The people of Berinsfield are faced with the best kind of problem - how to spend £1m on the area.

The money has been earmarked by South Oxfordshire District Council for an environmental development scheme.

The village was originally designed for 297 houses but that number has now risen to 1,136. Poor design means the village fails to make good use of its green spaces.

The road system and car parking facilities have also been criticised.

The Oxford Mail visited Berinsfield and asked local people how the £1m should be spent and what improvements were needed.

Paula Sellers, 22, of Colwell Road, said the children's play equipment in the central park should be brought together inside a fence to keep dogs out.

She added: "I take my two-year-old son, Joshua, to play on the slides and swings but it's not very nice with all the dog mess on the ground."

The manager of the Abbey Sports Centre, Ray Boulton, 54, called for better parking. He said: "We desperately need facilities for coaches.

"Sometimes three coaches arrive from schools at the same and there's no room to manoeuvre."

He added that the sports hall needed refurbishing.

Deborah Stevens, 32, of Colwell Road, said the waste ground near Lodden Avenue - previously allotments - should be put to better use.

Two local priests, the Rev Simon Hill and Rev Jan Hiles, said the landscape designers should listen carefully to the wishes of the local community.

Mr Hill said: "Better traffic flow, parking and footpaths are priorities." Ms Hiles said: "Improvements are needed to the entrance to the village.

"It's not very beautiful, with all the factory buildings."

Anne Pyatt, 61, of Lodden Avenue, wanted more street lighting and more parking spaces.

She said: "A lot of people are concerned at night."

Selina Morris, 37, of Fane Drive, said: "There are a lot of young people in the village now, and although we've got a youth club, there isn't that much for young people to do."

Peter Ward, 22, of Colne Drive, agreed. His wish list also included the planting of more shrubs and greenery, demolishing the flats at Cherwell Road and Evenlode Drive, and laying footpaths across the central park.

District council housing officer Sally Kelsall said: "Depending on what the residents want, a bid for Lottery money might follow."

South Oxfordshire Housing Authority plans to build 55 affordable houses in Cherwell Road and Evenlode Drive after flats there have been demolished.