Deaneries, or rural deans are groups of parishes within an archdeaconry who work in partnership. Deaneries were originally created by statute, but since 2011 they can only be created or dissolved by a pastoral scheme. The rural dean's original role was to inspect the clergy and convene rural chapters, but the position declined with the emergence of archdeacons. The office was restored by the Bishop of Norwich in 1837, which led to the established of deanery chapters and ruri-decanal conferences, that since 1969 have been known as Deanery Synods. The material in this collection reflects this role of the rural dean.
The material was originally deposited at the Bodleian Library and catalogued as Mss.Deanery Papers Woodstock before it was transferred to the Oxfordshire History Centre. Recatalogued by Alison Smith in May 2023.