Renewed calls for lights in Oxford park where woman 'raped'

The incident occurred in South Park at around 10.30pm on Saturday (May 27).

The park was cordoned off by police for most of Sunday (May 28) while an investigation took place.

READ MORE: Woman in 20s victim of suspected rape in Oxford park

No arrests have yet been made, but the pair are believed to have been together since around 7.30pm.

Oxford City Council, which owns the land, has said lighting would have a harmful impact on wildlife and the environment as well as being costly.

A petition for street lighting in South Park was first set up by Oxford Brookes students around the time of the Sarah Everard murder in March 2021. 

It calls for the area to be illuminated as a ‘matter of priority’ and describes South Park as having a ‘reputation as a site of past sexual assaults.’

A similar incident was reported in 2014 when a woman in her 20s said she was sexually assaulted in the park.

But Oxford City Council rejected the plans in 2021 due to ‘fiscal’ and ‘environmental’ concerns.

In a statement made to the Oxford Mail, the council maintained that the plans were 'difficult to justify', stating that people can simply take a short detour and use a well-lit path at the top of the park. 

A council spokesman said: "South Park is owned by Oxford City Council but protected by a covenant held by the Oxford Preservation Trust which restricts any changes made to the park.

"Installing lighting in green spaces, particularly at sites like South Park where the many mature trees attract bats and a wide range of insects, would have a significant impact on wildlife.

"It would also come at a high cost and create an ongoing carbon footprint.

"This would be difficult to justify when people can just take the short detour using the already well-lit road around the top of the park."

But supporters of the petition disagree. 

Oxford Brookes student Hugh Phillips said: “The street light proposal was debated by the council, but their response was that one it is one too expensive and two it would have a bad environmental impact.

“I have two issues with that.

“Firstly, the council has a huge budget and I spoke to a company involved in lighting and they quoted that it would cost about £10,000 a year to fund.

“That is a drop in the ocean of their budget and therefore that comment is laughable.

“Secondly there has never been an environmental survey of animals living in the park.

“The issue is that whenever we get the petition going, the council just fall back on those two areas.”

The petition has been reignited since the incident on Saturday (May 27).

It has gained hundreds of new signatures with the numbers now topping 1,900. 

South Park links Oxford Brookes university and the student accommodation in the Cowley area and is therefore a popular route among students.

According to the petition “the lack of lighting means that on a dark night it's impossible to even see your feet unless you have enough charge on your phone to use it as a torch.”

Police have appealed for witnesses to the incident.

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Detective chief inspector Adrian Thomas said: “We are prioritising the investigation of this distressing attack.

“The park was closed while we conducted an examination of the scene and this has now been completed.

“Thank you to those who wished to use the park for your patience and understanding.”

Anyone with information about this offence should call 101 or make a report on the Thames Valley Police website, quoting the reference number 43230233952.

Alternatively, you can provide information anonymously to the independent charity, Crimestoppers, by calling 0800 555 111 or via its website.