IT is a day which only comes round once every four years. 

February 29 - also known as Leap Day - is an extra day gifted to the world's population which aligns the calendar with the Sun's position in space. 

One solar year is a smidgen more than the 365 days we were taught about in school - six hours to be exact.

Ancient brainboxes decided to accumulate those six hours over a few years until they racked up to a full day. 

Here's a few ideas of how you can make the most of yours:

1. Ladies, propose to your boyfriend

Archaic though it may seem, February 29 is supposedly the traditional day on which women can propose to men without fear of rejection. Centuries ago men were forced to sacrafice a gown or money if he refused a marriage proposal from a woman on Leap Day, and give her twelve pairs of gloves so she could hide the 'embarassment' of not having a ring on her finger. Are you planning on proposing today? Tweet us @TheOxfordMail

2. Donate to a good cause

Sobell House, which provides palliative care to patients across Oxfordshire, is running its Every Minute Counts campaign. The Headington hospice wants people to donate £5 by texting 'LEAP40 £5' to 70070. It asks supporters to then show take a selfie and post it on social media using the #everyminutecounts hastag, then nominate three friends to do the same. Every £5 donated will cover the cost of running the hospice for one minute

3. Make a Leap Year resolution list

New Year's resolutions can be tricky to achieve within twelve months, so why not set some four-year goals? Jot down a list of targets for where you want to be the next time Leap Day comes around in 2020 and keep it somewhere safe 

4. Celebrate a Leap Year birthday

For those born on February 29, birthdays technically only come round once every four years. Most people can commiserate a birthday boring bash with the silver lining that 'there's always next year', but not for this unlucky lot. That calls for an extra-special celebration, like 73-year-old John Wheeler organised for his 18th 'true' birthday

5. Go 'Leap Day dancing '

After a busy weekend entertaining shoppers in Bonn Square, Dancin' Oxford is continuing its tenth anniversary celebrations into the week. Tonight the organisation, co-ordinated by Oxford City Council, will host a special mix of dance, live music and film at its Leap Day Dancing event at the Old Fire Station. Guest performers will include Joelle Pappas who led a family dancing classat West Oxford Community Centre yesterday.