© 2020 Friends of Boars Hill
Welcome
Friends of Boars Hill was formed in 2017 to coordinate opinion and pool
resources in responding to threats to our community
We are a group of local residents, committed to nurturing and growing this hallowed spot in
Oxfordshire, today and for future generations to enjoy. We value Boars Hill for its heritage,
peacefulness, beauty, and open rural countryside. We are a vibrant community, open to change
but keen to retain the character of the area.
Our focus now is on the planning proposals being considered at Foxcombe Hall, (the previous
Open University and Ripon Hall theological site). We think development should show sympathy
and real understanding of the Boars Hill settlement and the local Green Belt environment.
Boars Hill residents have for long had to stand up for the Green Belt and the contribution that
Boars Hill makes to the Oxford scene. For example, we successfully resisted a dramatic expansion
of the Open University at Foxcombe Hall in 1990’s and more recently prevented Richmond Homes
from building a mega retirement village overlooking the Old Golf Course.
We have not been alone. In particular, the Oxford Preservation Trust, with its goal to guide
development and ensure that Oxford’s rural setting is maintained for all to enjoy has made a
significant contribution in the preservation of notable green assets such as the Old Golf Course.
But recently, Peking University HSBC Business School has purchased Foxcombe Hall and its
grounds. They aim to develop the site extensively, exploiting the Oxford name, by creating a
significant commercial venture n the heart of our settlement which challenges the character of
Boars Hill. We believe we must be proactive to protect our unique local environment and its
setting in the Green Belt. Not only for now, but for the future, as those before have done for us.
Our aim above all, is for Boars Hill to remain a tranquil and rural Oxford community.
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Ripon Lodge News
Saturday 19th October: Just last week, we
learned the Council will be considering a
planning application for Ripon Lodge on Yarn
Way at its virtual meeting this Wednesday
21st October. We recommend this application
be refused, based on our technical review of
planning policy and law -
click HERE to see our response to Council;
click HERE for planning policy extracts;
or to join our mailing list, click HERE.