• Swindon & Wiltshire Property
• Thursday February 5 2026

Shops and cafes to open in heart of Swindon’s heritage zone

Shops, bars and cafes could soon be opening at Swindon’s historic Carriage Works, with three commercial units ready for their new occupants.

Carriage Works, once part of the largest locomotive carriage works in the country, was built in 1876 as part of the Great Western Works and was a symbol of Victorian industrial innovation.

Following the closure of the town’s railway works in 1986, the building and surrounding area sat empty until 2018 when the first phase of work to regenerate the site was completed.

This saw the opening of The Workshed, a business incubator for entrepreneurs, pioneers and creative thinkers. The incubator provides office space for digital, tech and creative businesses, while also acting as a co-working space for anyone in need of a desk for the day.

Phase two then quickly progressed with the Cultural Heritage Institute, run by the Royal Agricultural University, a film-making space for Create Studios, and the Innovation Centre for Applied Sustainable Technologies (iCAST), being opened in recent years.

Swindon Borough Council is also in the process of completing the third phase of regeneration which will see five units converted into usable space.

The repurposing of the heritage building will also sit alongside the creation of Knowledge Central, located between the Carriage Works and Swindon train station.

Partnership work between the council, Business West, Network Rail and other organisations is ongoing to decide how the land can provide a new commercial, educational and residential quarter, while retaining essential car parking next to the station.

Councillor Kevin Small, Swindon Borough Council’s cabinet member for finance, said: “It’s great we are now in a position to open these ground floor units and bring another important piece of our heritage at the Carriage Works back to life.

“We’re optimistic they will be filled with businesses soon to add vibrancy to the area.

“The creation of these units are part of our plans to revitalise the area around the Railway Village encouraging footfall and leading to wider regeneration which includes the plans to completely transform the train station and the surrounding land through our Knowledge Central development.”