A minute’s silence was held at a council meeting for former Bicester East councillor Doreen Stewart, a staunch Conservative, who died earlier this month. Described as a free spirit and fiercely independent, Mrs Stewart, 75, worked tirelessly for the community.

She was a former governor at Longfields School and Bicester Community College, as well as a town and district councillor and member of the Citizens Advice Bureau board.

Mother-of-two Mrs Stewart worked as a senior member in the traffic department at the Defence Storage and Distribution Centre, Bicester, for 17 years, and previously worked at the USAF base at Upper Heyford. She retired aged 58.

In her personal life she enjoyed travelling and was known as a free spirit in the family, often booking a flight to Greece, hopping on a ferry and not knowing where she was going to stay until she got there.

One of seven brothers and sisters, Mrs Stewart was the oldest and the head of the family. Her sister, Iris Beesley, said: “She lived on her own and she was fiercely independent. She would do for others but not allow others to do for her. Her interests were the community’s interests. If ever you needed advice on absolutely anything she was the person to go to.”

Former council colleague Barry Wood, the leader of Cherwell District Council, said: “I have happy memories of serving Bicester East alongside Doreen when we both represented the ward. She was an unusual politician in that she was both a staunch Conservative and a staunch trade unionist — two ideologies which don’t often sit comfortably together.

“Doreen used this to great effect when the council was at one point considering contracting out waste collection. She gave the strongest possible defence of why rubbish collection should remain a public service and her arguments convinced the council to keep waste collection in-house — and it remains so today.”

Debbie Pickford, the leader of Bicester Town Council, remembered Mrs Stewart for blocking car parts firm Unipart from opening a factory on the edge of Langford Village.

She said: “She was an excellent councillor, very dedicated. She led the charge against Unipart coming to Bicester. It was very controversial. She fought a good fight and it didn’t move here.”

Mrs Stewart leaves two daughters, Diane, who now lives in Australia, and Janette, who lives in America, four grandchildren and one great grandson.