
Swindon Borough Council to spend £250m on improving housing
"We want tenants in our 10,383 homes, 31 sheltered housing schemes and four supported housing schemes to live in high-quality housing," she said."That is why we are planning to invest £250m over the next five years in the maintenance and refurbishment of our stock."At a cabinet meeting she also explained that the funding would come "at no cost to services funded through council tax", and would instead be funded by rents paid to the council by tenants. Meanwhile, a possible first step towards hundreds of homes being built on a Swindon park has been set out, with housing social enterprise Places for People asking council planners if it would need to provide an environmental impact assessment for a prospective project.
While a formal proposal has not yet been submitted, the query was an indication that the company was considering putting in a planning application for 300 houses on Marlborough Park. An earlier application in 2015 allowed up to 313 houses as well at 91 other flats or houses and 74 age-restricted housing units on the site and land to the north.Places for People already has planning permission to build 80 affordable homes – which is defined as available for rent at 80% of the market rate – to the north east of Marlborough Park, on a plot of land between Lowry way and Broome Manor Lane.As well as the proposal for 313 houses on the site approved in outline in 2015, a scheme for more than 600 houses was approved in 2005, but has lapsed.

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BBC News
5 days ago
- BBC News
Vegetable oil fuel is a 'risk worth taking', says council
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BBC News
23-07-2025
- BBC News
Residents 'rightly frustrated' over Thames Water hosepipe ban
The leader of a council affected by a hosepipe ban has said "people are tired of the same old excuses" from the water company. Thames Water introduced the hosepipe ban for customers in north Wiltshire, east Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire on Tuesday. Jim Robbins, who leads Swindon Borough Council, said he was "really disappointed" by the ban, adding that the company had prioritised pay-outs to shareholders over "making sure the water supply for customers is there where it needs to be".Thames Water said the restriction was due to a lack of rain and increasing demand and added leakage in the network was at its "lowest ever level". While the company did not respond directly to Mr Robbins' comments, it added that it was using "innovative technology" to fix leaks faster, with 650 leaks fixed each however now face a fine of up to £1,000 if they are found to use of a hosepipe for activities such as watering the garden, washing the car or filling a paddling pool. Thames Water has been fined millions of pounds and heavily criticised for a series of leaks and Robbins, who has been highly critical of the company in the past, said: "I think residents are rightly frustrated that this is an organisation that hasn't made the investment that it needs to over the past 20 years or so since it's been privatised. "People are tired of the same old excuses... after years of failure and them not doing the hard work to make sure they maintain people's supply and keep our rivers clean."It's consistently prioritised taking money out of the business... but there is no evidence they have done the work of making sure that the water supply for customers is there where it needs to be." 'Doing everything we can' The hosepipe ban was announced last week and came into force at midnight on Tuesday - covering some 1.1 million people. The temporary restrictions cover areas with postcodes beginning with OX, GL, SN, RG4, RG8 and RG9.A number of other water companies around the country have announced similar hosepipe bans, though none of those are in the West or South West. Announcing the restrictions, Nevil Muncaster, Thames Water's strategic water resources director said: "I'd like to reassure all our customers that we are doing everything we can to look after our water resources and to protect the environment through this continued warm, dry weather."Our engineers are working 24/7 to maintain supply to all our customers and we have more teams out in the field fixing leaks, which often increase during long dry spells because of shifts in the ground that move our pipes. "We all have a role to play in reducing our water use and customers can help us by saving water around the home and in the garden."


The Sun
23-07-2025
- The Sun
Ancient English town ranked among ‘worst places to live' unveils £33m revamp as it demolishes ‘dilapidated' station
A £33 MILLION revamp of an historic town is set to be unveiled next month. The revamp has transformed the town's transport networks. 3 3 3 It comes after the town was previously named among the worst places to live after it was branded a "gang capital". Development reveal The investment has transformed Fleming Way in Swindon as it is turned into a new bus boulevard. After three years of work, the fencing is set to come down from August 15. Once the new transport hub is up and running, the existing bus station is set to be demolished. Local bus companies will begin their services from Fleming Way from August 31. As well as the new transport hub, the revamp brings a number of improvements to the area. This includes new benches, bike racks and waste bins, in addition to more than 185 trees and 23,000 plants and bushes. Planning proposals A Swindon Borough Council spokesperson said that there would also be new bus shelters to improve wheelchair accessibility. The new shelters will also include wireless charging, digital screens that display up-to-date departure times, and solar panels. A total of 27 new bus stops were planned in the proposal. Our pretty town has become a ghetto plagued by machete-wielding yobs They said: "The new road will also create a better space for bus services around Swindon and the surrounding areas, as well as allow for national and inner-city routes. "New cycle lanes have also been added, connecting the town's two main cycle routes so cyclists can travel through Swindon or to the town centre." In previous planning proposals for the development, the council said it hoped to "help the town centre transition from a past dominated by retail, to a future destination where people live, work, socialise and study." It would make Fleming Way the "main gateway" for the town centre. The development focused primarily on transport in the area, improving connectivity to the train station and creating a safer route throughout the town centre. Improvements to the wider area In addition to the improvements to transportation, the council estimated that it would increase surrounding land value by £34 million. This in turn would bring more investors into the area, bringing new homes, offices, shops and leisure facilities for locals. Funding for the project came in part from the Government, who supplied £25 million. It was based on a proposal that demonstrated that the improvements would increase Swindon's economic productivity by £28.7 million over the first 20 yearws. The space freed up by the demolition of the bus station from the 1960s will be incorporated into the regeneration of a 20-acre site next to Zurich's office building. Proposals also included the removal of the Fleming Way subway to make the road the same level as the town centre shopping area and the parade.