Message from The Post Office;
We are writing to inform you that, regrettably, following the resignation of the postmaster and the withdrawal of the premises for Post Office use the above branch will be closing on Tuesday 18 June 2024 at 12:30.
Village Notice Board
Sewer Problems in Kirtlington
The Parish Council is aware of a number of current issues with the sewers in the village and has notified the Consumer Council for Water about this. We are aware that there have been incidents in Bletchingdon Road, North Green and Heyford Road. In order to inform the Consumer Council for Water about the full extent of the current issues, the Parish Council is seeking information on the locations of the incidents involved. If you are experiencing problems, please complete and submit the attached form. These details will only be sent to the Consumer Council for Water; they will not be used for any other purpose. Please note, the Parish Council is not able to pursue individual issues for residents with Thames Water or investigate their past history.
Please fill in and submit the form below.
A reminder to all dog lovers in Kirtlington from the Parish Council
Many people in our village live here because of the fantastic countryside walks on the footpaths and bridleways we have here for us all to enjoy; through the village itself, across the Park, down to the river or the quarry, along the public footpaths and the canal towpath, across to Northbrook. Many villagers enjoy these walks with their dogs and the vast majority of these dog owners take bags with them and conscientiously pick up what their dogs inevitably deposit when they are out walking. It is extremely disappointing then to find that there are dog owners in the village who let their pets down.
It is an offence to allow a dog in your charge to foul a public area (£50 fixed penalty notice). Yet it seems some people still think the rules do not apply to them. The unpleasant residue of dog excrement is all too evident around the village and dog fouling is regular occurrence, astonishingly enough, even within yards of the dog bins! The few irresponsible dog owners seem set on giving dogs and all dog owners a bad name, spoiling things for everyone else. It isn’t asking much. Just bag it and bin it.
The dog excrement left by the small percentage of irresponsible dog owners is not just disgusting and unpleasant, it remains a health hazard. Infections of Toxocara Canis from coming into contact with dog faeces can still blind a child, and these infections are not great for adults either. It is for this reason that villagers are not permitted to exercise dogs on the sports field. Dogs are prohibited from this area so that children and young people, and older people, can play sports and exercise here safely and so that everyone can enjoy picnics here on the grass in the summer without fear of infection. Dog owners please remember that dogs are only permitted on the designated walk way between the two sports field gates. Here again we acknowledge that, most dog owners behave responsibly and obey the rule, but a few seem intent on spoiling things for everyone.
It has been suggested to the Parish Council that additional dog bins for ‘hot spots’ in the village could help to prompt everyone to do the right thing by their dogs. We therefore propose to purchase and install additional dog bins to be placed by the two main entrances to the Park from the village. Once and for all, let us all try to make sure man’s best friend is everyone’s best friend in the village.
Kirtlington Hedgehog Street
Kirtlington Hedgehog Street is connecting gardens in the village to give hedgehogs enough space to breed and to help keep them off the roads. This is part of the national Hedgehog Street campaign. To learn more see this article that was published in the national press.
- 60 properties in the village are connected
- c. 16 acres of gardens are included
- The village pub, school and church are all connected.
The national Hedgehog Street organisation has told KWACS that Kirtlington has one of the biggest volunteer-run Hedgehog Streets in the country! See the map in green. To join, please make sure hedgehogs can pass from your garden to your neighbours’ gardens. All it needs is a CD sized hole in your fence or wall.
In Spring 2020, there was a rapid and significant decline in Kirtlington’s hedgehog population. We have written up the evidence for the decline which is very clear and the possible reasons for it. Click here for that article and here for another article by Professor Patrick Doncaster who researched into hedgehogs in Kirtlington Park in 1992. Click here for coverage of the loss of our hedgehogs on local BBC news.
KWACS is delighted, whenever possible, to support other communities who would like to set up their own hedgehog street. In particular, click here if you are interested in receiving a lecture about what we have done in Kirtlington. This is given either in person or via Zoom by the brother of the KWACS committee member who leads our hedgehog work. He is a wildlife photographer, film maker and public speaker. In addition, visitors are welcome to come to Kirtlington to see in person what we have done.
DONATIONS
If you would like to support our work, please click on DONATIONS above. That will take you to our on-line giving page for the KWACS Hedge Fund.
All donations will go directly to enlarging Kirtlington Hedgehog Street or supporting other communities start their own hedgehog street.
As hedgehogs have yet to evolve the ability to fly, where there is a ground difference between gardens we have to resort to innovative structures like this stone staircase and oak ramp:
As part of the project, we use foot print recording tunnels and camera traps to check on the presence of hedgehogs. A camera trap video of a hedgehog on the ramp posted to KWACS’ X (formerly Twitter) feed went viral with over 33,000 views!
