BUILDERS have unearthed a time capsule buried in a wall in sheltered accommodation in Littlemore – 19 years too early.

Members of the 28th Oxford Cub Scouts buried the capsule at Cardinal House in 1979 with the intention of it being rediscovered 50 years later in 2029.

It was uncovered early because the block of flats is being redeveloped.

On Saturday, members of the 28th Oxford Cub Scouts were given the chance to add items from 2010 to the capsule.

Pack leader Andrew Thorpe, 34, said: “I was a cub scout myself in this pack in the 1980s, then came back as a helper and now I’m leader.

“The cubs have been fascinated to see what was in the time capsule which is a square metal box.

“There are now 30 in the pack and one of the major differences today is that we have about 10 girls – that wasn’t allowed in 1979.

“It was very interesting to look at the group photo from 1979 – it’s a really good window on recent local history.

“The uniform has changed quite a bit, 30 years ago the boys wore grey shorts, grey socks a cap and a green jumper, but now there are no caps and they wear trousers instead of shorts.”

Cub scout Charlie Grieve, 10, from Garsington, said: “It was interesting to see what the cubs were doing in 1979 and good fun putting things back in the box.”

Inside the time capsule was a letter from Bert Pridgeon, who was pack leader in 1979, a cub uniform, stamps, coins, slides and some cine film.

Today’s cub scouts will put in a 2010 uniform, stamps and coins, photographs, video clips on a memory stick and tomorrow's issue of the Oxford Mail.

The redevelopment at Cardinal House includes 20 new sheltered housing units and the refurbishment of 33 one- and two-bedroom flats. The Leadbitter Group is carrying out the development on behalf of Oxford City Council.

Council spokesman Louisa Dean said: “Cardinal House has been undergoing a major refurbishment, which included demolishing the lounge area where the time capsule had been placed.

“We felt this would be an opportune moment for the scouts to open the capsule and put some more items in.”

Helen Moore, Leadbitter’s community co-ordinator for the project, added: “We’re very excited about the discovery of this time capsule.

“We’ll make sure it is reburied in a suitable spot, hopefully to be discovered in several decades’ time.”

Cardinal House offers warden-assisted sheltered accommodation for the elderly. The project is to finish next spring.

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