09/04/2014 BBC Oxford News

Good evening. Homeowners affected by Wellington. That is all from us.

Good evening. Homeowners affected by the planned HS2 route are to be

offered improved compensation. It includes those who don't want to

sell their properties. But some people say the scheme doesn't go far

enough. Stuart Tinworth reports Derek and his wife Margo can't see

where HS2 will pass by their home, but they're already counting the

cost. They say they've lost over ?20,000 of the value of thehr home.

Despite an improved compens`tion package announced today, thdy are

just outside of the distancd to really benefit. Will not get

anything out of this. In fact, even if they gave us that money we still

haven't sold the house so what price will resell it at. We may wdll have

to drop another god knows how much. Ministers insist the new pax`out

scheme is clear and fair. For people living the closest ` up to 60 metres

from the line ` the governmdnt will now buy homes at their unblhghted

market value plus 10% more. For those not wanting to sell, there

will now be a cash compensation of 10% of the value of their home. It

is important to try and preserve communities because we don't want to

see the whole village is important to try and preserve communities

because we don't want to sed the whole villages being blightdd by a

mass exodus which could change the whole character. We are keen to help

people who are staying as wdll as offering good compensation for those

wishing to sell. Campaigners say nearly half a

million homes will be affected. Already the government has bought

just over 100 houses at the cost of nearly ?70 million.

A man's been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a woman

was stabbed in Aylesbury. She was flown to hospital with serious chest

injuries after being assaulted in Friarscroft Way on Friday.

The former greyhound track hn Oxford is now officially a conserv`tion

area. The status was granted this evening. Campaigners say thd

conservation order means it'll be harder for housing to be buhlt

there. Plans for 200 homes have previously been rejected, btt the

developers are challenging the decision. Part of the Didcot power

station site has been sold off with homes and new businesses pl`nned for

the area. A planning application is expected

this autumn. There are calls for a changd in the

law to make it harder for ptbs to be turned into mini supermarkets.

Oxford City Council wants local communities to have a better chance

of taking them over instead. Pints have been served at the Bull

Inn in Great Milton for centuries, but last year it nearly closed down.

There was talk of the pub bding sold and converted into houses btt local

people got together and bought it themselves, calling it a victory for

the village. It was massively important as evidenced by the

financial support and custolers who came back who hadn't been using it.

Now people had a vested intdrest and it is a much more popular vdnue than

it was before. Other pubs have disappeared. What

was the Fox and Hound, is one of six pubs in Oxford bought by Tescos We

would rather it had stayed `s a pub. Practically, I confess we are

finding it useful. If they `re taking custom away from inddpendent

businesses it is not such a good idea.

Oxford City Council wants to stop this trend, and is calling on the

government to give it greatdr control over changes to the uses of

pubs. We are keen to maintahn the local pub in the local area as a

community asset. We are keen to save those which our heritage assets in

their communities. The council accepts some pubs may

not have a future, but before any owners can change the use of a pub

it wants the public to be consulted. Thames Water says it's removed what

it calls a "fatberg" from a sewer in the centre of Oxford.

The congealed grease has bedn blasted away with a high prdssure

water jet. The pipe has to be replaced, but the road will re`open

ahead of schedule at the wedkend. The ambition of two friends to row

across part of the Pacific ocean together could shed more light on

Parkinson's disease. Alex Flynn from Goring has the condition.

Researchers in Oxford want to compare the way the two men's bodies

respond to the challenge. Adina Campbell reports.

Two men and more than two thousand miles ahead of them. Alex and Darren

have been friends for more than 25 years but they'll be a test to their

friendship when they row across the Pacific Ocean in a couple of months.

And there's one big difference between them ` Alex was diagnosed

with Parkinson's six years `go. Despite being on medication and

coping with side effects, lhke rigidity, he's been pushing his body

to the limits. Quite honestly, diagnosis doesn't necessarily limit

you. You can keep pushing the envelope of how far you can go even

it is incrementally in small bits. Even if your challenge is gdtting

across the room, that is yotr ever rest. With dozens of marathons under

his belt, Alex has been trahning since last Summer for his ndxt

gruelling challenge ` rowing from California to Hawaii ` which could

take up to 80 days. But he's not doing it alone. Alex managed to

persuade Oxfordshire firefighter Darren Taylor to be his rowhng

partner, which meant Darren quitting his job. I joined the service to

help people and I see this `s a way to help type `` tens of thotsands

across the world. Alex and Darren are also taking part in a ndw

physical challenge, a research project by Oxford Brookes

University. The headcap and arm studs here are being used to monitor

Alex's brain activity. This will help to understand how people with

Parkinson's cope physically and emotionally under intense exercise.

The study will provide a unhque opportunity to provide `` study to

people, one with the mind whthout Parkinson's, and see the impact of

the exercise on their health. They still need raise ?15,000 before

they set off for their rowing challenge. They're hoping months of

hard work won't go to waste. Before we go, if you're wondering

why our studio looks differdnt, it's because we're in a temporarx one

while a new one is fitted. There'll be daily updates of the progress on

the Local Live section of the BBC Oxford website. That's it from us.

Goodnight. A touch of frost in the

countryside. Tomorrow, the best of any sunny spells during the morning

and increasing cloud through the afternoon. It may bring the odd

shower later on in the day. It moves southwards across the region. Light

wind tomorrow. Looking ahead, high pressure begins to build from the

Atlantic. Turning settled whth sunshine at times.

weekend. If you are travelling further afield here is a look at the

National pig genome. -- National picture.

Most of us will be dry and bright with some sunshine coming through.

That