Alternative town plan puts education and culture at the centre

Alternative view for the town from the Civic Trust members, from left, John Monniott, Martha Parry, Alan Hayward

A university should be the mainstay of any proposals to renew and develop Swindon town centre says the Swindon Civic Trust - not more offices, business parks and housing.

Reacting to outline ideas put forward by the New Swindon Company, the town's urban regeneration body, publicised in the August Link, the Trust is arguing that the renewal of Swindon would be better achieved by having a university at its heart rather than on the edge.

The University of Bath has declared that there is no alternative to building an out of town campus for 10,000 students, next to the Great Western Hospital, on land offered free by property developers - providing 1,800 houses can be built there as well.

However a fierce argument to preserve the green space around Coate Water is raging. In a competition organised by the Civic Trust last year, the country park was voted by Swindon people as their favourite place.

The New Swindon Company's brief is to create a framework plan for future land use and assemble sites for development. Much of the land is owned by Swindon Council, one of the partners in the company.

After two years' market research into what Swindon needs to have to give a leading commercial and retail presence in the region, including a public consultation exercise in 2003, the company has identified areas of the town centre to be used for offices, shopping and 1,300 dwellings at North Star. It has accepted the University of Bath's view that land in the town centre is now too expensive and that it would be inefficient to have departments in buildings dotted around the middle.

However Civic Trust chairman John Monniott said, 'we were disappointed at the shallow and incoherent proposals put forward by the New Swindon Company in July, and its failure to make provision for the university.

'The company's own economic planning consultants Roger Tym and Partners have stated that attracting a significant presence to the town centre from either or both the University of Bath and Oxford Brooks University would have tremendous benefits. This would come directly from employment, spending by students and employees and good quality buildings, as well as the demand for central area housing for employees and students.

'There would also be huge indirect benefits to business of all kinds and sizes plus a massive boost to the image and marketing value of Swindon as a whole and Central Swindon in particular. The Trust starts from the viewpoint that the long term future success of Swindon will be built around the university at its heart with the rest of the town centre developed around it.

'The land at North Star close to the Research Councils and the new Swindon College would be ideal for an urban university - built upwards - rather than sprawling across an out of town location. With so many sites now or soon to become available for redevelopment - much of it owned by the council - Swindon has a historic opportunity to create an integrated, coherent vision of the long term.'

Mr Monniott added that the New Swindon Company had two years to come up with their ideas, but the Trust had come up with its alternatives in two weeks. 'We make no apology for not producing studies or assessments of the economic viability of our plans. At this stage the broad principles of where the town is going is most important. 'I should point out that the New Swindon Company's plans in 2003 are different to those put forward in 2004, but they expect us to accept them.'

Peter Andrews, Chief Executive, The New Swindon Company, refuted the criticisms from the Civic Trust by saying the University of Bath were planning to include an arts department in the town centre. 'The project areas announced by The New Swindon Company are the result of detailed economic analysis and public consultation, which included the Civic Trust.

'We agree with the importance the Civic Trust has placed on a new university. However, a new university will not prove the panacea to Swindon's regeneration; it must be considered in a broader economic context and as part of an integrated regeneration framework which also considers other commercial, retail, cultural and education provision.'