A PARISH council has been given more than £11,500 to help improve drainage on football pitches.

Vale of White Horse District Council has given the money to Shrivenham from a pot of cash donated by developers building new homes off Colton Road.

The housebuilders hand over cash as part of an agreement to improve infrastructure.

Shrivenham Parish Council will now use the £11,576 to improve the drainage of the playing fields at Barrington Recreation Ground where work has just finished.

The work made way for the football club to increase their membership and the number of youth teams they can work with.

The drainage work forms part of the council's improvement programme which follows advice from the district council who awarded the parish with the cash.

Councillor Bethia Thomas, who is the cabinet member for development and regeneration at the district council said: "It's very important that housing developers contribute to the communities they're benefitting from, so we're delighted to give money for this outdoor sports project – it'll have a big impact on the football club."