Crime & Safety
Waitrose takes £20m hit with mass price cuts on products
The UK supermarket giant has nine stores across Oxfordshire, including two in Oxford, as well as shops in Abingdon, Banbury, Henley, Thame, Wallingford, Wantage and Witney.
According to the Financial Times (FT), Waitrose is reducing the prices of around 160 everyday own‑brand items.
This includes staples such as fruit, vegetables and meat, with cuts averaging about 12 per cent.
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The move is aimed at attracting more affluent customers who have drifted towards rivals Marks & Spencer and Ocado in recent years, the FT reported.
This new round of reductions takes the total Waitrose has spent on price cuts to about £140m since 2023, but the chain has still found it difficult to grow its market share.
Its grocery share is understood to be about 3.8 per cent, while M&S food sales have risen by nearly 12 per cent over the past year, lifting that rival to roughly 4.1 per cent of the UK market.
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The FT added that the latest price moves come against a backdrop of consumers reining in spending as energy bills rise and inflation is expected to tick up again over the summer, putting further strain on household budgets.
Recent industry data cited by the article showed overall supermarket till sales growing by only a fraction in the three weeks to mid‑May, with shoppers increasingly relying on promotions and discounts to manage costs.
The FT also reported that new John Lewis chairman Jason Tarry, a former Tesco executive, plans to invest around £1bn in refurbishing Waitrose branches.
This sum will also go towards opening more stores as the business attempts to sharpen its offer and compete more aggressively in the premium grocery market.
Kalem Paintin, 27 and from Oxford, is wanted in connection with a burglary and a recall to prison.
Kyran McFarlane, aged 36 and also from Oxford, is wanted in connection with a burglary.
Two men broke into a property in Coriander Way, Oxford at around 4am on February 14 of this year,
The victim, a man in his 20s, suffered minor injuries but did not require hospital treatment.
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Officers have already arrested a 36-year-old man from Oxford on suspicion of burglary and has been released on police bail.
Paintin is described as a white man, around 5ft 9ins tall and of slim build. He has short dark brown hair, a short beard and moustache.
He is known to frequent the Oxford area.
McFarlane is described as having short dark hair, short dark facial hair and a scar above his right eyebrow.
He is known to frequent Oxford and Abingdon.
Detective constable Taya Langton, of Thames Valley Police, said she is appealing for the help of the public to locate the two men.
She said she is “very keen” to identify both their whereabouts to “prevent further offending and safeguard the local community”.
“If you see him, please do not approach him, instead call 999,” she added.
“However, if you have information as to his whereabouts then please add it to our online reporting page quoting reference 43260075613.”
Available to stream on Amazon prime now, the first episode of series five of the popular TV show has revealed more details of the former Top Gear presenter’s heart scare.
Towards the end of 2024, the 66-year-old revealed that he underwent emergency heart surgery at the hospital after suffering pains after experiencing a “sudden deterioration” in his health.
Still, a heart attack was ruled out after initial checks at John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, with doctors telling him he was “days away” from one.
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Episode one shows the moment he reunited with farmhand Kaleb Cooper having been discharged from hospital, revealing doctors said no driving for a week and no manual labour for six weeks.
“I was scrolling on my phone, and if I hadn’t been doing that I wouldn’t have had pins and needles in my arm.
“And if I hadn’t got pins and needles I wouldn’t have thought ‘hang on, I’m having a heart problem’ and I wouldn’t have gone to hospital.
“Anyway they put me in this big polo mint and they found out I had really bad coronary artery problems.
“You’ve got three arteries that feed your heart with blood to keep it pumping. One of them [was] totally blocked. One of them looked like looked like something dangling from the roof of a cave in the Peak District.
“And one of them had got so clogged up it had formed like branches, so my heart wasn’t getting any blood.
“I said, ‘how close was I to a heart attack?’ and he went ‘days’.
“They put a camera up my arm, across my chest and into my arm, you can feel it, you can see my own heart on a TV screen.
“They thought they were going to have to do open heart surgery, then they went up and realised that actually they could mend it so they got the Dyno-rod out, shoved that in, and they had hammers, chisels, cameras.
“And then they put stents which are like pillow pads and stretch it out, so I should be as good as new.”
Church End is set in South Leigh near Witney and has been listed on the market with estate and letting agents scottfraser.
Formerly two separate cottages, the estate now features a detached period residence, transformed into one family home.
Current owners have undertaken “extensive renovations and remodelling works, blending character features with contemporary design to create a truly unique property”.
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The heart of the home is the rear extension, connected to the original house by a glazed link.
This open-plan kitchen and dining space comes with large sliding patio doors opening onto a side terrace.
To the front of the property is a “spacious and elegant living room, full of charm and centred around an attractive fireplace”.
The ground floor also benefits from a cloakroom and two separate staircases.
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To the rear of the property, accessed from the kitchen or rear door, is a self-contained annexe comprising a bedroom, kitchen, living area and a contemporary wet room.
On the first floor, one side of the house offers two generous double bedrooms and a family bathroom.
The opposite side is dedicated to the principal suite, featuring vaulted ceilings, windows to both front and rear aspects, and an en-suite bathroom.
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The front garden is laid to lawn with mature shrubs and well-stocked borders.
To the rear is a private enclosed garden, also laid to lawn, together with off-road parking for several vehicles.
The property sits in Council Tax Band G, and those interested should call for further information or to arrange a viewing.
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