Besselsleigh would get a parish councillor in a merged council with Appleton, and Ferrers Green would join Kingston Bagpuize. The Vale decides Thursday.
Two villages west of Abingdon are set to share a parish council from May 2027. Vale of White Horse councillors will decide on Thursday 1 October whether to group Appleton with Eaton and Besselsleigh under one council. Appleton is about five miles north-west of Abingdon, and Besselsleigh sits beside it on the A420.
The same meeting will decide whether to move the parish boundary at Kingston Bagpuize, about six miles west of Abingdon. That would bring the new Ferrers Green estate into Kingston Bagpuize with Southmoor parish.
Officers recommend both changes. The papers are on the council’s meeting page for the Community Governance and Electoral Issues Committee, which meets at 7pm in Abbey House, Abingdon.
Besselsleigh would get a councillor
Besselsleigh has no parish council at all. It is run by a parish meeting, where electors decide things directly, so it has no elected councillors.
The officers’ schedule for the review recommends a grouped council called Appleton with Eaton and Besselsleigh Parish Council. It would have eight seats:
- seven for Appleton with Eaton, the same number it has now
- one for Besselsleigh
The request came from Appleton with Eaton Parish Council, with the support of Besselsleigh Parish Meeting. In the second round of consultation, the schedule records, the parish meeting said the two already work together and that being one would save duplication. It strongly agreed with the proposed name.
The seat split follows the electorate. On 1 August 2026 the two parishes had 899 registered electors between them:
| Parish | Electors | Proposed seats | Electors per seat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appleton with Eaton | 783 | 7 | about 111 |
| Besselsleigh | 116 | 1 | about 116 |
The council says that number is not expected to grow significantly in the next five years. It notes that national guidance from the National Association of Local Councils suggests seven councillors for up to 900 electors. Officers chose eight so Appleton with Eaton keeps its current seats and Besselsleigh gets one.
What the consultation said
The second consultation ran from 11 June to 23 July. According to the council’s consultation report, it drew 38 responses across both proposals.
On the Appleton and Besselsleigh grouping, 24 people responded:
- 20 supported grouping the two parishes
- 20 agreed or strongly agreed with the proposed name
- 19 agreed or strongly agreed with eight councillors, split seven and one
The reasons given included pooling resources, cutting duplication and giving Besselsleigh “a stronger voice to raise local issues”, in the schedule’s summary. One respondent raised how hard it is to recruit parish councillors. The officers’ answer is that the usual rule applies: a candidate must live in the parish or within 4.8km of it.
The response was small, and the report shows why. The launch email went to 16 residents on the council’s consultation database. Seven social media posts produced 35 clicks.
Ferrers Green would join Kingston Bagpuize
Ferrers Green is the development to the east of Kingston Bagpuize and north of the A415, as the parish council describes it. It has outline planning permission under reference P22/V0248/O. The developer, David Wilson Homes, described the scheme in an April 2026 press release as about 660 homes, 35% of them affordable, with a 70-bedroom extra care home, a local centre and a primary school.
The land sits in Fyfield and Tubney parish. Kingston Bagpuize with Southmoor Parish Council asked for the review so the new homes would fall in its parish instead. Fyfield and Tubney Parish Council supports the change.
The officers’ schedule gives three reasons for moving the line:
- the site is closer to the Kingston Bagpuize and Southmoor village centre than to Fyfield and Tubney
- it will link directly to that parish’s existing amenities
- residents of the new estate are likely to identify with Kingston Bagpuize and Southmoor
This proposal drew 14 responses. Nine agreed it was sensible and would help community cohesion, four disagreed and one was unsure. Most in favour said the new residents would use the village’s shops, hall, schools and clubs. Four strongly disagreed. The schedule summarises their view as a large development “creating a sprawling mass with no real core”, and more traffic “with no new services to support the growth”.
If the boundary moves, the parish precept for the new homes goes to Kingston Bagpuize with Southmoor. The change would also need the Local Government Boundary Commission for England to redraw the matching district wards and county divisions. Those are the Kingston Bagpuize and Thames district wards, and the Kingston and Stanford and Marcham and Cumnor county divisions.
A deadline set by reorganisation
The council wants both changes in place for the May 2027 parish elections. Its report puts a tight clock on that.
The report says a district council cannot make this kind of order once it enters the transition period for local government reorganisation. If that happens first, the successor council would decide instead, and the changes would miss the 2027 elections. The report names that successor as Ridgeway Council. Its “best advice” is that the order must be completed by the end of November 2026, and it calls even that “an uncertain position”.
The report does not mention that the government paused the Ridgeway decision on 7 September, pending a national review with no reporting date. Our report on the pause has the minister’s letter. The pause could loosen the deadline, but the council has not said so.
What it means for you
- If you live in Besselsleigh, you would elect a parish councillor for the first time under this council, at the May 2027 parish elections.
- If you live in Appleton or Eaton, your council keeps its seven seats and gains one member from Besselsleigh. Its name would change.
- If you are buying at Ferrers Green, your home would be in Kingston Bagpuize with Southmoor parish. Your parish precept, the part of council tax that funds the parish council, would go there. The district council will move council tax records for any homes that change parish.
- To speak at Thursday’s meeting, contact democratic services on 01235 422422 or at democratic.services@southandvale.gov.uk to ask how to register.
The committee can agree, amend or reject each recommendation. We will report the outcome.
Sources: Vale of White Horse District Council, agenda for the Community Governance and Electoral Issues Committee, 1 October 2026, including the report on final recommendations, schedules CGR A and CGR C, and the consultation report (August 2026); Kingston Bagpuize with Southmoor Parish Council; David Wilson Homes press release, April 2026.
Have your say