Oxford News
Banbury – Armed robbers threatened shop worker and empty till
Henry Williams, of Orchard Way, Banbury, was jailed at Oxford Crown Court on Thursday, March 26.
The 33-year-old pleaded guilty to one count of robbery, committed on New Year’s Eve last year at the Quick Stop, in Warwick Road, Banbury.
The court heard that Williams, and an unidentified man, entered the shop just before 8am on the day in question.
Williams was wearing a camouflaged jacket and holding a crowbar. His accomplice was holding a kitchen knife.
Alexandra Bushell, prosecuting, told the court the pair forced shop worker Gurpreet Singh behind the till while they emptied it of cash.
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They also made him fill bags with tobacco and cigarettes.
The court heard they were in and out of the shop in around three minutes. The total value of the items taken was £5,861.91.
A victim impact statement was read out on behalf of the shop’s owner, whose name was not read out in court.
The statement said: “I would like to highlight that this is the third time my shop has been robbed by armed men.
“This loss has had a huge impact on me. These robbers affect the reputation of my shop. Members of the public think it’s dangerous.
“These robbers have caused me a huge amount of stress. I’m worried someone will rob me and I feel vulnerable and unsafe.
“This robbery has been the most violent.”
The court was shown CCTV footage from inside the shop at the time of the robbery. It showed the two men forcing Mr Singh behind the till and emptying cash into bags.
Williams could be seen hitting his crowbar against a table and the other man could be seen with a large knife.
The court heard that Williams had seven previous convictions for 10 offences.
Peter Due Feu, mitigating, said: “It seems as though he has spent the last six years out of trouble. He left the Banbury area.
“To mask himself up and commit the robbery, why on earth would he do that?
“Crack cocaine creates a madness to feed the habit. His intention is to stay clean of drugs.”
The Judge, Mrs Recorder Eleanor Sanderson, said: “This was a robbery of a local convenience store.
“The show owner has said he feels vulnerable and unsafe. It has caused him great worry about his finances.
“This was an appalling act. A vulnerable person was subject to a terrifying robbery.”
Williams was jailed for a total of 42 months.
The garden has been developed at Folly View Primary School and is designed to support pupil wellbeing, creativity, and personal growth by providing a calming and engaging outdoor space.
Funding for the project was secured through a £1,500 grant from the Tesco Community Grants scheme, made possible by votes from shoppers using blue tokens at the Faringdon store.
Muddy Spades, a local gardening business led by Royston Oxendale, also played a key role in bringing the garden to life by donating plants and building bespoke planters for the space.
Richard Evans, chief executive of Cambrian Learning Trust, said: “This wonderful sensory garden is a testament to what can be achieved when a community comes together with a shared purpose.
“At Cambrian Learning Trust, we are proud to see Folly View Primary School bringing its core values of belonging, kindness, and aspiration to life in such a meaningful way.
“This space will not only enhance pupils’ wellbeing but also inspire curiosity, resilience, and a lifelong love of learning.”
The garden will also support the school’s gardening club, offering pupils hands-on opportunities to care for plants and learn about the environment.
The school has thanked Tesco Faringdon, Muddy Spades, the PTA, and everyone involved in turning the garden into a reality.
UNESCO first adopted March 21 as World Poetry Day during its 30th General Conference in Paris, with the aim of supporting linguistic diversity through poetic expression and increasing the opportunity for endangered languages to be heard.
The heritage organisation said: “World Poetry Day is the occasion to honour poets, revive oral traditions of poetry recitals, promote the reading, writing and teaching of poetry, foster the convergence between poetry and other arts such as theatre, dance, music and painting, and raise the visibility of poetry in the media.”
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This time on Looking Back, we’ve found a selection of fantastic poetry celebrations in Oxfordshire from the year 2014, now 12 years ago.
Language lovers converged for the day of celebration on bookshops, schools, at recitals and conferences.
Take a look back through this Oxford Mail archive gallery to find pictures from a decade ago of World Poetry Day celebrations in Oxfordshire.
We’ve made a gallery of pictures showing all the Oxfordshire spots which have been used for TV and film sets over the years.
Some of the biggest productions filmed here in Oxfordshire include Spectre in the James Bond franchise, which transformed Blenheim Palace in Woodstock into the Palazzo Cardenza in Rome.
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Many period dramas were also created in the county, like the BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall, which was partly filmed at Chastleton House in the Cotswolds.
Cotswolds villages have been repeatedly transformed and used as filming locations for their historical appeal, like the villages of Brill, Broadwell and Castle Combe.
Find all the pictures in this archive gallery of historic Oxfordshire filming locations here.
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