New Year is a time for celebration and Oxford has its own special traditions including a New Year’s Day dive at Hinksey Lake.

Here we feature some Oxford Mail archive photos of New Year activities including special tea parties at the town hall.

One of the most popular traditions in recent years is the New Year's Day dive by members of the city's sub aqua club.

If the temperatures are mild they don't have to break the ice on Hinksey Lake, next to Hinksey Pools off Abingdon Road.

Rather than enjoy the New Year’s Day lie-in indulged in by many across the city, divers take part in the now-traditional January 1 dive at the south Oxford beauty spot.

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Andy Pickering, president of the Oxford Scuba Diving Club was one of five divers to brave the water last year.

He said at the time: “It’s tradition. We’ve always done the New Year’s Day dive to bring us good luck through the year.

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“It’s a good start to the year.”

"You don’t get too enthusiastic on New Year’s Eve," he added.

Sometimes the divers retrieve rubbish and debris from the lake and bring it to the surface so it can be recycled.

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning. 

You can also read his weekly Traffic and Transport newsletter.