County council to invest in schools, transport and streetlighting

Residents of Oxfordshire could see highway improvements, new school buildings and energy-efficient streetlighting thanks to a £1 billion investment over the next ten years as part of the county council’s budget.Transport schemes across Oxfordshire – including Banbury, Oxford, Eynsham, Benson, Wantage, Didcot, Thame and Bicester – are set for funding approval so the county council can improve journeys for drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and public transport users.Nearly £20m will be invested to increase the provision of school places for children with special needs in the county, including rebuilding Northfield School in Oxford with more pupil places.Capital funding is for large one-off projects such as highway repairs or building work to assist the council meet its obligations, such as creating extra school places – as opposed to the normal revenue budget which covers funding for the costs of day-to-day services.Most of the funding for capital programme is made up of government funding and developer contributions, which cannot be used for any other purpose. The proposed capital programme includes government funding through the Oxfordshire Growth Deal, agreed by all Oxfordshire councils.Elsewhere in the Capital Programme a £41m street lighting improvement programme continues to be part of the investment plan, with traditional lanterns to be replaced with more energy efficient LED lighting, saving money in the long-run.The ten-year capital programme is part of the council’s proposed budget for next year, which has been put forward following public consultation.