A Spring Message From The Oxford CollectionFounder & Chairman Jeremy Mogford

Early March, warmer than previous years and yes, we’ve actually seen some real, live sunshine. So, now’s the time to put pen to paper and come up with my first newsletter of 2025…

Our Terraces

First off, the better weather has prompted me to give our three unique terraces a plug.

Quod Italian Garden

The terrace at Quod has been established as the best outside space in the heart of the city for well over 20 years. William has now woken from his winter snooze to continue overseeing your long conversations, scallop gratin and a glass or two.

Gees’ Secret Garden

The ‘Secret Garden’ terrace at Gees is no longer such a secret amongst those who live and work on that side of Oxford. You’ll be relieved to learn that the local heron spared three out of the four original fish.

Parsonage Terrace

The relatively new, ‘All About Yves’ terrace at the Parsonage will save you a journey to Marrakech having been inspired by St Laurent’s famous garden in the city.

Competition

WIN a £250 Old Parsonage Voucher

What’s our new message? Our Knife & Fork sculptures are all about great cooking, and suggest that maybe we should now think about calling the Parsonage, “a restaurant with very special rooms”.

To celebrate our new installation, we’re inviting you to come by, have a look and share with us your best Knife & Fork selfies.

This is how you do it…

Simply visit the Parsonage Terrace, snap your picture, and share it on Instagram. Make sure you’re following @OldParsonageHotel and tag us in your post with the hashtag #KnifeAndFork so we can see all your submissions, and we’ll pick our favourite to share in our What’s on in May Newsletter.

A top prize of a £250 Old Parsonage Hotel and Grill voucher will be won by our favourite, and two runners-up will receive an Afternoon Tea for Two on the Parsonage Terrace; and a Martini Treat for Two.

Explore our selection of experiential vouchers, perfect for gifting on all occasions →

The 2024 Condé Nast Traveller UK Readers’ Choice Awards

We ended last year on an enormous high, as both the Old Parsonage and Old Bank hotels were voted number 15 and 28 respectively on the Best Hotels – Rest of UK category, in the annual  Condé Nast Traveller Readers’ Choice Awards.

I wanted to take this opportunity to commend our entire team at both hotels and thank them for their consistent brilliance. The Oxford Collection would not be what it is without the outstanding teams working on the front line, and delivering the best guest experience our great city has to offer.

Christmas Dinner for Care Leavers

We were delighted to donate 50 Afternoon Teas to support the incredible Christmas Dinner for Care Leavers event, an initiative started by award-winning author, poet and friend Lemn Sissay, OBE. The event is responsible for inspiring cities across the UK to ensure no care leaver is left alone on Christmas Day. Last Christmas, donations from across the city enabled 50 care leavers an unforgettable day of kindness, comfort, and joy.

The dinner is supported by youth development charity, Oxfordshire Youth, which provides supported accommodation to young people aged 18-25. We wanted to extend our gratitude to both Lemn and the charity for asking us to join in supporting such a thoughtful initiative to bring Christmas joy to young people throughout the county.

Traffic Update

We continue in our very serious quest to persuade the Liberal Democrat-controlled County Council to look again at their existing and proposed measures to restrict cars from the historic city centre. We know there is a common-sense solution which will allow pedestrians, cyclists, buses and cars to co-exist, and maintain the economic and cultural vitality of Oxford.

Gees Turns 40 – September

This summer our flagship Gees Restaurant turns 40! Plans are well underway for a celebratory bash to commemorate the milestone birthday.

Myth of Medea at The Old Fire Station – June

We are thrilled to be sponsoring a brand new play, written and produced by one of our most longstanding customers, Nick Thomas. The Myth of Medea will run from the 25th to 28th June at The Old Fire Station, and promises to be a wonderful retelling of Euripides’ Greek tragedy.

The Oxford Collection Loyalty Programme

At long last, we are working on the launch of a new loyalty scheme to acknowledge longstanding supporters. and hope to announce more about this at our Gees 40th Anniversary Party in September.

We want your input

More on Gees menu. We have decided to make a bigger feature of pasta. We will widen the choice of pasta dishes to include more of your favourites. If you have any suggestions, then please send your ideas to our new marketing guru, Ben, via email.