Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

See guidance below.

There were none.

Any county councillor may, by giving notice to the Proper Officer by 9 am three working days before the meeting, ask a question on an item on the agenda.

The number of questions which may be asked by any councillor at any one meeting is limited to two (or one question with notice and a supplementary question at the meeting) and the time for questions will be limited to 30 minutes in total. As with questions at Council, any questions which remain unanswered at the end of this item will receive a written response.

Questions submitted prior to the agenda being despatched are shown below and will be the subject of a response from the appropriate Cabinet Member or such other councillor or officer as is determined by the Cabinet Member, and shall not be the subject of further debate at this meeting. Questions received after the despatch of the agenda, but before the deadline, will be shown on the Schedule of Addenda circulated at the meeting, together with any written response which is available at that time.

There were none.

Members of the public who wish to speak on an item on the agenda at this meeting, or present a petition, can attend the meeting in person or ‘virtually’ through an online connection.

Requests to present a petition must be submitted no later than 9am ten working days before the meeting.

Requests to speak must be submitted no later than 9am three working days before the meeting.

Requests should be submitted to committeesdemocraticservices@oxfordshire.gov.uk

If you are speaking ‘virtually’, you may submit a written statement of your presentation to ensure that if the technology fails, then your views can still be taken into account. A written copy of your statement can be provided no later than 9am on the day of the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than 1 A4 sheet.

There were two requests to address the meeting, which can be seen below:

Item 6 – Approve and Authorise the Award of the HIF1 Clifton Hampden Bypass Construction Contract

-       Gregory O’Broin

-       Richard Tamplin

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 22 January to be signed by the Chair as a correct record.

The minutes of the meeting held on 22 January 2026 were approved and signed by the Chair as a correct record.

Cabinet Member: Place, Environment and Climate Action

Forward Plan Ref: 2026/002 

Contact:  Beccy Micklem, Team Leader – Landscape and Nature Recovery (Beccy.Micklem@oxfordshire.gov.uk)

Report by Director of Environment and Highways (CMDPECA5). 

This report has been prepared to report how we are fulfilling our ‘strengthened’ biodiversity duty under the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (as amended). The report summarises a range of actions we have implemented to conserve and enhance biodiversity.

The Cabinet Member is RECOMMENDED to:

a)    Approve the ‘Biodiversity Action at Oxfordshire County Council Jan 2023-Dec 2025’ report for publication.

The Chair introduced the item to the meeting.

Officers confirmed that the report had been prepared to report how the Council was fulfilling its ‘strengthened’ biodiversity duty under the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (as amended). Approval to publish the report had been recommended to fulfil statutory obligations.

The period covered by the report was from January 2023 to December 2025.

The Chair thanked officers and agreed to the recommendations in the report.

RESOLVED to:

a)    Approve the ‘Biodiversity Action at Oxfordshire County Council Jan 2023-Dec 2025’ report for publication.

Cabinet Member: Place, Environment and Climate Action

Forward Plan Ref: 2025/267

Contact: Tim Mann, Senior Project Manager (Timothy.Mann@oxfordshire.gov.uk)

Report by Director of Environment and Highways (CMPECA6).

This is a key decision to approve and authorise the award of the HIF1 Clifton Hampden Bypass construction contract.

The Cabinet Member is RECOMMENDED to:

a)    Delegate authority to the Director of Environment and Highways to award the Stage Two NEC4 Engineering and Construction Contract for the HIF1 Clifton Hampden Bypass scheme to John Graham Construction Limited under the Crown Commercial Service Construction Works and Associated Services Framework RM6088, Lot 4.1 (England and Wales) subject to:

(i)             agreement of the target cost (within the released budget),

(ii)           agreement of the programme for the works and

(iii)         finalising the contract terms.

The Chair introduced the item to the meeting, invited speakers to make their addresses and responded to their points in turn.

The Chair confirmed that the HIF1 scheme was separated into 3 sections; the Didcot Science Bridge, the Culham River Crossing and the Clifton Hampden Bypass. This decision related to the construction contract for the Clifton Hampden Bypass. Officers confirmed the intention of the wider scheme was to improve connectivity between Didcot and Culham, reducing congestion and to support the delivery of 12,000 homes being built in the vicinity.

Officers confirmed that the recommendation was to delegate the award of the contract to the Director of Environment and Highways. If approved, the main construction was due to begin in April and last for 18 months.

Officers noted that the scheme was fully funded from 4 different sources, with contingency funding that had not currently been drawn into from Homes England.

Officers confirmed that there would be quarterly updates with parish councils to keep them informed on the progress of the scheme and that e-newsletters had also been introduced.

The Chair noted that she felt the scheme would be worthwhile to alleviate congestion in Clifton Hampden and also make it a better environment for children attending the primary school.

The Chair thanked speakers for their contributions, officers for their work and agreed to the recommendations in the report.

RESOLVED to:

a)    Delegate authority to the Director of Environment and Highways to award the Stage Two NEC4 Engineering and Construction Contract for the HIF1 Clifton Hampden Bypass scheme to John Graham Construction Limited under the Crown Commercial Service Construction Works and Associated Services Framework RM6088, Lot 4.1 (England and Wales) subject to:

(i)             agreement of the target cost (within the released budget),

(ii)           agreement of the programme for the works and

(iii)         finalising the contract terms.