A £70,000 revamp of a playground off Cowley Road will begin next week.

Oxford City Council will pay to improve Manzil Way and its playground after it was given the go-ahead by the authority in its budget earlier this year.

The play area will be extended and other street furniture will be tidied up to make its green space more inviting for visitors.

Tom Hayes, who represents St Clement’s and is board member for safer, greener, environment, said: “I live locally and work in Manzil Way, so I see how much enjoyment the play area gives children and families every day.

“I’m delighted that my lobbying of Oxford City Council has paid off, with an extensive plan of improvements to keep Manzil Way safe, sustainable, and active.

“Local people have been telling me that the quality of local parks has a huge impact on their quality of life, and I’m delighted that their opinions will now decide how we make the park even more appealing.”

Part of the work will ensure a charity’s cafe is more visible to the general public.

As part of a second phase, the western side of Manzil Way will be improved.

The extension to the play area and the work followed an £18,000 revamp of play equipment completed in March 2017.

In that, two outdated climbing frames were replaced, along with a multi-functional climbing frame.

Linda Smith, the council’s deputy leader who is responsible for leisure and housing, said: “The city council takes its responsibility as custodian of our public parks and open spaces seriously.

“I know that families will love the increased space for kids to run around in the enlarged play area and I can’t wait to see the results of the consultation into what amenities could be provided on the western side.”

A sign pinned to the fence at Manzil Way on behalf of the city council reads: “Please excuse us while we make some improvements to the gardens.

“We are extending the play area enclosure and removing the benches outside it which have become a focus for antisocial behaviour. This work is aimed at making this area of the gardens dedicated for family use and later in the year we will be installing additional play equipment.

“As part of this current phase of work we will also be improving the planting at the front of the site and working with the Restore cafe to improve visibility and access to this great community facility.

“(If you haven’t been in there yet, what are you waiting for?)

“In July we will be carrying out a public consultation to obtain views on what improvements people would like to see for the other side of the gardens in front of the health centre – so please get your thinking caps on.”

The improvements are part of a 10-year project that will see the city council invest £1m to improve play areas across Oxford until 2023.