Watlington Community Property wanted to list No 2 High Street, which is currently under offer, to protect it from unwanted development.

However, the district council turned down the application.

Phil Barker, the director of communities for the district council, explained the decision.

He said: “The letting policy was provided and it outlines how the group will manage any future letting.

“It mentions the group’s objectives but without the governing document in view, it is unclear what those objectives and aims are or if they will meet the social well-being or social interests of the local community.

“Although the nominator has demonstrated how they will look to raise funds and manage the building in the future, they have not demonstrated how the building could further the social well-being or social interests of the local community.

High Street, Watlington (Image: Google Street View)

“The nature of the nomination seems more aimed towards an interest in commercial stores for the community, rather than commercial stores for the benefit of social wellbeing or social interests for the community.”

Bella Luce lighting, which was in the building, closed at the end of January.

Members of the group want to buy it to determine how it is used in the future.

Steph Van de Pette, of Spring Lane, has lived in Watlington for about 11 years and owns SO Sustainable in High Street.

She set up her zero-waste refill shop in 2019 next door to Bella Luce.

Mrs Van de Pette is the secretary for the group, founding it with John Riddell, who owns the Spire and Spoke pub in Hill Lane, and Jess Carlisle, whose father Mark owned the building before he died last year.

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Watlington (Image: Contribution.)

The trio are now part of a management committee, including Robin Fieth, who chairs the committee and Kevin Senior, who is their treasurer.

Previously, the trust was seeking about £250,000 to buy the property but now it wants to buy two more in High Street — No 6, known as the Watlington Arcade, and No 26, which is a former bicycle repair shop.

The total cost, if the group bought all three, would be about £600,000.

The group said it has acquired about £281,000 in pledges so far and is currently waiting for its registration to be confirmed under the Financial Conduct Authority, so they can open a bank account and progress to formal share offers.

The group is also being supported by Plunkett UK, based in Woodstock, a charity which supports people who live in rural areas to set up and run businesses in community ownership.

Mr Fieth told the Henley Standard that while there is an offer on No 2, if it’s successful, it wouldn’t be the end of the project.

KAREN JOY BACUDO

Finance Editor

Research from bluQube found that 89.3% of UK businesses use less than three-quarters of the functions in their finance systems. The study surveyed senior finance decision-makers across the UK.

The findings point to a gap between investment in finance software and its day-to-day use within finance teams. More than four in ten businesses use only 26% to 50% of the features available in their systems, while 36.6% use 51% to 75%.

Functions beyond core accounting were most likely to go unused, including automated invoice processing, data entry tools, and integrations with payroll, customer relationship management, and procurement systems.

The pattern suggests many companies have installed finance software without fully embedding it in routine operations. It also indicates they are not getting the return they expected when they bought the systems.

Value has also taken longer to appear than many finance leaders anticipated. More than half of businesses (52.2%) expected their finance systems to deliver value within six months, but only 42.4% said that happened.

For a sizeable minority, the wait was much longer. Nearly a third, 31.6%, said it took more than ten months to realise value from their finance system.

Spreadsheet reliance

The research also found that finance work continues to take place outside the systems companies have paid for. More than six in ten businesses (60.3%) said they still use spreadsheets weekly or daily as part of their finance processes.

Using spreadsheets alongside formal finance platforms can duplicate routine tasks and leave key work spread across different tools. In practice, businesses may be running parts of their finance operation in parallel rather than through a single system.

Bristol-based bluQube said the results form part of a broader look at finance system adoption, value realisation, and confidence in finance technology. The research is the first study in its Confidence Gap series.

A common theme in the data is partial adoption rather than the absence of software. Businesses have finance systems in place, but many do not appear to be using a large share of the tools built into them.

That matters because many of the underused features are designed to reduce manual work or connect finance teams with other parts of the business. If those functions are not switched on or adopted by staff, the software may offer less practical benefit than expected.

“The data is telling us that businesses are missing an opportunity and suffering from misalignment between systems and the fabric of their finance teams. Finance systems should start to deliver value immediately, which makes the long wait times to see real value delivered particularly concerning. Equally, reports of widespread activity outside of these systems are a symbol of inefficiency across UK businesses,” said Simon Kearsley, Chief Executive Officer at bluQube.

“Taking the time to identify the right finance system for your team and sticking to robust implementation protocols can help ensure that the system works to its full potential for your business.”

The results add to a wider debate over how companies measure returns on business software spending. Buying and installing a platform is often only the first stage. Staff training, process redesign, and system integration can determine whether the investment changes how work gets done.

In this case, the survey suggests the gap opens quickly. While a majority expected value within six months, fewer than half achieved that timetable, pointing to a mismatch between expectations at purchase and experience after roll-out.

The data also shows that underuse is not limited to a small group of laggards. With 89.3% of businesses using less than three quarters of available functions, partial adoption appears to be the norm rather than the exception among the organisations surveyed.

For finance leaders, that raises a practical question over whether existing systems are configured and used in a way that matches the needs of their teams. The persistence of weekly and daily spreadsheet use suggests many businesses still rely on familiar manual processes even after investing in dedicated finance software.

Nearly a third of businesses had to wait more than ten months before realising value from their finance system.

Sainsbury’s at Pioneer Square will close the first level of its car park for seven days, starting from Monday, August 3.

A spokesperson said it is planning to repaint a section to “improve its appearance for customers” as part of a range of refurbishments it has been making at the store in recent months.

The façade of Sainsbury’s being cleaned (Image: Anonymous)

Previous improvement works included deep cleaning of the streets, cleaning of the front-facing glass and stone, and fixing bollards to keep cars away from pedestrians.

Cherwell District Council Officers monitoring Pioneer Square (Image: North Oxfordshire Liberal Democrats)

Under this week’s works, the affected zone one area will be closed off for approximately three days using Hera fencing and dust barriers.

Customers and staff will be directed to zone two for parking during this time.

To keep the trolley bay accessible, eight parking spaces will be temporarily removed.

After work on zone one is complete, maintenance will move to zone two for about four days, allowing zone one to reopen for parking and access to the store from the roof level.

Zone three will then offer controlled access from level one once blasting work is finished and it is safe to reopen that area.

The final phase will ensure customers can reach both the main store and trolley area while keeping the work zone secure.

The spokesperson added: “We’d like to thank our customers for bearing with us while we carry out this work.”