Oxfordshire is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Gloucestershire to the west. The city of Oxford is the largest settlement and county town.
Abingdon-on-Thames, commonly known as Abingdon, is a historic market town and civil parish on the River Thames in the Vale of the White Horse district of Oxfordshire, England. The historic county town of Berkshire, the area was occupied from the early to middle Iron Age and the remains of a late Iron Age and Roman defensive enclosure lies below the town centre. Abingdon Abbey was founded around 676, giving its name to the emerging town. In the 13th and 14th centuries, Abingdon was an agricultural centre with an extensive trade in wool, alongside weaving and the manufacture of clothing. Charters for the holding of markets and fairs were granted by various monarchs, from Edward I to George II.
Wantage is a historic market town and civil parish in the Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire, England. Although within the boundaries of the historic county of Berkshire, it has been administered as part of Oxfordshire since 1974. The town is on Letcombe Brook, 8 miles (13 km) south-west of Abingdon, 24 miles (39 km) north-west of Reading, 15 miles (24 km) south-west of Oxford and 14 miles (23 km) north-west of Newbury.
Didcot is a railway town and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England, located 15 miles (24 km) south of Oxford, 10 miles (16 km) east of Wantage and 15 miles (24 km) north west of Reading. Historically part of Berkshire, the town is noted for its railway heritage, Didcot station opening as a junction station on the Great Western Main Line in 1844. Today the town is known for the railway museum and power stations, and is the gateway town to the Science Vale: three large science and technology centres in the surrounding villages of Milton, Culham and Harwell.
Cherwell is a local government district in northern Oxfordshire, England. The district was created in 1974 and takes its name from the River Cherwell, which drains south through the region to flow into the River Thames at Oxford. Towns in Cherwell include Banbury and Bicester. Kidlington is a contender for largest village in England.
Cotswold is a local government district in Gloucestershire, England. It is named after the wider Cotswolds region and range of hills. The council is based in the district's largest town of Cirencester. The district also includes the towns of Chipping Campden, Fairford, Lechlade, Moreton-in-Marsh, Northleach, Stow-on-the-Wold and Tetbury, along with numerous villages and surrounding rural areas.
Oxfordshire County Council is the county council for the non-metropolitan county of Oxfordshire in the South East of England. Established in 1889, it is an elected body responsible for most strategic local government services in the county.
The Vale of White Horse is a local government district of Oxfordshire in England. It was historically part of Berkshire. The area is commonly referred to as the 'Vale of the White Horse'. It is crossed by the Ridgeway National Trail in its far south, across the North Wessex Downs AONB at the junction of four counties. The northern boundary is defined by the River Thames. The name refers to Uffington White Horse, a prehistoric hill figure.
South Oxfordshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Oxfordshire, England. Its council is temporarily based outside the district at Abingdon-on-Thames pending a planned move to Didcot, the district's largest town. The areas located south of the River Thames are within the historic county of Berkshire.
West Oxfordshire is a local government district in northwest Oxfordshire, England, including towns such as Woodstock, Burford, Chipping Norton, Charlbury, Carterton and Witney, where the council is based.
Oxford West and Abingdon is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Layla Moran, a Liberal Democrat.
Wantage was a constituency in Oxfordshire represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
Witney is a county constituency in Oxfordshire represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom since 2024 by Charles Maynard of the Liberal Democrats. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election, and was created for the 1983 general election.
Elections to the Vale of White Horse District Council, the local authority for the Vale of White Horse in Oxfordshire, England take place every four years.
Buckinghamshire Council is the local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Buckinghamshire in England. It is a unitary authority, performing both county and district-level functions. It was created on 1 April 2020, replacing the previous Buckinghamshire County Council and the councils of the four abolished districts of Aylesbury Vale, Chiltern, South Bucks, and Wycombe. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includes Milton Keynes.
Matthew David Barber is a British politician. He is currently Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner. He previously served as Leader of the Council on Vale of White Horse District Council and Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner for the Thames Valley Police.
Didcot and Wantage is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament. Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, it was first contested at the 2024 general election. The seat was won by Olly Glover representing the Liberal Democrats.
Western Valley is a civil parish in the eastern part of the Vale of White Horse district of Oxfordshire, England, to the east of Harwell and the west of Didcot. Historically it was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire. It consists of the western part of the Great Western Park housing estate on the edge of Didcot, and will also include the proposed Valley Park development. The parish was created in April 2023 by splitting the Harwell civil parish where it was crossed by the A34 road, which runs along most of the western boundary of Western Valley, and the Great Western Main Line runs along the northern boundary. It is bordered by the civil parishes of Harwell, Milton and Sutton Courtenay in Vale of White Horse; and by: Didcot and West Hagbourne, both being in South Oxfordshire. The parish lies wholly within the Blewbury & Harwell ward of Vale of White Horse District Council, the Hendreds & Harwell Division of Oxfordshire County Council, and the Wantage parliamentary constituency.
