Robyn Bennett

Thirteen-year-old navigator Beatrix Bloxham and her father Nick won the 80-mile Rally for the Ages in Oxfordshire for the second consecutive year, driving a Ford Escort Mexico. Organized by HERO-ERA, the event encourages younger participants to enter historic motorsport and includes free entry for teams with a combined age under 70. Alistair Leckie and Jess Simmons finished second in a Saab, while Francesco di Valmarana and his daughter Serafina took third in a 1975 Lancia Fulvia Monte Carlo.

Oxfordshire has welcomed the reinstatement of England’s £2 single bus-fare cap, which will take effect on January 1, 2027. Oxfordshire County Council had called for the cap to return after the previous government raised it to £3 in 2025, contributing to higher prices for the council’s MyBus scheme. Transport cabinet member Gareth Epps said the change would make bus travel more affordable, encourage alternatives to car use, and help address climate change and congestion.

Aspire Dance Academy in Heyford Park, Oxfordshire, received portable professional ballet barres from housebuilder Dorchester Living. The donation replaces chairs previously used by the academy’s roughly 100 weekly pupils and provides equipment that can be dismantled and stored between classes. The academy has taught Royal Academy of Dance ballet and tap in the area since 2008.

Liz and Wilf Eaton of Oxfordshire received MBEs in the King’s Birthday Honours for their work supporting vulnerable children in Kenya through the Kenya Children Centres, which they founded in 2000. The charity now supports over 2,000 young people through community programmes, residential care, education funding and services for children with autism. It operates with donor funding and trustee-covered administrative costs to ensure all contributions directly support the children.