Stratford-upon-Avon · Local news you can trust
Four people were rescued from a house fire in Husbandman Close, Shipston on Stour, at the weekend. Two are in hospital with serious injuries, the MP says.
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Christmas
Christmas Shopping in Stratford-upon-Avon: 12 Shops From Bears to Gin
We checked 12 Stratford-upon-Avon shops, from Curtis Brae's teddy bears to Vin Neuf's wines, for opening hours and Sunday trading. Updated November 2026.
Christmas
Christmas Trees Near Stratford-upon-Avon 2026 With Prices
We checked 4 Christmas tree sellers near Stratford-upon-Avon, from Stratford Garden Centre to Crocker's farm, for dates and prices. Updated November 2026.
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford parkrun Christmas Day: Off, but On 1 January
Stratford-upon-Avon parkrun is not running on Christmas Day but is on for New Year's Day. Warwick Racecourse and Leamington, 8 and 11 miles away, run both days.
Council
Stratford Council Abolition Back On: April 2029 Merger Plan
Ministers are minded to merge Stratford-on-Avon and Warwick districts into a South Warwickshire council of 295,000 people from April 2029. It is not yet final.
Food and drink
Christmas Dinner in Stratford-upon-Avon 2026, From £76.95 by the River
We checked 11 Stratford-upon-Avon pubs, restaurants and hotels for Christmas menus, with Christmas Day from £76.95 to £135 a head. Updated November 2026.
Planning
Windsor Street Car Park Demolition Cleared, No Hours Limit
Planners have cleared the Windsor Street car park and Gateway offices for demolition without conditions, so no set working hours. No start date yet.
Southam
Southam United Gets £250,000 Council Grant to Finish Clubhouse
Cabinet agreed on 2 November to give Southam United up to £250,000 to fit out the unused first floor of its clubhouse, which has no heating or toilets.
Buses
IndieGo Plus Stratford: Kept a Year as Journeys Rise 19%
The on-demand minibus stays for another 12 months: 5,504 journeys from April to October, up 19% on last year. How to book, what it costs, and where it goes.
Alcester
Alcester Weather: 7-Day Forecast and Today's Hourly Outlook
Alcester weather today: drizzle, 9°C by day and 5°C overnight, with a 91% chance of rain and winds up to 10 mph. Seven-day forecast, updated every morning.
Southam
Southam Weather: 7-Day Forecast and Today's Hourly Outlook
Southam weather today: drizzle, 9°C by day and 5°C overnight, with a 88% chance of rain and winds up to 8 mph. Seven-day forecast, updated every morning.
Planning
Stockton 75 Homes Refused as Councillors Overrule Officers
Councillors unanimously refused 75 homes off Sycamore Close, Stockton, against officer advice, citing landscape harm, farmland and scale. Richborough can appeal.
House prices
Stratford House Prices: £396,711 in August, Up 1.3% a Year
The district average rose 0.5% in August to £396,711, but yearly growth is 1.3%, down from 6.1%. Sales in June were a third lower than a year earlier.
Stratford-upon-Avon is a small town with a very large district attached to it. The council area runs from Studley and Alcester in the north west, through Henley-in-Arden, Wootton Wawen, Bidford-on-Avon and Wellesbourne, across to Southam and Long Itchington in the east and down to Shipston-on-Stour near the Oxfordshire border. Most of it is villages.
Stratford Avon News covers the town and that whole district. The visitor economy is a real part of local life here, but so are parking charges, school places, planning rows about fields on the edge of a village, and what the crime figures for your own street actually say. We take those from the council’s registers and the rest of the public record, and we link to the source every time.
Every fact carries a link to the document it came from.