Roads in Oxford were forced to shut this morning (July 24) due to reports of a suspicious item believed to be explosive, Thames Valley Police has confirmed.

The force received a report of a suspicious item in Oxford at around 10.15am which led to the temporary closure of Between Towns Road and St Luke’s Road, it has been revealed.

Officers from the Ministry of Defence’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team were sent to a construction site off St Luke’s Road, and a temporary police cordon was put in place.

READ MORE: Oxfordshire teacher called in front of misconduct hearing

Student accommodation was evacuated and four police cars were seen at the scene by eyewitnesses.

Police confirmed the item was found not to be explosive and it was removed by the Ministry of Defence.

Oxford Bus Company services were temporarily disrupted but resumed from 11.15am onwards.

Oxford Mail:

The Ministry of Defence has been contacted.

Help support trusted local news 

Sign up for a digital subscription now: oxfordmail.co.uk/subscribe 

As a digital subscriber you will get: 

  • Unlimited access to the Oxford Mail website 
  • Advert-light access 
  • Reader rewards 
  • Full access to our app 

About the author 

To sign up to Ed's weekly Politics newsletter, click here: https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/newsletters/ 

Ed specialises in writing political stories for the Oxford Mail and The Oxford Times. 

He joined in the team in February 2023, after completing a History undergraduate degree at the University of York and studying for his NCTJ diploma in London.

Ed’s weekly politics newsletter is released every Saturday morning.