A free service to help residents pay their Council Tax bill if they are struggling financially has been launched by Swindon Borough Council. First Steps is a new service that offers non-judgemental and supportive advice, providing residents with help to overcome any difficulties they have which may affect their ability to pay their tax bills…. read more
Residents across Swindon are being asked to dispose of their plastic bags and films correctly to help a new council machine separate rubbish more efficiently. Doing so will save the Council money and be better for the environment. A new £1m recycling separator and baler at Swindon Borough Council’s Household Waste Recycling Centre has been… read more
A near £20m gap in next year’s budget will be at the top of the agenda when Swindon Borough Council’s Cabinet meets next week (11 Dec). Councillors will be told the local authority’s latest accounts show a forecast £7.6m in-year budget overspend with next year’s budget (2025/26) showing an estimated £18.9m budget gap. The current… read more
People in Swindon are being encouraged to continue to report instances of anti-social behaviour (ASB) so Swindon Borough Council and partner agencies can keep tackling the issues in local communities. More than 1,100 cases of ASB have been handled in the last six months by the Council’s Anti-Social Behaviour and Housing Enforcement teams, as well… read more
All Swindon households will see permanent changes to their waste and recycling collections, in order to provide an efficient and reliable service to residents. From Christmas Day (25 Dec), all households will see their collection days move by two working days, due to a change in the way Swindon Borough Council operates its services. As… read more
The latest news update from Swindon Council is well worth a look, with items on: How the Council’s finances are doing The regeneration plans for land around the railway station The future of the Oasis Leisure Centre Extra funding available for vulnerable people this winter Money advice events Read the newsletter by following the link… read more
Efforts to embed an open, transparent and collaborative culture at Swindon Borough Council have been recognised in a report by the Local Government Association (LGA). In September 2024, the Council invited a team of senior councillors and officers from other local authorities to undertake a ‘Corporate Peer Challenge’, which included a four day onsite visit… read more
Christmas festivities in Swindon are set to get underway later this month with a variety of events across the town. The Christmas light switch-on in Swindon town centre will kick-off local events on Saturday 23 November from 4.30pm to 6.30pm. Read more about Swindon Christmas events, including the Christmas Market, Christmas at STEAM, and the… read more
N.B. You can see original article, including artist’s rendering of the proposed venue, here. Plans to build a new state-of-the-art entertainment venue in Swindon town centre are set to move a step forward when the Council’s Cabinet meets next week (13 November). Analysis by theatre specialists has concluded that Swindon is well placed to… read more
A draft set of shared ambitions to spearhead the reinvention of Swindon town centre are being tabled at the Council’s Cabinet meeting next week (13 November). The eight ambitions, set out in a draft document called ‘Heart of Swindon’, are the result of a Council-coordinated effort to seek the expertise and input of partners including… read more
Plans to create a vibrant town centre will be among the topics being discussed at a series of resident engagement events taking place next month. Swindon Borough Council is holding further ‘Let’s talk Swindon’ events during November to give residents the chance to share their ideas, views and feedback on the performance of the local… read more
Eight new gritting vehicles will be on standby to deal with the worst of the weather as Swindon Borough Council makes its final preparations in the run-up to the winter months. The new vehicles, bought to replace the old ones which had reached the end of their life, will spread the 2,000-tonnes of salt the… read more
The Household Support Fund has been extended until March next year, giving vulnerable households support for essentials this winter, such as food, heating and housing. Councillors will formally agree how the funding will be awarded, but it will be recommended that funds are given to those low-income pensioners most impacted by heating costs over winter following… read more
You may have taken part in the first Transport Conversation in April 2023. We want to continue gathering feedback from residents in the Borough. This ongoing research is designed to look at why people in Swindon choose particular modes of travel and if there are realistic and sustainable choices, which meet their needs. We want to… read more
If you’re ever unsure if something can be recycled, or which bin an item should go in, you can use our online Waste Wizard tool. Just type in the item and abracadabra – it tells you which bin or container to place it in. A recent top search was tea bags. These should be placed… read more
Swindon is continuing to outperform major cities across the UK in key economic performance indicators. The Borough was ranked fourth in this year’s Demos-PwC Good Growth for Cities Index outperforming London, Manchester and Birmingham, while also coming out ahead of near neighbours Oxford and Reading. The Good Growth for Cities Index ranks 51 of the… read more
A dedicated youth centre which will provide activities, skill development and many other opportunities for young people in Swindon will be open next spring. Work to convert the Lyndhurst Centre in Lyndhurst Crescent, Park North is now underway and, thanks to £3.8m in funding from the Government’s Youth Investment Fund, it will have enough capacity… read more
Lots of residents have told us they’re worried that their food waste isn’t being recycled properly. What you may not know is that our refuse lorries have two compartments, one that holds the non-recycled waste and one that holds food waste collected for recycling. Crews will tip the food waste caddies from your street into… read more
Recent industry research estimates it would cost £16.3bn to clear the backlog of road maintenance issues across England and Wales. According to the RAC, which produces the RAC Pothole Index: “It’s as clear as day that councils simply haven’t had the financial support they need to bring the standard of the roads in their care… read more
Three major phone companies involved in the digital switchover have signed data sharing agreements with Swindon Borough Council to help safeguard vulnerable customers from being inadvertently cut off from the Council’s Homeline service. Between now and 2027, most telephone providers will be moving their customers from old analogue landlines to new upgraded landline services… read more