Oxfordshire County Council gains High Court injunction to prevent the placing of St George’s flags on the public highway.
Four named individuals have undertaken not to put up or paint St George’s flags on or near public highways in Oxfordshire, following a case heard at the Royal Courts of Justice. The defendants also undertook not to encourage others to raise flags, or to abuse people taking them down.
For many months, an organised campaign associated with the group Raise the Colours had seen multiple flags placed on lamp posts, road signs and other street infrastructure. Oxfordshire County Council sought a civil injunction against the individuals involved on two counts: repeated interference with the public highway, and under the council’s statutory responsibilities as highway authority for the region.
The unauthorised placement of flags on highway infrastructure is a criminal offence, while the council also argued that trespass on and obstruction of the highway were also involved. Also cited were some incidents in which council teams, external contractors and members of the public had faced harassment when taking down the flags.
This injunction applies to four named individuals – Ben Cullen, Kevin Good, Ryan Bridge and Trudy Wells – and a fifth respondent referred to in the order as ‘persons unknown’.
The council previously issued a formal legal notice to the respondents in March 2026, and further pre-action letters in May.
Oxfordshire County Council has published more detail about the judgment: see Unauthorised flags – High Court injunction granted on 23 June 2026. In addition, legal blogger David Allen Green has posted an insightful analysis of the legal issues involved.
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