There were plenty of happy faces as these children enjoyed the slide at their local playgroup.

The picture was taken at Blackbird Leys, Oxford, in 1965 to illustrate the need for more such places.

The estate had an estimated 2,500 children between the ages of one and 11 - and numbers were expected to increase rapidly as more homes were built.

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Two playgroups were held at the community centre every day and there were calls for more to be organised.

In charge of the group was 22-year-old Rosemary Bushnell, a qualified nursery nurse, who looked after the children while mothers were doing housework or shopping.

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning. 

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