Inside the Oxford Town Hall

Museum of Oxford is running a guided tour of Oxford Town Hall on Saturday 17 October, taking you behind the scenes of the Grade II* listed Victorian building. It's one of those spots we all walk past without really thinking about, but this one lets you inside the parts that stay shut to the public.

The tour focuses on the rooms you don't normally get to see, with the Court Room and the Council Chamber as the main stops, and other rooms added as they're available. It's aimed at adults and runs twice a month on a Saturday morning, so if you miss this one, there's another coming up soon. Your ticket also gets you into the Museum of Oxford's galleries, which sit inside the Town Hall itself.

That museum is worth a bit of context if you haven't spent much time there. It puts the city's people, communities and shared histories at its heart, telling Oxford's story through the voices and experiences of its residents rather than just the big institutions. They do that through exhibitions, oral histories, events and community-led projects, and Oxford City Council puts £152,000 a year into supporting its work. The tour is one of those ways they open the building up to the people who live here.

The tour runs from 11:00 to 12:00 at the Museum of Oxford, inside the Town Hall on St Aldate's (OX1 1BX), and tickets are £5 per person. They ask that you arrive by 10:55.