Cherwell Larder: Thursdays 11am, and Fridays at 4pm while supplies last at WISH, 4 The Parade, Kidlington. Ask to join our WhatsApp group for regular updates on additional distributions.
No Waste Noel – Spreading Christmas Spirit and Cheer Whilst Reducing our Carbon Footprint
Saturday 13th December saw us host our annual eco-Christmas market at Exeter Hall, Kidlington.
Supported by our partners, staff and volunteers, we opened the doors to the public at 11am with live music and lots of fun for all to have.
The event was free to attend and offered a great selection of local eco vendors, from plants, to candles, pet accessories to handmade items, enabling you to shop for all of the family.
We even had the Low Carbon Hub and Oxford City Farm join us to share information and help educate people.
Our friends at Oxford Food Hub kindly provided us with items for our larder and alongside our community and the Talking Shop in Sandford-on-Thames, donated items for our gift swap and grotto.
We saw almost 200 people attend the event and feedback was positive, with one attendee saying:
“Just wanted to say how much we enjoyed No Waste Noel and my children were blown away by the Santa experience and loved their gifts. Thank you to all who organised.”
Our annual gift swap was also popular, with people bringing items along to swap and donate to the cause and Santa’s grotto saw the children queuing to see our special visitor.
Throughout the event we had a great line up of entertainment with live music from local group Old Gold, Choir performances from Dr South’s Primary School and a special finale performance from Cherwell Brass band.
Our Climatarian Kitchen team and volunteers served up delicious hot snacks, cakes and mince pies, whilst visitors were able to take part in the tombola and gift swap. We also had a WISH children’s craft corner where they could have fun making decorations.
The event came to a close at 2pm, with plenty of smiles and Christmas cheer and people left with a fabulous array of sustainable gifts happy in the knowledge that they were able to make more informed choices.
Victoria Russell
Programme Manager
Victoria brings over 15 years of experience in finance, operations, and business support to the team. With a background as a finance analyst and operations coordinator, since 2016 has led Aplin Accountancy Ltd, a growing bookkeeping firm with a small team. Victoria also volunteers as a business mentor through the government’s Help to Grow scheme, supporting small business owners across the UK.
Alongside her work at Cherwell Collective, she recently founded Inspired Minds UK Consulting, a business mentoring service designed to support individuals in ways that suit their unique needs and learning styles. She is passionate about inclusive work environments, accessible learning, and sustainability—a core value she shares with Cherwell Collective and actively promotes within her own businesses. Victoria is keen to support Cherwell Collective’s mission to build stronger, more sustainable and connected communities.
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