Oxford City Council
Our AwardsApril 2008CABE Space Design Skills ScholarsSam Parry, a City Council Parks Officer, won a scholarship to travel across Europe, studying the design of parks and green spaces. Sam will spend five weeks in May and June studying parks in Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, Holland and France. He will gather knowledge, ideas and expertise to bring back to Oxford and improve the parks and green spaces in the city. CABE Space is part of the Government advisory panel on architecture, urban design and public space. March 2008Regional Food Champion AwardOxford City Council and Oxfordshire County Council were declared joint Regional Food Champions for Community Diet and Nutrition by the Food Standards Agency. This award is national recognition for the joint food poverty project which resulted in a new shopping bus service for elderly residents in Cutteslowe after difficulties they were experiencing in accessing affordable, nutritious food were identified. The Food Standards Agency was very impressed by the overall quality of applications and commented: "Your success is clear recognition of your outstanding work in community diet and nutrition." December 2007National Environment Award
We were awarded the 2007 "Green Champion" Award by The Green Organisation for our sustainable living guide and Oxford is My World website. 'Oxford is My World: Your Guide to Saving the Planet' was produced by our Sustainable Energy team to promote sustainable living in Oxford and help the people of Oxford to reduce their carbon emissions. November 2007Lexcel Accreditation
Our Legal Services team were awarded Lexcel accreditation by the Law Society following an inspection by Quality South West - an independent assessment body on behalf of the Law Society. Lexcel is only awarded to practices that demonstrate excellence in legal practice and meet the highest management and customer care standards. October 2007National Land and Property Gazetteer Annual Conference AwardOur Planning department won the Best Performing Authority category at the National Land and Property Gazetteer Annual Conference run by IDeA - the Improvement and Development Agency. We finished in the top five out of over 400 local authorities and received a Highly Commended Award as an exemplar authority. Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE) Horticulturalist Apprentice of the year
Patrick Middlehurst, an employee with Oxford City Council, won the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE) Horticulturalist Apprentice of the year. The apprentice scheme was delivered in partnership with Abingdon and Witney College, who trained Patrick and awarded him an NVQ in Horticulture earlier in the year. Oxford Preservation Trust Environmental AwardThe Oxford Town Hall Gallery and Cafe were awarded an Environmental Award by the Oxford Preservation Trust in recognition of the project's contribution to the conservation or improvement of Oxford's built and natural environment. September 2007South East Regional Champions for HomelessnessNamed one of the South East Regional Champions for Homelessness in recognition of the work we have done to reduce homelessness in the city. The Regional Champion Scheme enables local authorities to tackle homelessness more effectively by encouraging them to learn from the best performing councils. We were awarded £15,000 by the Department for Communities and Local Government to help deliver the scheme. August 2007Enjoy England Official Partner
Oxford Tourist Information Centre was awarded the status of an Enjoy England Official Partner. It was recognised as being among the very best in England and is among just 20 in the South East to be awarded this status. This is part of a new scheme to create a nationwide partnership aimed at promoting excellence and world class service at Tourist Information Centres around the country. July 2007Green Flag StatusCutteslowe Park, and Sunnymead and Hinksey Park were the first parks in the county to be awarded Green Flag status. This means that the two parks are among the best parks and green spaces in the country. Green Flag judges inspected the two parks which are maintained and run by Oxford City Council, during June 2007. The parks were judged against eight categories: a feeling of welcome, health and safety, maintenance, sustainability, conservation and heritage, community involvement, marketing and management. June 2007Cutteslowe Community Association VISIBLE StatusCutteslowe Community Association became the first community organisation in the country to gain "VISIBLE" status - an acknowledgement of the association's good work in the community. The programme was introduced by Community Matters, the national umbrella group for community associations. Visible stands for:
May 2007Chewing Gum Action Group Award
We were awarded with paid-for advertising to support our campaign to prevent chewing gum litter in the city. 40 local authorities applied for paid-for advertising from the Chewing Gum Action Group, and only 16 were successful. Our Wrap It, Bin It, Easy Isn't It? chewing gum litter campaign started in September 2007 and was a huge success with a 63% decrease in chewing gum litter thrown on Oxford's streets during the period of the one-month campaign. Visit our Chewing Gum page for further details. February 2007Young Local Authority of the Year Award 2007Two employees representing Oxford City Council won the District Council category of the Young Local Authority of the Year Competition 2007. Sally Short and Karen Martin from Oxford City Homes won the award having delivered a presentation on the subject of the need for local authorities to recognise, develop and retain talented employees. This award gives Oxford City Council the title of Young Local Authority of the Year (English District Councils) 2007. Page last reviewed 7 May 2008 Copyright © Oxford City Council 2008 
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