Fearful residents of an Oxford’s estate have told police of their concerns over a growing atmosphere of intimidation and antisocial behaviour, a week after a man was killed.

Seven days after the fatal stabbing of Lee Butler, 39, in Barton, the local policing team hosted a ‘Have Your Say’ meeting to discuss householders’ concerns of crime in the community.

Neighbourhood Inspector James Sullivan along with representatives from Oxford City council met people at the Barton Community Centre.

Insp Sullivan said he wanted to reassure residents, solve any problems, and hear what the community had to say.

Members of the community said they felt "intimidated by groups of grown men" who congregate outside Barton shops, a spot many feel has become a centre for antisocial behaviour.

Many people said they felt fearful of passing the groups of people outside the shops after suffering verbal abuse.

Others said they avoided the area entirely with some preferring to drive to the nearby Headington shops instead to avoid the unwelcoming atmosphere of at Barton shops.

Sue Holden manager of the community centre attended Friday's meeting. She said: “The shops are the hub of Barton and they should be a welcoming place.”

She added: “There is generally a lot of antisocial behaviour outside the shops, which should be able to be used by everyone. People do not feel free to go to the shops and that should not be the situation.”

Residents also raised concerns about allegations of drug dealing on the estate. There were complaints of finding drug taking paraphernalia such as foil and needles, as well as cigarette butts and cans of lager left on their cars.

Ms Holden said: “Bringing in a team to tackle the drug dealing problem will show something is being done about it by the police and it will reassure people.”

Concerns about knife crime in the area fuelled calls for a knife amnesty.

Insp Sullivan said he would consider the calls as part of police work to fight knife crime.

He said: “We are aware of those people who have carried knives and we want to take these knives off the street. "We are actively policing, not just in Barton, but across the city to fight knife crime.”

He told residents: “Any information you have, anything you observe is intelligence. We want to help you, we want to protect the community, and we rely on the community to do that.”

Insp Sullivan said he hoped to hold future meetings to continue to tackle problems in the area.