A £100,000 facelift involving public artwork is being launched to brighten up Didcot’s Orchard shopping centre.

South Oxfordshire District Council is planning to invest money on art installations, seats, lights and signs for the centre, which opened five years ago.

The district council will use £60,000 of contributions from developers to pay for most of the work.

But a further £20,000 is being spent from the council’s growth fund Now the Taxpayers’ Alliance is questioning the wisdom of spending the ring-fenced money on art.

Spokesman Emma Boon said: “When the Government is warning about a strain on the public purse, councils need to make sure they give good value for taxpayers.

“You could save money by getting art students and local artists to do the work for very little money – £20,000 sounds a lot.”

Didcot development manager Kevin Clark, who works for the district council, said the authority would also seek a £20,000 contribution from the owners of the shopping centre.

Mr Clark said: “What we’re planning is a £100,000 makeover for the Orchard Centre.

“The £20,000 from the growth fund comes from central government because Didcot has been designated a new growth point but the amount we will spend has not been set in stone and we want to give taxpayers value for money.

“We will certainly not fritter the money away on something nobody wants.

He added: “The money from the growth fund is ring-fenced for schemes in Didcot which relate to the growth of the community and making it a better place and this scheme certainly falls into that category.”

The artwork will be commissioned over the next few months.

Didcot’s Mayor John Flood welcomed the plan, adding: “This will keep the momentum going as we wait for phase two of the Orchard Centre to go ahead.

“I thought it was incredible that the Prezzo restaurant opened in the middle of a recession, but that just shows what confidence people have in Didcot as a growth town.”

Matt Prosser, strategic director for leisure at South Oxfordshire District Council, said: “Transforming Didcot is a key priority for us and part of this is displaying Didcot at its best.”

Workshops with young people hosted by the council have suggested that the art should reflect local themes, including transport, to represent the town’s railway heritage.