The best hikes from bus stations around Shenington With Alkerton

Beautiful quiet grassy bridleway.

Epwell is a lovely little Cotswolds village (see separate highlight) and the church fits right in. Worth a short stop and look around.

Small and very pretty village, with many pretty typical Cotswolds houses. Worth a short stop and look.

The continuous but officially separate villages of Upper and Middle Tysoe plus the nearby hamlet of Lower Tysoe. The church was built in the 11th century but added to and rebuilt in the 13th, 14th and 15th century's. It's now a grade 1 listed building.

Wonderful ancient church here

Shenington Gliding Club is a British gliding club near the village of Shenington in the Cotswolds, seven miles north west of Banbury. The present club was founded in 1991, though gliding had been a regular activity at the airfield since 1984. The club operates every day of the week and currently has three K13, a K21, three K8, an Astir, a motor glider, two lpg powered winches and a super cub tug. There are numerous privately owned gliders. The club hosts trial lessons for visitors and runs courses with professional instructors from March to October. RAF Edgehill The airfield was completed in 1941, and called RAF Edgehill. No. 21 Operational Training Unit (OTU) was based at the airfield operating Vickers Wellingtons, Miles Martinets and Hawker Hurricanes also No. 12 OTU were based at the airfield as well. No. 1 Flying Training School RAF also used Edgehill at some point. The airfield was also used for the flight testing of the Gloster E28/39 in 1942 after it had made its maiden flights at RAF Cranwell. After the war it became a storage depot. After a brief period as a Flying Training School, it finally closed as an RAF station in 1953.

The earliest parts of the Church of England parish church of The Assumption of the Blesséd Virgin Mary are two blocked windows on the south side of the nave, which date from late in the 11th century. The south aisle of the nave was added in the middle of the 12th century. In the 13th century the south arcade was extended from three bays to four and the three original arches were altered to give them a pointed Gothic shape. The north aisle was added later and is Decorated Gothic. The nave has a clerestory that was added in the 14th century. In the 15th century the south porch was added, new Perpendicular Gothic windows were inserted and the present west tower was built. The west tower has a ring of six bells. Richard Sanders of Bromsgrove, Worcestershire cast the treble, second, third and tenor bells in 1719. Abel Rudhall of Gloucester cast the fourth bell in 1750. Matthew III Bagley of Chacombe, Northamptonshire cast the fifth bell in 1782. The church has also a Sanctus bell cast by William Blews and Sons of Birmingham in 1866. In 1854 the church was restored under the direction of the architect George Gilbert Scott. The church is a Grade I listed building. In the churchyard is a 15th-century preaching cross, which is a Grade II* listed building. Church. Late C11 origins, with late C12, C13, C14 and C15 alterations and additions. Restored 1854 by Gilbert Scott. Squared, coursed ironstone. Parapeted roofs. Chancel, nave with clerestory, north and south aisles and west tower. Chancel of 2 bays with offset buttresses, plinth and parapet. To east a 5-light cusped C15 window within hollow chamfered surround. 2 further 3-light cusped windows to south, and one to north, with hollow chamfered surrounds. To north a C19 vestry with 2 reticulated windows and plank door within pointed arch. Nave of 4 bays with pierced quatrefoil parapet to south, wavy line to north. Corbel table below of carved animal heads. Pinnacles with cusped panels and crockets. Aisles have plinth, coped parapet, offset diagonal buttresses and gargoyles to north. To centre of south aisle a plank door within late C12 round headed arch of 2 orders of shafts with rings, and water-leaf capitals with lozenge and nailhead mouldings in the arch. Above an Agnus Dei panel in bas relief with carved corbel to either side, that to right a beakhead. C15 porch with double chamfered arch and moulded imposts. Double plank doors. To left of door a C20 two-light window. To right a C14 three-light reticulated window with hood mould and label stops. To far right a C15 three-light square-headed window with cusped lights, hood mould and carved label stops. To north aisle a plank door within moulded, pointed arch with hood mould and label stops. To left and right of porch a C14 three-light reticulated window. To far left a three-light window of intersecting tracery. Windows have hood moulds and label stops. To west of North aisle a single round-headed light. Renewed 2-light reticulated window with hood mould and label stops to west of south aisle. Clerestory has eight C14 square-headed 2-light windows to north and south of differing cusped tracery. All have dropped hood moulds and label stops. To east gable end a C17 sanctus bell turret. West tower of 4 offset stages with plinth, buttresses and battlemented parapet with pinnacles. To south a blocked round-headed arch and round-headed light to west. To third stage a late C12 corbel table, with a small single light below to north and south. Fourth stage has 2-light cusped bell chamber openings wiht hood moulds and label stops. Cusped panels to each corner, and gargoyles below parapet. Interior: C15 many-moulded chancel arch. Nave arcade of 4 bays. To south C12 round piers with scalloped and round capitals on square abaci. Responds to east and west. 2 blocked C11 openings above. North arcade has C15 octagonal piers with double-chamfered arches and responds, that to east with small cusped piscina. Pointed doorway to north. C15 triple-chamfered tower arch, now blocked. Roofs mostly C15, partly restored. Nave and aisle roofs are supported on C15 carved corbel heads. In chancel a tomb to William Clarke, died 1618. In north aisle wall a C12 tomb in C14 cusped ogee recess, with finial. In east wall of south aisle a memorial tablet to Ralph Wilcox, died 1659. In north aisle wall a brass to Thomas Mastrupe, dated 1463. In east wall of north aisle brasses to the Browne family, dated 1598 and 1611. A tablet in porch, dated 1662. 2 further C17 tablets in external porch wall. In nave a late C14 octagonal stone font with reliefs of the Virgin and Child, the Baptism of Christ and various saints in crocketed ogee gables.

Holy Trinity Church, Shenington is situated alongside the village green. It dates from the 12th and 13th Century and is listed Grade II* under the Town and Country Planning Act. There is a Norman arch, set in the chancel over the organ pipes.It is finely ornamented with zigzag and cable mouldings. Outside, carved in stone, on the south wall is most interesting figure of a man, dressed in a robe and in the south porch there is a very fine copy of the figure by the late Harold Clifton. There is excellent stained glass in the chancel, particularly the east window. The tower, dated 1504, houses five bells dated 1678 and a clock dated circa 1700. Church. C12 chancel arch moved to north side of chancel in C19. Mostly C13. Many windows are C14 and later repaired or restored. C15 south porch. West tower probably 1504 (bequest). C19 vestry. 1879 restoration by J.L. Pearson. Coursed ironstone rubble and ironstone ashlar. Chancel and porch have steeply pitched stone slate roofs laid to diminishing courses. Nave and south aisle roofs not visible. Stone coped gables. Stone flue on north. Chancel, nave, south aisle, south porch, west tower. 5-window range. Chancel has a 3-light east window with renewed reticulated tracery in Clipsham stone. Hood mould and headstop. South has three 2-light windows with trefoiled lights and quatrefoil. Centre window has repaired stonework. Sill of window on left (west) is lower. Hood moulds and label stops. Nave has four 2-light windows on north with trefoiled heads, the windows wholly renewed in C19 in Clipsham stone. One window is inserted in the former north doorway. C19 vestry. 4 north and south 2-light Perpendicular clerestory windows with hood moulds and label stops. Nave has stone parapets and gable with housing for Sanctus bell. South aisle has a 2-light window with renewed ironstone tracery and mullion and a 3-light window with trefoiled lights and square head with weathered label stops. To left of the latter window is a 'lively rustic carving of a man and an ox under a C14 canopy' (Pevsner) now badly weathered. Perpendicular south porch with pointed arched stone doorway with hood mould and label stop. 2 scratch dials to right of entrance. West tower of 2 stages with crenellated parapet and Clipsham stone pinnacles. 3-light Perpendicular window on west and 2-light louvred window to bell-stage. Diagonal buttresses: Moulded stone plinth. Staircase projection on south. Interior. C12 chancel arch now in north wall of chancel has cable and zigzag decoration. Decorated sedilia and piscina. C13 style chancel arch inserted by J.L. Pearson. 2-bay south arcade has 3 octagonal stone piers on C19 stone base. Capitals have stiff leaf decoration with heads amongst the foliage. C19 roof to nave, chancel and south aisle. Font c.1800. C19 fittings including pitch pine benches, oak choir stalls, pulpit, lectern. C19 tiles. Stained glass by Jones and Willis of Birmingham erected 1909, 1920 and 1921. East window in chancel designed by Edmund Sedding, main lights by Henry Casolani, executed by Powell. Marble wall plaque in chancel to Edward and Rebecca Hughes dated 1722.