West Oxfordshire

The area is mainly rural downland and forest, the main activities being farming and associated trades.

The district was created on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, by the merger of Chipping Norton Municipal Borough, Woodstock Municipal Borough, Witney Urban District, Chipping Norton Rural District and Witney Rural District.[2]

West Oxfordshire lies within the River Thames catchment area, with the Thames itself and its tributaries including the River Evenlode and River Windrush running through the area.[3] Parts of the district suffered severe flooding during the 2007 floods in the UK.[4]

Elections to West Oxfordshire District Council are held in three out of every four years, with one third of the seats on the council being elected at each election. Since the first election to the council in 1973 the only political party to have had a majority on the council is the Conservative Party, although there have been periods where no party has had a majority and independents had a majority from 1973 to 1976 and from 1990 to 1992. The Conservative Party hold control of the council, with the Liberal Democrats as the main opposition. As of the 2021 local elections, the council consisted of the following councillors:

One of the Conservatives subsequently resigned from the party in February 2022 and now sits as an independent councillor.[5]

The council is based at the former Witney Rural District Council offices on Woodgreen in Witney. The building was built as a large house in 1887 for one of the town's blanket manufacturers, and was originally known as Springfield, 39 Woodgreen.[6][7][8] The building was acquired by Witney Rural District Council around 1966 and is now known as Council Offices, Woodgreen.