Parents are putting pressure on highways bosses to make safety improvements to an East Oxford junction before a serious accident happens.

Anna Thorne and Su Frizzell, of Donnington Doorstep Family Centre in Townsend Square, met Oxfordshire County Council's cabinet member for transport, Ian Hudspeth, on Wednesday.

They want a safe crossing installed at the Donnington Bridge Road and Iffley Road junction.

Ms Thorne said parents of children both at Donnington Doorstep and at nearby Larkrise Primary School had been campaigning for years for action.

She said: "There is never a point at which a pedestrian can cross safely.

"The only way you can cross is by gambling, trying to look at what the cars can see and trying to make a dash then.

"What some people have said is that you can go further down the road either way to a pedestrian crossing, but the reality is people do not do that, and nor do children in particular."

Ms Thorne said there had been a number of accidents at the junction, including at least five serious incidents.

She added: "If you were to sit there throughout the day you would see numerous incidents where your heart would be in your mouth. It is just terrifying."

She said a play rangers' project based at the centre, which is a bid to get children playing outside safety, was being seriously affected.

She said: "There are a lot of children who are not able to use the session because they are not able to safely cross that road and people are just afraid. I think someone will be seriously injured there if nothing is done."

Mum and helper Mrs Frizzell, who lives on the Donnington estate and uses the junction regularly, said: "It feels like we are just waiting for the first statistic and I do not want that statistic to be a child."

The pair said they would like to see pedestrian crossings installed on each side of the junction and speed limits reduced to 20mph.

Mr Hudspeth said he listened to their concerns and would be looking at the accident records before deciding whether anything could be done.

He added: "I know there are concerns raised about it but we have got to see exactly what the options are available and it is a question of matching the criteria against the accident records and the limited budget that we have."