A Woodstock councillor wants to see postbuses collecting passengers as well as mail from villages and hamlets in parts of the county.

Liberal Democrat Julian Cooper has successfully asked the county council to look into the feasibility of the scheme, which already operates in Scotland and neighbouring Berkshire.

The scheme would involve the Royal Mail using minibuses to collect mail from postboxes and offering people a ride on the way to the nearest town's sorting office.

Mr Cooper said: "This would certainly be a great benefit for some of the villages and hamlets in West Oxfordshire.

"I can think of places like Worton, Heythrop and Swerford which do not have a daily bus service."

The idea will be discussed by the county council's environment scrutiny committee.