A garage owner in Witney has found a new place for his business just in time. Mick Partlett Car Sales on Station Lane is one of the best know garages in Oxford, but controversial plans have been approved which means that the site of his business will be demolished to make way for a 3,000sq ft retail unit that is set to become a DIY or homeware store.

Luckily, Mr. Partlett was able to get planning permission for a new site for his business just 100 metres away.

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The problem with being a facilitator is that no one really knows what you do! A lot of people think it sounds like a made up job but it is a really important job. I used to do a lot of work for the government running training and educational courses, but after the recession, most of the government bodies that I worked for were cut, so I had to start looking for new contracts. I have always really enjoyed doing freelance work, but I needed to find a place where I could find companies who needed my services and expertise.

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I have been working in PR and Media for years, but after I had my daughter, I didn’t want to go back to work full time, so I decided to work freelance. I love coming in to help businesses on an ad hoc basis, and you can really see results when you work on a specific project. The thing I love about freelancing is that there is such a freelance community, with people recommended you when they are unable to complete jobs, and working collaborately on projects. I love working with different people all the time because I think that it has really improved my skills base.

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When I left university I was a bit lost and I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I had done my degree in English Literature, so it wasn’t vocational, but I knew that I had gained a lot of skills from my degree. Writing has always come naturally to me, and I suppose my dream has always been to be a writer of some description. I knew that it wouldn’t be possible to be a full time writer, and I realised that I would have to find a job that would fund my writing. I have completed a couple of internships for marketing companies writing copy for their companies, and I knew that it was something that I did well. I knew that this was definitely a good career option for me, but I didn’t really know where to start. I knew that I didn’t want a 9-5 job, so I thought about finding freelance jobs that could fund my other writing on the side.

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I have just bought an old property in Oxford with a view to converting it into living accommodation and offices.  A friend put me in touch with Property Conversions Oxford. I discussed all my ideas and vision for the property with www.propertyconversionsoxford.co.uk and I am really excited with the plans they have drawn up and the work they have scheduled.  I am confident that they will create just the property I want.

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I have three children, and two of them have left home and gone to university. My youngest, Ella, is just about to turn 14. Our family home had just become too big for just Ella, my wife and I. We decided that we should move to a smaller house that would have lower running costs. Ella was very upset because she didn’t want to leave the only house that she had ever lived in, so we had to work very hard to convince her. We found a house that was great, but Ella was being very stubborn, so we reached a compromise. We would move into the new house if we converted the loft into a bedroom for her. She agreed, and we set about finding builders who could help with the work for us. We found www.loftconversionoxfordshire.co.uk. The new house was perfect for us, but there were some things that we needed to arrange before we moved in. There was a crack in one of the windows upstairs, and I really wanted to make sure that our house was as safe as possible before we moved in. I have used www.windowrepairsoxford.co.uk before, so I knew that they would offer a really efficient service and would give us the results that we needed.

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I had a disastrous week at work last week.  It was half-term and the children were off school.  I had planned to take some time off, but the woman who works for me was off ill and I needed to be at work.  Then, to top it all off the drains blocked and when you run a cafe that is not good news.  I needed a company I could call and who would respond immediately.  Luckily I called www.blockeddrainsoxford.co.uk Read the rest of this entry »

I used to sit at the cramped breakfast bar in my tiny flat in London and dream of when I had my own place out in the country with a huge kitchen where I could cook properly.

I never quite made it to the country, but when I got married to a stockbroker we moved to a beautiful big house in Oxford. It needed a bit of work, especially on the kitchen, but it was enormous. It was the perfect size to work on for my perfect kitchen. Not long after we moved in I contacted www.fittedkitchensoxford.co.uk to get some help with my dream kitchen. Read the rest of this entry »

It took me a long time to find a plastering company that was really able to meet my requirements. Plastering is very skilled work, and I needed a company who had the experience and expertise to finish the work that was left in a shocking state by our old plasterer… also known as my husband. I love my husband, but his DIY skills can only be described as appalling. He tried to plaster over a hole that we had in our kitchen, and it turned into a four day operation that only managed to make the hole bigger. I have no clue how he did it. I decided that professional plasterers were the only people who could help, so I called up www.plasteringcompaniesoxford.co.uk.

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When I started at Oxford university, I was very overwhelmed by the whole experience. The place is so prestigious and rich in history, but everyone was so intelligent and I felt really intimidated by the situation. I have always been good academically, but I’m quite awkward socially, and I didn’t feel comfortable in the university environment. Back home I was a member of the local church, so I thought that that would be a great way to meet people who had similar interests to me. I asked around and some people told me about www.evangelicalchurchoxford.co.uk, so I went to the Sunday service the following week.

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