Council leader to present town centre plans at 10 Downing Street and House of Lords
The council is looking for investors into its Heart of Swindon plan
Swindon’s council leader, Jim Robbins, is presenting the Heart of Swindon plan to the government and potential investors today.
He is set to visit Number 10 Downing Street this morning and then attend an event at the House of Lords.
The Heart of Swindon plan lays out the council’s strategy to upgrade the town centre.
Jim Robbins said: “We think that Swindon has got a huge amount of potential and we're really excited to be able to share that with people and it feels like a really strong plan.
“We're really pleased that we've got good engagement from residents and good engagement from local businesses. So, it feels like we're all in it together. It's a big opportunity for us to put Swindon on the map and make sure that, hopefully, we can get those big investors talking about Swindon in the same sort of positivity”.
Part of the plan consists of building up to 8,000 new homes to support the quickly growing population in the town.
While some of the projects are ready to be rolled out as soon as the council has come to an agreement with investors, others will be rolled out over the next five to 10 years.
Colin Skellett, Chair of Business West, said: “The Heart of Swindon offers a compelling vision of the public and private sector working together to drive sustainable prosperity.
“I look forward to this launch in Westminster Palace, and making the case for Swindon with world-leading institutional investors who have the capital and resources to make this vision a reality.”
Business West is one of the organisations that will be attending the event to speak about the new commercial and residential district that is set to be put up next up to Swindon’s train station.
Speakers also include the owners of the Brunel Centre, which is set to be transformed over the next years as well.
“We know that the town centre is a really important part of the town and we want to make sure that there are really good opportunities for people for retail and shopping, but also for leisure activities, for having places where they can meet their friends and relax and have fun”, added Cllr Robbins.
“We need to have a new plan for how we deliver those things going forward. And then there's lots in there about how we try and bring forward more green spaces. How we can really celebrate Swindon's heritage.
“So, it's not just “knock everything down and start again”. It's about how do we really keep the best of what we've got and then add in those new bits to it”.