A community shop is managed and run democratically by the community, with all shareholders having one vote, regardless of the number of shares they have purchased.  Any profits go back into the shop and the community.

There are 433 community shops in the UK, with about 40 of them in Oxfordshire, including in the nearby villages of Tackley and Wootton. To get a flavour of a community shop, have a look at the website of this award-winning shop in nearby Gloucestershire: Bledington Community Shop and Cafe Gloucestershire Cotswolds

• to respond to the large majority of villagers who expressed their support for a village shop in the questionnaire that was distributed to the whole village in February 2023;
• to provide support for those who cannot or do not want to drive to do their shopping, especially as access by foot to the Co-op is along a busy country road without a pavement;
• to reduce reliance on the use of cars for those who do normally drive to the Co-op or Sainsbury’s; and
• to broaden the range of amenities available in the village, offering an additional place for villagers to meet and interact.

If sufficient funds are raised by the early part of 2026, we aim to open the shop on 1 June 2026.

The addition of a café to the shop creates an important social hub in the village:

• it offers an opportunity for shoppers, especially the elderly, to sit down and chat with friends and neighbours,
• provides a meeting place to welcome newcomers and visitors to the village
• will make an important contribution towards the financial viability of the project.

• the profits from a commercial business go to the owners of the business; the profits from a community shop go back to the community.
• a commercial business has higher overheads than a community shop.  In particular, it has higher staffing costs than a shop where much of the work is carried out by volunteers under the supervision of a paid supervisor.

Careful preparation of a project on this scale necessarily takes time and effort, including: 

• establishing the level of support in the village for a community run shop by setting up a village-wide survey and processing the responses; 
• improving our understanding of the working of community shops, by visiting several and discussing their operation with their managers; 
• obtaining detailed advice on our plans from the Plunkett Foundation in Woodstock, which supports community businesses, to ensure they are a viable and realistic; 
• illustrating the potential of the shop by organising three farmers markets; 
• obtaining planning permission from Cherwell District Council and then discussing with Kirtlington Parish Council the terms of a sub-lease for the proposed initial site next to the Village Hall; 
• preparing for registration as a Community Benefit Society, developing a robust business plan, producing a website and planning the public launch of a share prospectus, inviting villagers to support the creation of the shop;  
• investigating potential sources of grant finance to complement the support provided by shareholders and donors; and 
• examining other options for the siting of the shop and café, notably at the Dashwood Arms. 

Villagers and others buy shares to become members of the Community Benefit Society. Shares in Kirtlington Community Shop & Café Limited cost £1 each with a minimum purchase of 20 shares (so £20).

Full details are contained in the share offer document.

Those interested in supporting the project but not wanting to become shareholders can make donations. In addition, many villagers have pledged their support by offering their skills. In the 2023 Survey we had offers of voluntary support from local builders, electricians, plumbers, IT support, bakers and cooks.

Most community shops are run as a Community Benefit Society (CBS), an organisation registered with the Financial Conduct Authority with the specific remit that it must benefit the community. Everyone who buys shares in the society becomes a member and all members have an equal say in the development of the shop. The members elect a management committee to oversee the daily running of the shop.

Building design 

• The building would be made of sustainable timber essential for lowering carbon emissions.
• The building system of two structural facings with an insulating foam core is extremely strong and energy efficient.

Energy 

• The intention is to install a pv array on the south-west facing roof, echoing the large array on the roof of the village hall next to the new building and contributing to reducing energy use. 
• While we expect most customers to arrive on foot, the car park includes two electric vehicle charging points.
• Bike stanchions by the shop would help to encourage cycling.

Biodiversity 

We will include landscaping in the design of the surroundings, to complement planting round the village hall and to increase the biodiversity of the site.

Waste 

We will aim to reduce waste as far as possible, by careful planning, offering discounts on products approaching their sell-by date, minimising the use of packaging, especially plastics, providing refill options for basic household products and paper or jute shopping bags.

The shop would be open seven days a week, with reduced hours on a Sunday. It would stock all essential groceries, plus local produce and delicacies, the priority being a good range at reasonable cost. There would be freshly baked bread, milk, ready-prepared meals as well as treats you cannot find in a supermarket. Local crafts and artisan products would be available, thus supporting local artists and small businesses, as was illustrated at the Farmers Markets held in 2023 and 2024, in and near the Village Hall. It is also foreseen that we will offer limited post office services, including pick-up and drop off for parcels, and will arrange that prescriptions be delivered to the shop for collection.

The experience of other village shops (see, for example, two particularly successful shops at Wigginton (wiggintonshop.org.uk) and Bledington (bledingtonshop.com)) shows how this shop could provide a valuable additional amenity to those provided by the Oxford Arms and the village’s various voluntary organisations. It would offer employment, training, and volunteering opportunities for people of all ages and it would provide support to those on low incomes or unable/unwilling to travel. In addition, surplus funds, beyond those needed to develop the shop and café, would be distributed within the community to support community projects.

In the unlikely event that the shop fails we have agreed with Kirtlington Parish Council that a deposit to cover removal of the building and restoration of the site will be placed in an escrow account at the time of signing the lease.

If you would prefer a paper copy of the Share Offer document (which will contain the application form), you can email us on info@kirtlingtonshop.org.uk, collect one from the Oxford Arms, or the Church or ask a Committee member.

The Share Offer deadline has been extended and will now close on 20 January 2026.