• Swindon & Wiltshire Economy
• Friday November 29 2024
• Author Name: Peter Davison

Ambitious Swindon town centre rejuvenation scheme goes to public consultation

An ambitious business-led plan to rejuvenate Swindon town centre is going to public consultation. The plan includes one of UK’s largest brownfield regeneration projects.

Swindon Borough Council published the draft of its Heart of Swindon plan at the beginning of November.

The council sought the input of key landowners, developers, educational institutions, government agencies and businesses before drawing up the plan.

Partners have told the council that developing such a framework would be invaluable in mobilising effort and guiding the future investment needed to help Swindon town centre transition from a past dominated by retail, to a future destination where people live, work, socialise and study.

Following the work carried out so far, the council now wants to hear what residents think about the vision.

A dedicated webpage has been created where residents can easily access the Heart of Swindon document, see a short breakdown of the eight ambitions and email the council their opinions on the vision and what they feel is missing.

Any comments should be emailed to the Council by Friday, 22 December.

What’s the plan?

The plan contains eight ‘ambitions’ which include:

• A Centre for Living: Creating new, mixed-use neighbourhoods in the heart of the town.
• A Creative Centre: Supporting Swindon’s growing creative community and delivering a new entertainment venue.
• A Centre for Learning: Giving Swindon’s higher education institutions a place in the centre and creating a hub for students.
• A Knowledge Centre: Bringing Swindon’s leading enterprises into the heart of town and providing spaces to support small businesses.
• A Green & Healthy Centre: Investing in and connecting our central parks, along with extensive greening of the centre through tree planting and creation of new pocket parks.
• A Vibrant Centre: Providing a broad mix of shops, places to eat and drink, and community spaces that bring vibrancy throughout the day and into the evening.
• A Connected Centre: Creating stronger connections into the heart of Swindon and between its districts, including across the rail line.
• A Proud Swindon: Committing to creatively re-using Swindon’s historic buildings and to ensure that development responds to the town’s rich history of innovation.

Each ambition is accompanied by a set of propositions that indicate how the ambitions could be realised in practice.

Among the 53 propositions is one that envisages providing up to 5,000 new homes in the town centre, many of which would be affordable.

Another involves exploring the redevelopment of the Brunel Centre, which could include shops, community space, workspaces, homes and public space providing apartment living for students, young people and those downsizing.

Organisations including FI Real Estate Management (owners of the Brunel Centre), GCL (representing The Parade), William Arthur Property (owner of commercial property in the town centre), Network Rail, the University of Bath and Business West attended a number of workshops to help shape the ambitions.

‘a lack of meaningful regeneration’

Councillor Jim Robbins, leader of Swindon Borough Council, said: “I think everyone would agree that our town centre, like many across the country, has suffered in recent years due to a change in our shopping habits and the decline of major High Street retailers.

“I know residents are also frustrated that there has been a lack of meaningful regeneration in the town centre for a number of years. We need to completely rethink our town centre offer and what it will provide residents in the future.

“But the Council cannot do this alone, which is why the vision for the ‘Heart of Swindon’ has been created with the help of the town centre’s major landowners, government departments, our partners in the education sector and local businesses.

“Crucially though we want to hear what local residents think of the eight ambitions contained within the vision and that they can feel part of this journey to reinvent the town centre.”