Discarded rubbish could discourage residents from letting their children use a new play area installed in a £50,000 facelift.

Craig Simmons watches daughter Beri at the Manzil Way play area

Green county councillor Craig Simmons, whose ward covers east Oxford's Manzil Way play area, branded the site an "appalling mess".

Mr Simmons and his partner Elise Benjamin took their two-year-old daughter Beri to play in the park but were shocked by the amount of rubbish, including plastic bags, fast-food containers, and cans with sharp edges.

He said the rubbish could result in children having an accident, or put people off using the area.

He said that could lead to the park being misused.

Thousands of pounds were pumped into Manzil Gardens -- once dubbed the 'heroin capital' of Oxfordshire -- to encourage community use and drive out crime and drug-use.

He said: "Manzil Gardens has been a massive success. I would hate to see that reversed.

"The community has started to use it a lot more.

"The park could decline and go back to its old state."

He said he would report the problem to Oxford City Council's cleansing department.

Mr Simmons said that while he was there on May 9 an elderly man started picking up rubbish. The man said he often carried out litter-picks. But Mr Simmons said that residents should not have to take responsibility for keeping the area clean.

The city council's cleansing services manager David Walker insisted the park was cleaned daily.

He said: "The Cowley Road is a busy part of Oxford and our street cleansing crews are there every day. The park is cleared every morning between 7 and 7.30am and the four bins are also cleared daily. I will contact the councillor to discuss his concerns."

The Manzil Gardens facelift was spearheaded by East Oxford Action, a Government-funded regeneration partnership.

The £50,000 play area was designed by the city council, with the money provided by local businesses, East Oxford Action and Communities Against Drugs.