South Oxfordshire
Encyclopedia
South Oxfordshire is a local government district
in Oxfordshire
, England
. Its council is based in Crowmarsh Gifford
, just outside Wallingford.
The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972
, from the municipal borough
s of Henley-on-Thames
and Wallingford
, Thame
urban district
, and Wallingford Rural District
, Bullingdon Rural District
and Henley Rural District
. The Wallingford parts were previously part of the administrative county of Berkshire
.
flows for approximately 47 miles through South Oxfordshire and it is joined by the River Thame
within the district. A characteristic of the rivers within the district is that they have wide floodplains with few houses on them so that fluvial flooding is a lesser problem than flash flooding.
, Henley-on-Thames
, Thame
, Wallingford and Watlington
.
See List of civil parishes in South Oxfordshire
showed that housing in South Oxfordshire produced the 5th highest average carbon emissions in the country at 7,356 kg of carbon dioxide
per dwelling.
, Henley
, Thame
and Wallingford.
Non-metropolitan district
Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially shire districts, are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties in a so-called "two-tier" arrangement...
in Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Its council is based in Crowmarsh Gifford
Crowmarsh Gifford
Crowmarsh Gifford is a village in the civil parish of Crowmarsh in South Oxfordshire. It is beside the River Thames opposite the market town of Wallingford, the two being linked via Wallingford Bridge...
, just outside Wallingford.
The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
, from the municipal borough
Municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002...
s of Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, England, about 10 miles downstream and north-east from Reading, 10 miles upstream and west from Maidenhead...
and Wallingford
Municipal Borough of Wallingford
The Municipal Borough of Wallingford was an administrative district based on the town of Wallingford, then in Berkshire, now Oxfordshire, in southern in England, established in 1834 and disbanded in 1974, when it became part of South Oxfordshire...
, Thame
Thame
Thame is a town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about southwest of the Buckinghamshire town of Aylesbury. It derives its toponym from the River Thame which flows past the north side of the town....
urban district
Urban district
In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....
, and Wallingford Rural District
Wallingford Rural District
Wallingford Rural District, an administrative area in what was then Berkshire, now Oxfordshire area, in southern England was established in 1894, from the then Berkshire area within Wallingford Rural Sanitary Authority...
, Bullingdon Rural District
Bullingdon Rural District
Bullingdon was a rural district in Oxfordshire, England from 1932 to 1974.It was created under a County Review Order, as a merger of Culham Rural District, Thame Rural District, part of Crowmarsh Rural District, part of Headington Rural District, and part of Henley Rural District.In 1974 it was...
and Henley Rural District
Henley Rural District
Henley was a rural district in Oxfordshire, England from 1894 to 1974.It was named after the borough of Henley-on-Thames, which it surrounded on the west but did not include....
. The Wallingford parts were previously part of the administrative county of Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
.
Geography
The River ThamesRiver Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
flows for approximately 47 miles through South Oxfordshire and it is joined by the River Thame
River Thame
The River Thame is a river in Southern England. It is a tributary of the larger and better-known River Thames.The general course of the River Thame is north-east to south-west and the distance from its source to the River Thames is about 40 miles...
within the district. A characteristic of the rivers within the district is that they have wide floodplains with few houses on them so that fluvial flooding is a lesser problem than flash flooding.
Towns
The towns in the district are DidcotDidcot
Didcot is a town and civil parish in Oxfordshire about south of Oxford. Until 1974 it was in Berkshire, but was transferred to Oxfordshire in that year, and from Wallingford Rural District to the district of South Oxfordshire...
, Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames
Henley-on-Thames is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, England, about 10 miles downstream and north-east from Reading, 10 miles upstream and west from Maidenhead...
, Thame
Thame
Thame is a town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about southwest of the Buckinghamshire town of Aylesbury. It derives its toponym from the River Thame which flows past the north side of the town....
, Wallingford and Watlington
Watlington, Oxfordshire
Watlington is a market town and civil parish about south of Thame in Oxfordshire. The parish includes the hamlets of Christmas Common and Greenfield, both of which are in the Chiltern Hills. The M40 motorway is from Watlington.-History:...
.
Villages
The larger villages in the district include:- BensonBenson, OxfordshireBenson is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England. It is about north of Wallingford at the foot of the Chiltern Hills at the confluence of a chalk stream and the River Thames, next to Benson Lock...
- BerinsfieldBerinsfieldBerinsfield is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, about southeast of Oxford.-History:Palaeolithic and Roman artefacts were found during 20th century excavations to build the village. The Roman road between Dorchester-on-Thames and Alchester runs through the centre of Berinsfield...
- ChalgroveChalgroveChalgrove is a village and civil parish of some . It is in South Oxfordshire about southeast of Oxford. The parish includes the hamlet of Rofford and the former parish of Warpsgrove with which it merged in 1932....
- ChinnorChinnorChinnor is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire about southeast of Thame. The village is a Spring line settlement on the Icknield Way below the Chiltern escarpment...
- CholseyCholseyCholsey is a village and civil parish south of Wallingford, in South Oxfordshire. In 1974 it was transferred from Berkshire to the county of Oxfordshire, and from Wallingford Rural District to the district of South Oxfordshire....
- DorchesterDorchester, OxfordshireDorchester-on-Thames is a village and civil parish on the River Thame in Oxfordshire, about northwest of Wallingford and southeast of Oxford. Despite its name, Dorchester is not on the River Thames, but just above the Thame's confluence with it...
- EwelmeEwelmeEwelme is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire, northeast of the market town of Wallingford.To the east of the village is Cow Common and to the west, Benson Airfield, the north-eastern corner of which is within the parish boundary.The solid geology is chalk...
- Goring-on-ThamesGoring-On-ThamesGoring-on-Thames is a large village and civil parish on the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, about south of Wallingford.-Geography:...
- LewknorLewknorLewknor is a village and civil parish south of Thame in Oxfordshire. The civil parish includes the village of Postcombe.-Iron Age and Roman periods:...
- Sonning CommonSonning CommonSonning Common is a village and civil parish the Chiltern Hills west of Henley-on-Thames in South Oxfordshire. It is on the B481 road between Reading, Berkshire to the south and Nettlebed to the north.-History:...
- WheatleyWheatley, OxfordshireWheatley is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about east of Oxford.-Archaeology:There was a Roman villa on Castle Hill, about southeast of the parish church. It was excavated in 1845, when Roman coins dating from AD 260 to 378 and fragments of Roman pottery and Roman tiles were...
See List of civil parishes in South Oxfordshire
Energy policy
In May 2006, a report commissioned by British GasCentrica
Centrica plc is a multinational utility company, based in the United Kingdom but also with interests in North America. Centrica is the largest supplier of gas to domestic customers in the UK, and one of the largest suppliers of electricity, operating under the trading names "Scottish Gas" in...
showed that housing in South Oxfordshire produced the 5th highest average carbon emissions in the country at 7,356 kg of carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
per dwelling.
Population change and distribution
The 2001 Census recorded a population of just over 128,000 in the district. This was an increase of 7% since 1991. Much of the district is rural in nature, with the land in agricultural use and around 70% of the district has a green belt or AONB designation (The northeast of the district forms part of the Oxford Green Belt). 50% of the district’s population lives outside its four main towns of DidcotDidcot
Didcot is a town and civil parish in Oxfordshire about south of Oxford. Until 1974 it was in Berkshire, but was transferred to Oxfordshire in that year, and from Wallingford Rural District to the district of South Oxfordshire...
, Henley
Henley
- Places :UK:*Henley-on-Thames, a town in South Oxfordshire, England**Henley Rural District, a former rural district in Oxfordshire*Henley-in-Arden, a village in Warwickshire, England*Henley, Suffolk, a village in Suffolk, England...
, Thame
Thame
Thame is a town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about southwest of the Buckinghamshire town of Aylesbury. It derives its toponym from the River Thame which flows past the north side of the town....
and Wallingford.