Standing Together in Oxfordshire

Over the past week I’ve been in touch with senior colleagues in Thames Valley Police about the climate of fear being stirred nationally around asylum hotels and migrant communities. I asked for a clear-eyed picture of what’s really happening here in Oxfordshire – and I want to share some of that with you.

Chief Superintendent Ben Clark has provided exactly the kind of calm, factual reassurance our communities need. His message was clear: the fears being whipped up by some parts of the media, and by those who would prefer division to unity, are not borne out by the reality here.

In Oxfordshire, we have not seen disorder on the scale reported elsewhere. Even at the height of national tensions last summer, our county stood firm. When a far-right protest was rumoured for Magdalen Road, hundreds of local people mobilised to say in one voice that hatred would not be tolerated. More recently, the deeply offensive incident at the Manzil Way Mosque was met with the swiftest of community responses – neighbours, leaders and friends rallying to support those affected and to condemn the act of a single individual.

The police have a robust plan in place – visible, proportionate, and ready to be scaled up if needed. Their neighbourhood teams and community officers are in daily touch with migrant hotels, local authorities and voluntary groups. There is ongoing work through the Oxfordshire Migration Partnership, which brings together police, councils and third-sector organisations to share information and respond together. And, if called for, Operation Annabolise ensures resources can be deployed rapidly to protect those at risk.

So where does that leave us? Reassured, certainly – but not complacent. Each of us has a part to play in helping our neighbours feel safe. We can counter the damaging national narrative by sharing the truth: Oxfordshire is not experiencing an increase in incidents linked to migration. When protests are planned, they are small, and the welcome is always louder than the hostility.

As your High Sheriff, my pledge is to echo and amplify that reassurance. I will continue to stand with communities across the county, sharing facts not fear, and lifting up the countless acts of solidarity that make Oxfordshire proud.

This is what “Hearing the Young Unheard” is about, too: ensuring those most vulnerable, most targeted, or most overlooked know they are not alone.

Confidence, without complacency – that feels like the right motto for all of us just now.