At the meeting of Council on 7 June a sum of £55,500 was awarded to 8 churches.
Two churches each received the largest award of £15,000:
St Peter’s Alvescot (Grade II*) received a grant for roof repairs. The Norman church was extensively altered and extended in the 19th Century but retains its 13th Century stone font and some fine stained-glass designed by Burne Jones in the South Transept.
St Thomas the Martyr, Oxford (Grade II) received a grant for urgent roof works. This 12th Century church substantially expanded and repaired over the centuries played a significant role in the early stages of the Oxford Movement.
St Mary Magdalene, Balscote (Grade II* listed) received a grant of £10,000 for works to the tower and rainwater goods. Most of the present church building is 14th-century. It contains a Norman font and an Early English Gothic window.
St Margaret, Oxford (Grade II listed), received a grant of £6,000 to replace and repair roof gutters. Built between 1883 and 1893 to a design by H W Drinkwater (1844-95) who had been an assistant to G E Street.
All Saints, Middleton Stoney (Grade II* listed) received a supplemental grant of £5,000 for works to its roof. Situated in the grounds of Middleton Park, the church Norman in origin has been much altered over the centuries and was refitted by G E Street in 1868.
Chinnor Community Church received a grant of £3,000 to rebuild and refurbish its boundary wall. The church was built in 1805 and enlarged in 1811.
St Thomas of Canterbury RC, Wroxton received a supplemental grant of £1,000 for the rethatching of the roof. The original church was built in 1894 but was largely rebuilt 1947-8. Its stained glass comes from bombed West Midlands churches, including the Hardman windows of 1855.
St Mary, Banbury (Grade I* listed) received a grant of £500 for the removal of graffiti. The current church designed under the influence of the Tractarian Movement replaced an 18th Century Georgian building (designed by S P Cockerill and modelled on Wren’s design for Walbrook). It is famous for its ‘pepper pot’ tower and its rich internal decoration.