Have a read to explore recent reports, resources, and reflections on our work!

-- Annual review 

-- Connected Communities Fund

-- All together

--Trustees week 

-- Annual General Meeting

-- Community Transport week

-- Community-Led Housing funding update

In October we released our Annual Review, a lovely summary of the many ways our dedicated staff have supported communities across Oxfordshire over the last year!

  

In Tom’s words:

“Emily and I genuinely believe that the current Community First Oxfordshire team is the strongest, most creative and committed that we can remember.” 

There's no easy way to capture the range and depth of our work in a sentence so I encourage you to have a look at the Review below which explores our work alongside images and stats (with a two page summary if you're short on time!):

Does your community group have a project or a great idea to bring people together? This year’s Connected Communities Fund is still open for applications!

The fund is an exciting opportunity for communities to develop and expand activities in their local community that help to achieve the countywide ambition: to create places that support the people of Oxfordshire to live well, reduce isolation, remain fit, live independently and remain healthy for as long as possible in their community.

The Fund is here to support grassroots projects that:
🌟 Create opportunities for older people 50+ and adults 18+ with additional needs
🌟 Promote socialising and building meaningful connections in the community
🌟 Boost local activities in categories but not limited too : Community Based Socialising, Health & Wellbeing, Arts, Culture & Creative, Green/Environmental & Outdoor Activities, New Skills Learning.

Up to £5,000 per project is available. How to Apply:

✔️ Check the full eligibility criteria   Connected Communities Fund - Oxfordshire Community & Voluntary Action  
✔️ Submit a simple Expression of Interest form
✔️ Receive support from OCVA and Community First Oxfordshire
✔️ Applications reviewed on a rolling basis (there is no closing date, open until all funds have been allocated) 

Funded by Oxfordshire County Council (Adult Social Care) and delivered in partnership with Oxfordshire Community and Voluntary Action and Community First Oxfordshire.  

Your membership helps us support communities in Oxfordshire to continue to be great places to live and work. As well as enabling us to support and advocate for communities, your membership gives you access to a range of services, discounts, training, and networks including:  

Here are some quotes from our members:

 Trustees’ Week is a time for us to come together to celebrate the achievements of nearly one million trustees across the UK. We want to share some reflections from our Trustees Linda Horgan and Chris Kenneford:

Chris – I’ve been a Trustee of CFO for about two years now – having originally been drawn to them by their impressive reputation and a desire to put back something into a county that I’ve grown to know and love – and I’m regularly amazed at the range and depth of the work this relatively small organisation does with diverse communities across (and indeed beyond) Oxfordshire.

Linda – Although we are a small trustee team, we bring a rich mix of skills, experiences, and perspectives. What unites us is a shared belief in the power of communities and the importance of supporting Oxfordshire’s people and places to work together and thrive. We are extremely fortunate as a board to have such strong leadership from Emily, Tom, and the wider team — a group of committed, hardworking individuals who truly believe in the mission and values of CFO.

Chris – I was a senior manager in local government for over thirty years, and I’ve never encountered a more dedicated, passionate, friendly and knowledgeable set of people than those to be found working at this organisation!

  

Linda – Working in the charity sector myself, I understand the challenges that organisations face, but I also see firsthand how essential trustees are in providing guidance, oversight, and encouragement. Being part of this collaborative effort — where trustees and staff work together towards a common goal — has been both rewarding and inspiring.

Last Friday community groups from across Oxfordshire met up for ALL WELL TOGETHER - a free drop-in event with displays (including a hand drawn timeline!), food, networking, performances, and conversations to celebrate two years of the Well Together programme.

Our Well Together team also really enjoyed the event. Here are some of their reflections:

At this year's AGM we had an amazing talk from Mark – the former director of Asylum Welcome on Immigration, asylum, and refugees: myths, misconceptions, and lived reality. 

As our Co-CEO Emily said:

“The topic of immigration needs a serious rebalancing in public debate. Despite the misconceptions that we hear day in and day out, we have all benefited and are benefiting from migration and immigration, both in an economic sense and a social and cultural sense. In his talk (link above), Mark takes us through some of the myths about migration and also the necessity of replacing resentment with compassion.”

  

You can watch his 30 mins insightful and informative talk here:

From 13-17 October 2025, communities across the UK celebrated the vital work of the Community Transport sector. This year’s theme, More than a Minibus, highlights the impact of accessible, inclusive, and affordable transport in strengthening community bonds.

With over 80 schemes and 1400 volunteers, Community Transport is an essential service in many part of Oxfordshire. As Lea - a researcher from Oxford Universities’ Transport studies - found,  community transport provides both a transport and social service with many different benefits.

  

A volunteer from All Together In Charlbury shares their experience:

“I have been an ATIC volunteer driver since the scheme started [...]. As a driver I find it very rewarding to assist taking a client for a hospital or clinic appointment, or an essential shopping trip. Usually it is because there is no family or friend available to help and having a friendly travelling companion takes some stress out of the situation for the client.“

Community Transport is uniquely low-cost, flexible and functionally accessible. It is a social scheme made to meet passengers’ needs beyond transport, providing mobility to those with few other options and building community. These unique aspects of community transport are made possible through dedicated volunteers informally and flexibly responding to needs.

A client from ATIC shares how they have found the service:

Thanks to All Together In Charlbury for sharing these lovely insights with us!

The number of communities starting to deliver the housing they truly want and need continues to grow - we are now supporting 11 housing schemes across Oxfordshire. Local Authorities are increasingly recognising the role of Community -led Housing in their affordable housing strategies. The funding  granted to our Community-led Housing service is proof of their interest in seeing this sector grow.

 

Our Rural Housing Enabling service funded by DEFRA also has some exciting updates, enhancing our support for smaller rural communities to meet their local housing need. 

We recently commissioned a rural housing needs model developed by Arc 4, a housing research and data company.  We also recently purchased Landstack - a platform which helps us to understand the hyper-local planning environment. This parish level data allows us to understand which communities face the most significant need and identify possible Rural Exception Sites, enabling small schemes of affordable housing.

The Rural Housing Enabling service also supports Parish councils to gain better understanding and relevant insights within their communities by offering Housing Needs surveys. This information can also be included in Neighbourhood plans and can help rural towns and villages to be more resilient and sustainable in an ever-changing environment.