, it is in partnership with Oxfordshire County Council as part of its Heritage Services.

 Mark McCree, Oxfordshire County Council’s Service Manager for Libraries and Heritage, said: “From the Cotswolds, Cherwell Valley and Chilterns to the City of Oxford, Oxfordshire is a stunning county with so much history. Victoria County History Oxfordshire allows us to document some of this rich and colourful history.

“This edition focuses on the twelve ancient parishes of the South Oxfordshire Chilterns, which cover an area of over 30,000 acres, all straddling the Chiltern hills and contained within a southward loop of the River Thames. This area has seen tremendous changes throughout its history, so this volume is both a valuable resource, and an interesting read."

 The economy of the South Oxfordshire Chilterns was predominantly agricultural until the 20th century. Woodland and woodland crafts played a significant role alongside local industry, including small-scale brickmaking and quarrying and the usual rural trades. Gentrification gained momentum from the mid-19th century, accelerated by the arrival of the railway in 1840, and particularly affected riverside villages, which saw extensive new buildings by wealthy incomers.

 The published volumes are available in Oxford Central Library, various branch libraries, and Oxfordshire History Centre. They are available for purchase at boydellandbrewer.com.

 Most are available online for free at British History Online (British-history.ac.uk).

 More information

• Places included:
  • Caversham (including Cane End, Kidmore End, and Emmer Green); Checkendon (including Littlestoke and Wyfold); Crowmarsh Gifford; Eye and Dunsden (including Sonning Common); Goring (including Goring Heath and Gatehampton); Ipsden (including Stoke Row); Mapledurham; Mongewell; Newnham Murren; North Stoke; Shiplake (including Binfield Heath); Whitchurch (including Whitchurch Hill).
• Current projects all fall within the ancient (pre-1974) county of Oxfordshire.
• Places in the Vale of White Horse (absorbed into Oxfordshire in 1974) were covered in the Berkshire VCH series, published in 1906 - 27 but may be revisited in the future.
• Two general volumes were published in 1907 and 1939 but detailed work on individual parishes and towns only began in the 1950s - 60s.

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In September, Oxfordshire County Council’s Libraries will be commemorating the anniversary with a series of activities on social media and a nostalgic look at our memories of schooldays. School – Best Days of Your Life? will run from 2-16th September on Oxfordshire Libraries Facebook page.

Among the activities will be a scheduled video demo of reminiscence session using a Childhood Reminiscence Box, examples of quirky and nostalgic school photos from the past and the regular online book club (Bloomin’ Good Books) will take a nostalgic look at book covers of titles like Just William, Mallory Towers and Harry Potter.

We take the right to education for granted today but in the 1870s, some children continued to be employed on farms and in factories. Others had family care duties, all of which interrupted their education. In Oxford in 1871, records show that nearly one in five children received no education at all.

Forster’s Education Act – or to give it its true name, the Elementary Education Act of 1870, changed the course of history for our education system, setting a framework for the education of all children aged between five and 12. Local authorities were required to submit a return on the number of children in their area, compared with the number of places available.

The History and Museum Services will, in due course, be preparing an online collection of photographs, historical objects and records to support research from local communities interested in starting a community project about a local school.

Councillor Lorraine Lindsay Gale, with joint responsibilities for Education and Cultural Services said:

“This educational landmark presents a fantastic opportunity to spend a moment reflecting on our own experiences of school and the books we enjoyed as well as new books which continue to be inspired by schooldays. I look forward to the upcoming collection of historical records, photographs and objects which will inspire students and communities shape a research project about local schools.”

For more details on School – Best Days of Your Life? 2-16 September plus other great library activities, please visit:

https://www.facebook.com/Oxfordshirelibraries/

The gradual reopening of libraries across the county will now be joined by the reopening of the Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock and the Oxfordshire History Service on August 12 and September 1 respectively.

Woodstock Library will be reopened at the same time as the Museum making it the 20^th library to reopen in the county in recent weeks. The café at the museum will be operating a takeaway service for those who wish to enjoy the beautiful gardens.

Meanwhile the Oxfordshire History Centre based in Cowley will reopen on September 1 with its archives, catalogues and collections once again available to be viewed.

Councillor Lorraine Lindsay-Gale, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Cultural Services, said: “This is a moment we’ve been preparing for with anticipation for some weeks. It’s a joy to have these facilities back open again. It is all being done in a safe and COVID-compliant manner and represents a small step back to normality.

“My thanks goes to the county council staff who’ve put such effort in to getting us to this stage. My encouragement goes to the Oxfordshire public to come along to these newly reopened local treasures and enjoy what they have to offer.”

Oxfordshire County Council is planning a phased approach to the reopening of public buildings with every precaution being taken to make sure that this happens safely for those staff who will work in them and members of the public who visit them.

On June 23 Prime-Minister Boris Johnson announced in parliament a number of changes to the UK’s response to COVID-19. These will be applicable from July 4.

Previous changes to lockdown arrangements in Oxfordshire have seen household waste recycling centres reopen and schools welcome back more pupils. All of the county council’s cultural services sites have been closed in Oxfordshire and elsewhere since late March.

Methodical and safe

Councillor Lorraine Lindsay-Gale, Cabinet Member for Education and Cultural Services said: “We will fully focus on each building before making decisions on re-openings to ensure that the work required to meet the latest social distancing guidelines is undertaken in a methodical way leading to excellent and safe arrangements.

“All of us at the council appreciate how highly valued our cultural facilities are and we join residents in looking forward to them all being reopened in a safe way in future times.

“The council is committed to keeping the public up to date whenever a new re-opening is due and we will update people on what arrangements have been put in place to keep visitors safe.”

Many of the Oxfordshire History Centre’s online resources had until recently only been available in the centre itself or from the county’s libraries. However the refreshed www.oxfordshirehistory.org.uk website is now more publicly accessible.

This saw the site receive an average of 8,500 visits per month in April and May compared to a monthly average of 5,000 during 2019/10.

Meanwhile an Oxfordshire History COVID-19 ‘Lockdown Pictures and Stories’ Facebook group was set up by Oxfordshire County Council’s History Service at the end of April, for local residents to share their experiences of lockdown in words and pictures, as a publicly accessible legacy for future residents and communities.

It now been accumulating members who have posted photographs and videos, which we have captured and archived. More than 100 pictures have now been submitted.

Councillor Lorraine Lindsay-Gale, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Cultural Services, said “It’s wonderful that increased amounts of our family and local history information is freely available for the first time and it’s clear that people have been enjoying those opportunities in greater numbers during the lockdown period.

“It’s also important that we document this unusual phase in the history of our county and the nation as a whole. We’re glad that people are providing photographs and videos so that future generations can better understand and appreciate what the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 was all about in Oxfordshire.

Despite the restrictions of the lockdown, this remains an important moment for the nation and the tributes will begin with a video message online from Oxfordshire’s Lord Lieutenant Tim Stevenson at 2.50pm.

On 8th May 1945, Britain and its allies celebrated the defeat of Nazi Germany and the end of Hitler's aggression. This formally recognised the end of the Second World War in Europe and became known as Victory in Europe (VE) Day.

Plans to celebrate the 75th anniversary of VE Day have been severely impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic with events either cancelled or postponed.

However, 8th May 2020 remains a Bank Holiday and many will participate in a planned national toast to the Heroes of World War Two at 3pm from the safety of our own homes.

Take part by raising a glass, cheering and clapping on your doorsteps and offer your tribute; The official toast is: “To those who gave so much, we thank you.”

Other parts of Oxfordshire are also celebrating. In Oxford, The Lord Mayor Councillor Craig Simmons will start the VE Day celebrations at 11am for the nation’s two-minute silence from his doorstep. At 3pm he will raise a toast to the nation.

Cllr Andrew McHugh as the military champion for Cherwell District Council has recorded a message to celebrate VE Day which will feature on our Facebook page.

South Oxfordshire and Vale of the White Horse district councils are running a campaign to encourage staff, councillors and residents to get creative: making red, white and/or blue cakes, buns or muffins, dress their houses/pets/selves up to celebrate the end of the conflict – and to get residents to join in the government’s garden party, and submit to us their photos on social media, which will be shared in a big photo montage. Make your submissions to: communications@southandvale.gov.uk

Witney Town Council also has a series of virtual events including a concert by Voicebox Choir who were due to have performed live in Witney Market Square. Further information here: http://www.witney-tc.gov.uk/news/witney-plans-for-a-virtual-ve-day-75-commemoration/.

Schedule: VE Day 75 8^th May 2020

11am - 2 minutes silence for a national moment of remembrance

11.15am - Join the Royal British Legion VE Day Livestream

2.50pm – Watch Oxfordshire’s Lord Lieutenant’s message on our Facebook page: https://tinyurl.com/y98mdzsu

6.00pm: Christchurch Cathedral Oxford: listen to a VE Day Evensong from this historic place of worship: https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/oxfords-cathedral/online-worship

9pm - Her Majesty The Queen will send a message to the nation on BBC One, at 9pm, the same time her father, King George VI, gave a radio address in 1945.

 Followed by a national singalong of Dame Vera Lynn's We'll Meet Again.Open your doors and join in with this national moment of celebration.

9-10^th May: Oxfordshire County Council continues VE Day 75:

Keep following the 75^th anniversary as our Facebook page features video messages from Oxfordshire’s council leaders as well as contributions from active duty personnel in the Royal Air Force and Army across Oxfordshire. The videos will be uploaded across both days and can be watched at: https://tinyurl.com/y98mdzsu

We will also be presenting a range of photos on our Oxfordshire County Council Twitter account that residents have submitted to us of locations across Oxfordshire that played a part in World War Two. Follow us @OxfordshireCC

Stay Safe, Stay at Home:

Please do not to travel or hold any gatherings that go against the stay home rules. Everyone must stay at home, protect the NHS and save lives. www.gov.uk/coronavirus 

The best way for everyone to protect themselves and others from illness is to stay at home. If you are leaving your home for exercise once a day, please stay local and use open spaces near to your home.

Further resources:

Poster/bunting template

• Great British bunting template - BBC

Learning resources

• Imperial War Museum - What you need to know about VE Day
• Royal British Legion - VE Day Learning Resources
• BBC History - End of WW2
• VE Day 75 Resources

Then think of a digital cloud crammed full of data from the Oxfordshire History Centre, home to the county’s archives.

As it continues the painstaking process of building its digital collection, the centre’s cloud already holds a staggering amount of material that would see it stretch for 300,000 miles if recorded as text on an A4 page.

Add to that more than five miles of manuscript, printed and photographic material from its physical archives and you start to understand the huge scale of records being carefully catalogued and preserved for future generations.

The Oxfordshire History Centre is run by Oxfordshire County Council and forms part of our rich cultural service, supporting our commitment to thriving communities. We provide services that enhance the quality of life in our communities and protect the local environment.

The centre is housed in St Luke’s Church, at the top end of Cowley Road. The nave provides the bulk of physical storage, with secure strongrooms built over three floors to hold collections dating all the way back to the 1100s.

But while the original documentary material and printed, hard-copy publications continue to come into the centre to be archived, focus is also turning to how it deals with its digital records.

Dealing with the electronic realm

Mark Lawrence, History Centre Manager (Local Studies), explained: “Increasingly, publications from local organisations such as charities and government bodies are now issued in an electronic format.

“It’s the sort of material we are trying to collect but, of course, trying to find it when it’s only been published in the electronic realm is quite difficult.

“Sometimes people don’t issue things as freestanding publications. Their collective thinking may only exist as a website. So how we archive this sort of content is something we’re constantly reviewing.”

As well as new material, there is the huge challenge of digitising older material from the archives to make it available to online visitors.

More than 130,000 digital images have already been added to the centre’s Picture Oxon website, but the task is never-ending.

“We’ve got over half-a-million photographs and drawings in the archives, so this is work that will carry on to the end of our careers and our successors’ careers,” explained Mark.

“Probably only about half of our images have been catalogued, let alone digitised, so there’s already a fantastic resource, but our work will keep going.”

Storage in the digital cloud

So where do you store such vast amounts of digital material? Storing pictures in the cloud from your smartphone is one thing, but what about the mass of video files, audio files, documents and images from across Oxfordshire?

The centre’s digital content is securely stored by a company called Preservica. The cloud already holds 23 terabytes of data.

To put that into context, one terabyte is the equivalent of 40 million doubled-sided A4 pages of text. Remember that trail of paper to the moon and beyond?

“Just like our physical archives, the digital material is selected and organised and we are the gatekeepers to it, helping the public to find and access the information they need for their research,” said Mark.

“You need something that’s just as secure as our physical strongrooms. If you’re tasked, as we are, with preserving that material for posterity, you can’t have anyone just dipping in and out at will.

“Whether you’re uploading material or moving digital material around once it’s in the cloud, or you’re deleting material or expanding a collection, or you’re changing who has access, all of those movements that you make with your data need to be audited.

“That’s the professional, responsible way of managing digital material ­– something we’ve always done with the physical equivalent.”

Reducing wear and tear

Mark Priddey, History Centre Manager (Archives), said digitising material meant a reduction in handling, saving wear and tear and in some cases outright loss.

“In terms of wills and parish registers – two of the most popular historical resources ­– we’ve worked with the family history websites Ancestry and Find My Past, so those documents are accessible in a searchable form and available to people around the world,” he said.

“For the digitising and online hosting of the parish registers, we were indebted to Oxfordshire Family History Society for their financial backing.

“It’s crucial to the effective working of the history centre that we continue to make our collections as widely accessible as possible, which means preserving items in our custody as best as we can and, as far as is practicable, moving them into a format that people can use in 20 or 30 years’ time.”

The history centre employs 17 staff to catalogue and archive material, with a dozen volunteers helping to significantly bolster resources.

Staff are also on hand to assist people coming in to research the archives, with everything from family history to house history, crime and disease among popular subjects.

The strongrooms have also held the Oxfordshire Health Archives since 2011, as well as old motor vehicle regulations, title deeds, maps and vast collections of church and parish records.

Mark Priddey said: “Most of our collections are 19^th and 20^th Century but we also do have a lot of collections from 1150 through to the 18^th Century.

“Our remit is to collect any records that relate to and help us find out about the history of Oxfordshire and the people who’ve lived here. We take in archives from local councils, courts and other official bodies, records of local groups and organisations, businesses and families, as well as from individual depositors or donors.

“Storage is an ongoing issue for us. You can project in theory how much storage capacity you’re going to need over the next five to 10 years but it only takes one or two things for those calculations to be revised.

“For example, when Morrells Brewery Company closed in 1998, we took in all of their records at very short notice. When you take something in, the weeding and the cataloguing and trying to decide what is important for long-term preservation and future research demands is really quite challenging.”

No such thing as a silly question

The centre went through its last big internal conversion phase in 2011. When it closes for stocktaking at the beginning of next month, new signing and guiding will be installed to help brighten the public research space and cafe.

Mark Priddey said: “When we reopen we’d encourage people to come and visit us.

“We always have staff on duty to help, so we can cater for people who are completely new to historical research or people who have been doing it for years and years.

“There’s no such thing as a silly question and no limit as to how long you want to stay. We’re also open three Saturdays out of four to cater for people who work on weekdays.”

Working in a former place of worship

• St Luke’s Church was provided by the generosity of Lord Nuffield on a site next to the Nuffield Press and cost £33,675 to build.
• A foundation stone was laid in 1937 and the church was consecrated on October 18, 1938, by Bishop of Oxford, Dr Kenneth Kirk.
• It could accommodate a congregation of 460 plus an additional 100 chairs.
• The tower is 75ft high, with a bronze cross adding a further 14ft. It originally held a peel of four bells which are now at Christ Church, Hampstead.
• St Luke’s was deconsecrated in the mid-1990s and converted to become the Oxfordshire Record Office in 2000.
• The Record Office merged with Oxfordshire Studies (formerly based at Westgate) in 2011 to create the Oxfordshire History Centre.
• Statues located in the public search room are of St Frideswide, St Luke, the Risen Christ, St James the Great, and St Francis.

Will Wyatt: Oxford Boy – a Post-War Townie Childhood reanimates the city of the 1940s and 1950s, of Cowley workers and of battled-scarred ex-servicemen.

The author, a former BBC television executive, will be talking about his childhood and a way of life far removed from an academic and Morse-like city.

Says Will, 76, from north Oxfordshire: “It is a foreign land of being caned on the bottom, of teachers washing out a child’s mouth with soap for swearing, of conkers and fag cards.

“There was Aunty Daisy with her missing finger, who liked the American servicemen, and Uncle Stan, who took cash to buy his Jaguar while his brother rode passenger with a loaded shotgun.”

He will be speaking at Oxfordshire County Library, in the Westgate shopping centre, on Thursday, July 12 at 6pm as part of Oxfordshire County Council’s libraries summer book sessions called Memory Makers.

The author, who was educated at SS. Philip and James School and Magdalen College School, Oxford before winning a scholarship to Emmanuel College, Cambridge, says he was fortunate in being guided by gifted teachers through the teenage years of discovering music, grappling with frothy petticoats, untold hours of sport and wasting time trying to imitate Harold Pinter.

Family friend and Oxford-born actress Miriam Margolyes says of the book: “It is a triumph, clever in presenting a lost era, showing how class and rage and cunning made people as we are. I urge you to get it and read it, as I did, fast and then again, for the power and truth. Gosh, what an amazing achievement. Now get on with the next years.”

Will’s Memory Makers talk is expected to last around 30 minutes followed by a question and answer session.

Memory Makers are free informal gatherings where diaries are discussed as a way of recording history and the writers whose memories they hold - from the days of Pepys to modern times.

Carol Stitson, Oxfordshire’s Lead Librarian for Reading, Health and Culture said: “We are all fascinated by other people’s diaries. Come along and share your own recommendations and join in with the discussions.”

Further discussions on diaries, real-life and fiction, on paper and online, will be at the following libraries:

• Chipping Norton, July 19, 2.30pm
• Woodcote, July 27, 10.30am
• Oxfordshire County Library, July 31, 10.30am
• Bampton, August 7, 2.30pm
• Kidlington, August 17, 2pm
• Adderbury, August 21, 3.30pm
• Oxfordshire County Library, August 29, 2pm – for teenagers
• Didcot, August 30, 2pm

The events are free – sign up via Eventbrite at oxonlibraries.eventbrite.co.uk, or contact the library for a ticket. Visit www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/reads.

Will Wyatt: Oxford Boy – A Post-War Townie Childhood was published in February. Publisher: Signal Books Ltd ISBN-10: 1909930644

Pictures courtesy of Will Wyatt

We are lucky that in Oxfordshire the Fire and Rescue Service is part of the county council and their invaluable experience in emergencies and solving problems means that they make an important contribution to our planning and response when a crisis arises. There’s also a big clue in the word “rescue” – they are involved in saving and helping people in floods, road accidents and in other situations. But there’s so much more. “Prevention is a massive part of the work of fire service, as it is looking after vulnerable people” explains Chief Fire Officer, Simon Furlong: “We receive very good feedback from the public, but realised that many people don’t know about all the work we do in the local communities. We work closely with our neighbouring fire services and blue light services to deliver the most effective service to the public. We run educational programmes for children across different ages. A huge part of the work of a modern fire service is spent working with those most at risk within our communities and working hard to prevent them suffering harm.”

Simon Furlong took over in April last year and said his priority was to make the fire service more diverse and also future proof it: “We want to reflect the communities we serve and are actively seeking to attract and recruit more women and more people from ethnic minorities.”

Celebrating the past and preparing for the future

In 1842 after the post office and two other buildings in the High St in Oxford were destroyed by fire, there was a call for a better organised fire service, as it was all fragmented (city, county, university and some parishes had their own rudimentary fire engines). Another fire in central Oxford in 1869 claimed two lives and led to another public outcry. The first publicly-owned fire engine and volunteer fire brigade was set up in 1870 with headquarters in New Inn Hall street and then in George St. The first captain was John Augustus Fane, followed by Thomas Green. By 1896, the brigade numbered 60 men and answered 30 calls. The fire service became a professional force in 1940 and continued to expand to serve Oxfordshire. Over the years, the County Council Fire and Rescue Service changed. There are now 25 fire stations across Oxfordshire to respond to a population of over 680,000 residents.

Simon Furlong explains that a modern fire service needs to adapt to societal and technological changes: “We are looking at 2050 and what the fire service needs to do in a world of driverless cars, robots working in homes, drones, artificial intelligence, new forms of energy, which all pose new risks and we are assessing the impact that this will have on our work in keeping communities safe”.

So, what does the fire service do now, apart from putting out fires?

Here are 10 things you may not have realised about your Fire Service:

1-Responds to road, rail, air and water incidents

2-Rescues can involve floods or drownings, trapped people or animals

3-Road safety focuses on drivers, cyclists and pedestrians, raising awareness of drink and driving, speed, driving in the winter or getting distracted by mobile phones and other safety issues

4-The Fire Service runs sessions in schools from Key stage 1 to Six Form and projects like Phoenix - a Fire and Rescue initiative aimed at young people between the ages of 11- 25 to address problems such as low self-esteem, lack of confidence and anti-social behaviour.

5-Community Safety is about protecting the vulnerable, safeguarding, work with travellers and other communities as well as the great work undertaken by our Trading Standards teams (protecting citizens from fraud, scams, faulty products and services)

6-Safe and Well visits – our firefighters and community safety staff assess the home conditions of the most vulnerable to support them to remain independent, provide smoke alarms and give out information for them to get the help they need

7-Advises businesses on fire safety

8-Emergency planning is led by the Fire Service. Teams prepare and respond to various situations that affect residents or impact on local communities and business continuity.

9-There’s a dedicated team dealing with hazardous substances incidents using specialist equipment. This can be toxic leaks or chemical spills or "Any substance or occurrence which has the potential to cause injury, sickness, death or environmental pollution from exposure, inhalation, ingestion or absorption."

10-Works with police forces and other multi-agency partners in major incidents, such as terrorist attacks.

The museum will appear on 26 August, 2017 in the town centre shop front which is used by OYAP. This one off event will see significant museum items be displayed in the town - some of which have never been seen by the public before.

The Oxfordshire County Council Museums Service has partnered up with local arts charity OYAP Trust to create the new and intriguing exhibition for Bicester Kindness and Heritage Day, which aims to celebrate how kindness is shown by the people of Bicester, and how it has been recorded in the past.

Visitors will see objects, big and small, curated in a space which is designed by local young people aged 12+. Object labels will be written by young people, and the objects themselves will be curated through workshops, exploring elements of ‘kindness’ important to this generation over the month of August.

Objects big and small

Young people have chosen the objects based on an inspirational session at The Museum Resource Centre, Standlake. Residents from a local retirement complex in Bicester will also benefit from having the ‘kindness’ collection bought to them for a day, again, delivered by the young people.

There is opportunity to bring along an object to be displayed alongside the ‘kindness collection’. Live art will also happen in the space, and visitors can engage and add to a discussion on kindness on a feedback wall.

The theme: Kindness and Heritage, is a blend of both OYAP’s ethos of ‘Kindness’, and The Oxfordshire Museums Service, which houses an amazing collection of over 100,000 collected objects from over Oxfordshire. Young people from OYAP will be capturing the public’s stories of past kindness which are associated with these heritage objects and displaying them in the shop space.

County Collections Project

The idea was conceived as part of the County Collections Project, aimed at bringing Oxfordshire’s museum collections to new audiences across the county. The exhibition has been funded by Arts Council England, delivered in conjunction with the Oxford University Museums Partnership.

The object, an ancient measuring instrument similar to a pair of compasses, was unearthed by Charney Basset resident Tim Moody about 10 inches beneath the surface of an Oxfordshire farmer’s field.

The 18cm bronze ‘dividers’ feature an eagle’s head and decorative scrolls, and would have been used for drawing maps or illustrating manuscripts at the very end of the Roman period in Britain. It came to Mr Moody’s attention only when he returned home to examine his day’s finds.

Important find

Mr Moody, an electrical consultant who began metal detecting as a teenager, said: “When I first pulled it out of the ground I thought it was an old tent peg. I put it in my finds bag and thought no more about it until I was washing all the finds in the sink later on. I could see the detail was unlike anything I’d ever seen and I realised immediately it must be something of importance.”

The 56-year-old added: “I contacted the museum and they took some pictures and got a professional artist to draw some pictures. The academics were thrilled and the museums service asked if they could put them on display. I was more than happy to donate the artefact, which is probably one of my best finds. I have found a lot of silver coins and once found a gold coin dating to the time of Edward III, but never anything like this before.”

Tim Moody has been metal-detecting since his teens

New exhibition

The find has caught the attention of local academics as a rare, late example of its kind dating to the fifth or sixth century – a crucial historical period marking the transition from Roman Britain to the early Anglo-Saxon era.

Once conservation work has been carried out, the dividers will go on display at the Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock as part of a new exhibition celebrating archaeological objects discovered by the general public, due to open on September 23^rd.

Generous donation

Finds Liaison Officer for Oxfordshire Museum Service Anni Byard said: “Roman dividers are uncommon objects and of those known, the vast majority are plain, undecorated utilitarian objects of early Roman date. The running ring-and-dot decoration on these dividers does suggest a late Roman or even early Saxon date so they are a really important discovery.”

The council’s Cabinet Member for Cultural Services Lorraine Lindsay-Gale added: “It is fantastic that Mr Moody has generously donated his find to The Oxfordshire Museum, where they’ll go on display and remain accessible in a public collection.”

Find out more

More information on the dividers can be found by visiting www.finds.org.uk/database using the reference code BERK-8A377C

Find out more about Oxfordshire Museum and the Museum Service

Main image: Metal detectorist Tim Moody examines the Roman dividers, alongside Finds Liaison Officer Anni Byard and Curator of Archaeology David Moon.

Oxfordshire Museums Service teamed up with arts companies The Arts Excite and Neon Dance to provide a one-off opportunity for a group of pupils aged 12 to 14 – the results of which have gone on display at the town’s Cornerstone Arts Centre.

The youngsters took part in photography and dance workshops using artefacts from the Museum Resource Centre as their inspiration. They used the objects to construct stories about both Didcot’s and their own past, and tried to capture these ideas in movement and photos.

The resulting exhibition – ‘Unearthing Didcot’s Creativity’ - showcases photographs, taken and chosen by the young women, and a dance, choreographed with support from Adrienne Hart, director of Neon Dance.

County collections project

The idea was conceived as part of the County Collections Project, aimed at bringing Oxfordshire’s museum collections to new audiences across the county. The exhibition has been funded by Arts Council England, delivered in conjunction with the Oxford University Museums Partnership.

County Collections Project Officer Kelly Smith said: “This has been a hugely rewarding project involving young women who wouldn’t normally have access to this sort of opportunity. Not only are the results artistically impressive, but the girls have really succeeded in bringing the past to life and making it relevant to their own lives.

“It was great to collaborate with the two arts organisations and come up with something so fresh and innovative. I’d like to congratulate the students on their work and hope they enjoy seeing it on display for the wider public.”

The Cotswold Hare Trail features more than 50 five-foot hare sculptures installed at galleries, hotels and other public spaces across the Cotswolds. The hand-painted and decorated objects are aimed at attracting visitors to the area, and encouraging some Easter-themed fun.

The Oxfordshire Museum and Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum, based in Woodstock, unveiled their very own hare sculpture last Wednesday (22 March) in front of around 300 visitors including local families, businesses and other guests. The venue is now among the destinations for tourists keen to ‘bag’ the full set of long-eared lollopers.

The museums’ hare is being sponsored by the National Theatre, and to mark the occasion, visitors were treated to an appearance from Joey - the puppet star of the War Horse production showing later this year at the Oxford New Theatre. Special guest Toyah Wilcox also dropped in to add some star quality.

Popular attraction

Audience Development Officer at the Oxfordshire Museum, Lorraine Horne said: “It was a fantastic event and luckily the sun came out just in time for the unveiling. It was great to have so many people come along to support the initiative – quite a few of whom hadn’t been to the museum before and took the opportunity to have a good look round.

"We’re very excited to be a part of the Cotswold Hare Trail and our newly installed attraction is already proving popular with visitors.”

The Cotswold Hare Trail is organised by the Cirencester March Hare Festival team.

The centres, based at locations in Wales and Devon but run by the county council, have been handed over to Groundwork South, a registered charity, under a 25-year contract which promises to unlock new sources of funding to improve facilities at the venues.

It means business as usual for the county’s schools – two-thirds of which currently book residential courses at Kilvrough on the Gower peninsula, Woodlands in the Brecon Beacons and Yenworthy on the north Exmoor coast.

Continuity

Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Children and Family Services Melinda Tilley said: “Generations of Oxfordshire residents have enjoyed school trips and other outings to these outdoor centres and people of all ages will have fond memories of their time there.

“Groundwork South is an experienced charity and I have no doubt that the centres have a very bright future under their stewardship. We were determined to secure the future of these much-loved centres, and to ensure that they continue to serve the county’s schoolchildren. Becoming part of Groundwork South will enable them to attract new investment and sources of funding that were not accessible under local authority control.”

Proud legacy

Jenny Bradley, Chairwoman for Groundwork South, added: “We are absolutely delighted to be able to continue the proud legacy of these outdoor centres that have meant so much to Oxfordshire schoolchildren.

“Groundwork has a long-track record of reconnecting children with their local environment in a way that gives them their confidence and resilience.

“We’re looking forward to working closely with existing staff at each of the centres to continue to provide the rich, rewarding experience they’ve become well-known for; while adding our experience of identifying funding and ways of growing the impact of the centres.”

Well-used

Across the three centres, 5,016 people made visits in 2013/14, and the new contract ensures that 80 per cent of bookings will continue to be for Oxfordshire schools and community groups.

The centres provide high quality residential, outdoor learning opportunities including:

• packaged and tailored three-to-five-day multi-activity residential courses
• weekend and non-term time courses
• National Citizen Service residential courses
• Duke of Edinburgh Award programmes
• self- catering accommodation for group and individual hire.

Courses for schools are mainly adventure-based and include rock climbing, kayaking and canoeing, caving, orienteering, hill and mountain walking, surfing and body boarding. The focus is on raising self-confidence, resilience and awareness of others.

The centres also offer GCSE and A level curriculum courses in Geography, Biology and PE. They accommodate a wide range of non-school courses linked to working with vulnerable young people, adults and Oxfordshire communities.

We joined Rachael Rendell, Member of Oxfordshire Museums Service Learning and Access Team and leader of the reminiscence sessions, in Faringdon to see the magic happen.

60 years younger

School sports day – that time of the year when, regardless of whether or not you liked sports, you enjoyed a day out of the classroom in the sunshine – and the theme for the day. The group begins by talking about sports they used to be involved in: wheelbarrow racing, egg and spoon races, rounders, the slow bicycle race, cricket, football, fishing and ice skating.

Rachael passes items around, including an original photo of Roger Bannister being carried after his record-breaking four minute mile on Iffley Road; a pair of fancy running shoes; and an old-school football rattler – a very noisy one at that.

Dolly Wright, 92, visits the day centre three times a week. She still jokes that she was never any good at sports: “I was always too chubby to enjoy sports – I was like a barrel!”

Sessions like this make their way around the county – each day centre having three or four visits from our team a year. Speaking about the difference they make to her, Dolly tells us: “It makes me feel 60 years younger reliving these memories. I just wish these sessions came about as often as the exercise lady – she comes a bit too often for my liking! 

A special service

It’s clear that this is a unique and special service; a service with more to it than just a box of interesting items being passed around a room. Rachael tells me more about what inspired the idea, and the difference it makes to elderly people in Oxfordshire:

What inspired you to set up these sessions?

Our inspiration came from the realisation that some people can’t access heritage and culture by visiting a museum due to illness, age or disability – but we can take it to them. We’ve been doing this for over 10 years now.

How many people benefit from them?

We see around 500 people every month, and that’s just older people! We also do similar trips in schools.

What difference do they make to people’s wellbeing?

By triggering people’s memories, you notice that they become the expert again. They often feel isolated, but our service gives them back a sense of status and self-respect.

Judging by the reactions we get to some of the items we bring in, these sessions are great for mental stimulation and companionship. They give people the chance to interact and forge links with others at the centre; they bond over mutual interests they may not otherwise have known they shared. All of this is important given the prevalence of loneliness and isolation these days.

How do you pick your themes?

We start with obvious choices that touch everybody at some point in their lives, like school. We then try and think of wider themes based on our collections at the museum resource centre.

We probably have about 30 themes in total: school days, shopping and food, toys, 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, Christmas, the seaside – the list goes on.

Can you tell us about the best reaction to your box of memories has been?

A few years back, we were showing an old photo of a float going through Chipping Norton – a lady took a long hard look at the faces in the crowd and spotted her dad! It was a great moment.

If you're interested in booking a session, get in touch with the Oxfordshire Museum, or download a leaflet to find out more.

Richard Morgan was taking a dip with friends in Goring during the summer of 1983 when he trod on a strangely shaped object poking out of the river bed.

Peering through the murky water, he and his pals dug away the mud and dragged the monster mandible on to the river bank. It was later identified as that of a young mammoth which roamed more than 30,000 years ago.

The young Richard donated the object to Oxfordshire County Council’s Museum Service and never saw his mammoth again – until a family holiday this summer brought him back to the county from his present day home in the Czech Republic.

Reunited

He said: “I decided it was time to meet up with the mammoth again and share some of the excitement of my discovery with my own children.”

After arriving in the UK, a quick call to the Oxfordshire Museum confirmed that his mammoth was on display there and within the hour Richard and his family were in Woodstock face-to-face with the jaw and reliving the experience of all those years ago.

Richard said: “I think my children thought I was telling them a fisherman’s tale, so it’s great to be able to show them the real thing with its huge teeth. It was caked in river mud the last time I saw it, so it was really nice to see it all cleaned up and on display in the Museum.”

Popular attraction

The museum’s curator Carol Anderson said: “I can imagine how excited Richard must have been by his incredible discovery. We are delighted that he donated it to the Museum Service all those years ago so that it can now be seen and enjoyed by visitors to the Oxfordshire Museum.

She added: “The mammoth jaw is a particular attraction for the many families who visit the museum each summer. It’s amazing to think that creatures like this were walking round what is now Oxfordshire more than 30,000 years ago.”

Richard now hopes that visiting the mammoth will become a family tradition. Perhaps next time he visits he’ll been bringing his grandchildren to share the tale of his amazing discovery.

The service, which celebrates its 50^th anniversary this year, was today announced as one of 94 organisations across England to benefit from the Arts Council’s Museum Resilience Fund.

The money will help the Museum Service develop a more sustainable service model based on partnerships, improving its ability to respond to change and capitalise on future opportunities to engage people with the county’s heritage.

New possibilities

The council’s Cabinet Member for Cultural Services Lorraine Lindsay-Gale said: “This is absolutely wonderful news. I am truly excited and very grateful to the Arts Council for their understanding of the challenges we face and the aspirations that we have for the County’s Museum Service.

“This grant will enable us to explore innovative new possibilities with our cultural partners in the county. With such expertise to support us I am confident we can develop a blueprint fit for many years to come.”

Resilience fund

The Museum Resilience Fund aims to support museums to become more sustainable and resilient businesses. A total of £12.3million has been awarded across the 94 successful projects.

It focuses on addressing any gaps or development opportunities across the sector, recognising that excellence and the potential for excellence can be found in museums of all sizes.

John Orna-Ornstein, Director of Museums at Arts Council England said: “The focus of our investment approach for museums in 2015-18 is on building a more resilient sector. The Museum Resilience fund is a key part of that, providing vital support to museums right across the country.

“We are pleased to be able to support Oxfordshire County Council as it looks at how the Museum Service could and should evolve, ensuring it remains relevant to audiences and sustainable.”

The display, titled ‘Juxtaposition’, pairs off contemporary craft items with counterpart museum artefacts in a quirky and informative way, offering new perspectives to visitors.

It features work from the prestigious Southern Arts Crafts collection including artists Kate Malone, John Makepeace, Carol Waller and many more. Objects from the museum’s own collections were chosen to bring their unique stories to bear - whether personal, historical or technological.

Fascinating items

The council’s Cabinet Member for Cultural Services Lorraine Lindsay-Gale said: “This exhibition offers something for everyone, with superb artistry and fascinating historical items alongside each other. I’d encourage everyone to go along and visit over the summer.”

The exhibition was co-curated by local artist Anne Griffiths and will be on show at the Oxfordshire Museum until 30 October.

Cabinet members have approved a business case for the Farmoor-based facility to be run by a new charitable organisation, and for the council to continue working alongside site owners Oxford University to bring the project to fruition.

The council has also agreed to provide one-off start-up and transition funding to put the new service model in place.

Commitment

Both the university and the council wish to ensure Hill End continues to provide an excellent outdoor education service for both schoolchildren and the wider Oxfordshire population.

Establishing a charitable company would enable the centre to continue to deliver high quality services and meet ongoing running costs by unlocking new sources of funding.

In the meantime Hill End is open for business as usual and continues to welcome bookings and future reservations from schools and groups.

Consultation

A consultation on the plans received 130 responses, with 89 per cent of people either stating they ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ with the idea of setting up a new charitable company taking on the centre.

Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Children, Education and Families Melinda Tilley said: “We know how highly Oxfordshire residents value the services provided by Hill End, and both the council and our partners at Oxford University are committed to ensuring schools and other visitor groups continue to benefit from all that the centre has to offer.

“Hill End has a proud history of providing life-enhancing outdoor activities for Oxfordshire’s children, young people and the wider community. We want to ensure this work not only continues, but that there are also opportunities to enhance services in future.”

She added: “Establishing a charitable company or other entity to take on the management of the centre will open up opportunities to access new investment for the centre, and represents the best option to secure its long-term future.”

About Hill End

The Hill End site is owned by Oxford University and has been leased and managed by Oxfordshire County Council since 1974.

The council is currently responsible for investing in Hill End, making repairs to buildings, managing the land and running the outdoor education service there.

Outdoor learning at Hill End includes: education programmes, adult learning, training and workshops, forest school, family events and volunteering opportunities.

Leading Oxford University academic Emma Smith will be dropping in at Summertown and Cowley libraries to talk about the theme of death in Shakespeare’s time and in his plays, and visitors will be able to get up close to precious artefacts such as the 16^th century ‘Bills of Mortality’ which recorded burials in London.

Emma is a world-renowned Shakespeare expert who authenticated the recently discovered ‘First Folio’ of the Bard’s plays on the island of Bute. She is visiting the libraries in connection with the Bodleian library’s popular Shakespeare’s Dead exhibition.

Rare opportunity

Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Cultural Services Lorraine Lindsay-Gale said: “We’re delighted to be able to work with Professor Emma Smith with a rare opportunity to view precious historical items that are not normally on public display and to learn more about them. I would encourage everyone to go along to learn something new about Shakespeare and the historical context that helped to shape his work.”

Events:

Thursday 7 July, 2pm – 3pm

Shakespeare’s Dead Talk, Summertown Library, Emma Smith

Tuesday 12 July 11am - 12.00

Shakespeare’s Dead Talk, Cowley Library, Emma Smith

A wide range of books based on the themes explored in William Shakespeare’s dramas are being promoted as the ideal reading material over the summer months, and visitors are encouraged to get involved by attending a special event next Saturday (July 9) at Weston library, part of the University of Oxford’s Bodleian Libraries.

Staff will be on hand from 10am and 4pm encouraging visitors to take part, exchange ideas and find out what’s on offer this summer in local libraries across the county.

The reading challenge is part of the Shakespeare’s Dead or Alive initiative and wider Shakespeare Oxford 2016 - a year-long festival turning the spotlight on a rich array of Shakespearean expertise and creative innovation.

Major themes

Each of the county council’s 43 libraries will run its own summer display of books covering the Bard’s three major themes - comedies, histories and tragedies - with plenty of absorbing reading suggestions.

Book lovers are invited to suggest their favourite Bard-inspired novel and write their own book reviews on specially designed postcards. The postcards can also be entered in a prize draw supported by local organisations including Blenheim Palace, The Macdonald Randolph Hotel, Cogges Manor Farm Museum and Waterperry Gardens.

The council's Cabinet Member for Cultural Services Lorraine Lindsay-Gale said: “This is a great way to discover some fantastic books over the summer months and I’d encourage everyone to visit their local library to find out more. Whether your holiday is set to be a laugh a minute, a total disaster, or is already history, borrow a book and settle down in the sun in the company of some of the world’s greatest storytellers.”

Event:

A Midsummer Night’s Read Launch Saturday, 9 July, 10am – 4pm, Weston Library, Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BG

Further information

• Shakespeare’s Dead or Alive is supported by Arts Council England and is part of Shakespeare Oxford 2016, a year-long festival which aims to light up the city in new and unusual ways, turning the spotlight on a rich array of Shakespearean expertise and creative innovation. A key ingredient is collaboration, with new partnerships, new ideas and new events, inspired by Shakespeare.

• The festival team includes the Bodleian Libraries, Oxfordshire County Council Library Service, the University of Oxford English Faculty, Blackwell’s Booksellers, Oxford University Press and Experience Oxfordshire. Many of Oxford’s cultural organisations are contributing to the programme, and our local authorities are also involved in welcoming all the community into this city-wide celebration. www.shakespeareoxford2016.co.uk 

The ‘Oxfordshire in 50 Objects’ exhibition, which opens next week at the at the Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock, features items specially chosen by 25 different community groups and members of the Museums Service – past and present.

It features artefacts spanning thousands of years of local history, from Anglo-Saxon jewellery and traditional costumes, to fascinating Bronze Age and Neolithic items including stone tools and part of a human spine with an arrow embedded in it.

The project has enabled people from across the county and beyond to choose objects which are important to them personally and professionally, and which tell the Oxfordshire story.

Bringing the past to life

The county’s Museums Service was established with the opening of Oxfordshire Museum at Fletcher’s House in Woodstock on 15 October 1966.

Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Cultural Services Lorraine Lindsay-Gale said: “The service has evolved over the years in response to different challenges, but what hasn’t changed is the dedication of staff to bringing Oxfordshire’s past to life and promoting engagement in, and understanding of, the county’s heritage.

“This is a really fitting way to mark the 50^th anniversary, and the involvement of Oxfordshire communities in shaping the exhibition underlines the role the county’s residents have played in sustaining the service over the decades. It demonstrates the fact that the service has always depended on the interest, support and pride of local people.”

About the Oxfordshire Museums Service

The OMS collects, preserves and exhibits a wide range of objects selected to reflect life in Oxfordshire. The majority of over 100,000 Archaeology and Social History items are stored at the Museums Resource Centre at Standlake. Rescue and remedial conservation, academic research and exhibition development remain at the heart of the service.

The service produces exhibitions reflecting the county’s rural and agricultural past, but also showcases the best of Oxfordshire arts and crafts. Its temporary exhibitions also illustrate a diverse range of contemporary themes for visitors of all ages and tastes, aiming to encourage fun and fascination in equal measure.

The ‘Shakespeare’s Dead or Alive’ events are part of Shakespeare Oxford 2016 - a festival turning the spotlight on a rich array of expertise and creative innovation inspired by the Bard.

Get involved

Library Service Manager Jillian Southwell said: “We’re really excited about the activities and events coming to Oxford’s libraries this spring and want to encourage as many people to get involved as possible. The richness of Shakespeare’s work and his impact on our language and culture provides endless artistic possibilities for people to explore. There’s hopefully something to inspire everyone in the coming weeks.”

Players caught in the act

Actors from Oxfordshire company Flintlock Theatre will be visiting the libraries in costume as they portray well-known characters from the plays. See if you can guess who they are and request on-the-spot performances inspired by the libraries’ books and exhibits.

• Thu 21^st April Blackbird Leys Library at 10am and 11.30am
• Thu 21^st April Summertown Library at 4.30pm and 6.30pm
• Fri 22^nd April Cowley Library at 11.45am, 2.45pm and 4.45pm
• Sat 23^rd April at Oxford Central Library 10am and 3pm
• 28th, 29^th, 30^th April & 1^st May at The Weston Library

'Travelling Sonnet Booth'

Meanwhile poetry lovers will have the chance to record their own Shakespeare sonnet or soliloquy in a specially-designed mini recording studio courtesy of the Oxford-based Creation Theatre Company.

The ‘Travelling Sonnet Booth’, enables visitors to add their voices to a unique sound experience, which grows and changes day by day. The full audio recording of sonnets and soliloquies can be heard online at www.shakespeareoxford2016.com

• Fri 22^nd - Mon 25th April, The Weston Library
• Tue 26th April, Littlemore Library 
• Thu 28^th April, Botley Library
• Mon 2^nd May, Blackbird Leys Library
• Tue 3^rd May, Headington Library 
• Thu 5^th May, Summertown Library 
• 7^th May, The Weston Library

Murder at the movies

Artist Tom Cross has joined children from Windale, St Joseph’s, and Botley Primary Schools to create an exciting animated film inspired by Shakespearean characters to have met a sticky end. Assassination Animation flickers into life at city libraries from 22 April onwards.

The film will be shown on an interactive display at:

• The Weston Library
• Headington Library
• Blackbird Leys Library
• Botley Library

For more information on all library events, visit www.Shakespeareoxford2016.com

Skakespeare Oxford 2016

Shakespeare’s Dead or Alive is supported by Arts Council England and is part of Shakespeare Oxford 2016 a year-long festival which aims to light up the City in 2016 in new and unusual ways, turning the spotlight on a rich array of Shakespearean expertise and creative innovation. A key ingredient is collaboration, with new partnerships, new ideas and new events, inspired by Shakespeare.

The festival team includes the Bodleian Libraries, Oxfordshire County Council, the University of Oxford English Faculty, Blackwell’s Booksellers, Oxford University Press and Experience Oxfordshire.

Many of Oxford’s cultural organisations are contributing to the programme, and our local authorities are also involved in welcoming all the community into this city-wide celebration.

The county council’s Chairman, Councillor John Sanders, will raise the flag at the front entrance to County Hall at 10am the day.

He said: “I am honoured to raise the Commonwealth flag on behalf of Oxfordshire. Our county, with its vibrant and diverse communities, epitomises people coming together to celebrate our shared values.”

The event is organised by the Royal Commonwealth Society – a network of individuals and organisations committed to improving the lives and prospects of citizens across the world. It was founded in 1868, is independent of governments and is supported solely through public generosity.

More information on “Fly a Flag for the Commonwealth” can be found at www.flyaflagforthecommonwealth.co.uk.

After a lengthy application process and a site visit to assess how the service cares for its collections and makes them accessible, the standard was awarded earlier this month. At present, the Oxfordshire History Centre is one of about 40 similar services nationally to have achieved the standard.

Archive Service Accreditation is a UK-wide  scheme which defines good practice and identifies agreed standards within the archive sector and which supports improvement and development for archive services. It is externally validated and provides a badge of recognition for accredited archive services. In England, the accreditation process is overseen by The National Archives.

Accredited archive services are judged to provide a high level of service to their stakeholders, preserve their collections in line with national standards and are robust, sustainable services which plan and deliver ongoing improvement.

Achieving accredited status also demonstrates that the Oxfordshire History Centre has met clearly defined national standards relating to management and resourcing.

In particular, the detailed assessment report highlighted as strengths the Oxfordshire History Centre’s clear and comprehensible polices, its successful development since the merger of Oxfordshire Record Office and Oxfordshire Studies in 2011, and the potential to creatively build the service further.

Hard-won recognition

Councillor Lorraine Lindsay Gale, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Cultural and Community Services, said: “Congratulations to all at the History Centre for this hard-won recognition. Passing such a stern assessment proves that the county has a high quality history centre. All at the county council are proud of that.”

Oxfordshire History Centre, run by Oxfordshire County Council, at St Luke’s Church in Cowley has a wealth of historic documents, photographs, and printed material relating to the history of Oxfordshire and beyond.

Councillor Lorraine Lindsay-Gale, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Cultural Services said:  “This national event seems like the perfect opportunity for people in Oxfordshire to delve into the history of their family, house or locality. There’s also the chance to use our revamped web pages to find out what we have and how to access it. First time visitors are always made welcome.”

Oxfordshire History Centre, St Luke's Church, Temple Road, Cowley, Oxford OX4 2HT. The centre can be contacted on 01865 398200 via e-mail: oxhist@oxfordshire.gov.uk . More details are available at the  website: www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/oxfordshirehistory

Refurbishment to take three weeks

Those wishing to take part in the Explore your Archive initiative are advised to do so before November 25. The History Centre will be closed to visitors for three weeks from November 25 to December 13 for the refurbishment of its reception area and for the essential replacement of air-conditioning units.

However, History Centre staff will be on duty at Oxford Central Library on Tuesdays 10.30 am – 4.00 pm and Wednesdays to Saturdays 10.00 am – 4.00 pm during this period. Staff will continue to answer telephone calls via the usual telephone number and to answer letters and e-mail enquiries.

The History Centre will remain open to the public before November 25 on Tuesdays from 10.00am to 5.00pm and Wednesday to Saturday from 9.00am to 5.00pm.

Members of the public are advised to contact the History Centre before visiting to check seat availability. If you wish to look at original records, you will need to register for a County Archive Research Network ticket by providing two passport-size photographs and official evidence of your address and signature (e.g. driver's licence or bank statement and credit/debit card).

The ticket is valid for four years in about forty record offices around the country, and is a security measure to protect irreplaceable documents.