Residents are demanding a brewery do something about the state of their local pub.

The Chequers Inn, in Headington Quarry, Oxford, closed in January and, according to neighbours, has become a dumping ground for rubbish and been allowed to fall into disrepair.

The last straw came when vandals destroyed the sign for the once-popular pub.

Hillary Bradley, who lives next door, was keen to see it returned to its former state.

She said: "It's got into a rather sad state and looks very neglected. It's a real shame as it's a beautiful building and is right at the heart of the Quarry.

"For people that have been here a long time it has been a well-loved pub in the past and everyone would love to see it back on its feet again.

"It's an important part of the area and we would like to see it being cared for again and under new manage ment."

Mrs Bradley said she and her husband, Richard, had been in touch with Scottish and Newcastle - which owns the pub - but nothing had been done to the site.

She said: "We spoke to them about a week ago about the state it was in and thought they might come out and clean up the site, but nothing has changed. They said that new landlords would soon be taking over the premises, but there is no work being done on the site yet, so we aren't sure when it's going to be happening."

Quarry resident, Jack Ponsonby, has also spoken to the brewery about the state of the pub, but said they were "shooting themselves in the foot" by allowing it to fall into disrepair. He said: "It's absolutely crazy to let it slip like that. It's got a great location and could be raking in money for them if they were to pull their fingers out and put a bit of money into it.

"In the meantime, it's the residents of Headington Quarry that have to put up with the eyesore it's become and it's making everyone round here very angry."

County councillor Roz Smith, who lives in Headington, added her voice to the campaign.

She said: "This is a lovely building which is quite prominent in the area. But the large post with the Chequers sign has been snapped and is laying broken at the front.

"To leave the snapped sign, rubbish in the front garden and weeds growing all over is a real disgrace."

Scottish and Newcastle Brewery spokesman Lucy Hall said: "We'd arranged for the site to be cleaned up and we'll be looking into why this has not happened. "We visited the site two weeks ago and there was no rubbish in the car park then. "We'll revisit the site later on this week to assess the situation, and we're actively looking for a lessee to take on the pub."