Draft Bicester Conservation Area Appraisal November 2009

Sheep Street is one of the areas that have changed most since the early 1900s. The street hasreturned to a pedestrian dominated space but the open character has been lost by the insertion ofplanters and street furniture. Sheep Street has replaced Market Square as Bicester’s commercialfocus. The old photographs show the rows of small traditional shops but many of these buildings havebeen lost and have been replaced with modern frontages in the mid 20th century.In contrast to the changes seen above in Sheep Street, The Causeway has been remarkablyconstant. The road has retained its historically narrow and constricted character and even retainssome of its shop fronts. The last appraisal was written in 1998 when a number of properties were ina poor state of repair, the 2009 photo shows there has been some restoration although a fewbuildings remain vacant..12