It’s been great to see everyone enjoying the free Summer at the Green events, which are taking place throughout August.

There is more fun this weekend (9-10 Aug) when Wharf Green in Swindon town centre (opposite McDonald’s) will become a hub of sports-themed activities in association with ATBShop, Swindon Fencing Club and Longevity Games.

There will be:

• a pop-up skate park with ramps, grind box, jump box and kickers
• professional skateboard and scooter tutorials
• professional fencing tutorials

Events for both days start at 11am and run until 5pm.

Summer at the Green is being funded by the Council with support from local businesses.

Swindon & Wiltshire Pride takes place tomorrow (9 Aug), celebrating the diversity that enriches our communities. 

The Pride March starts at 11.30am from the space outside H&M in the town centre (2-6 The Parade, SN1 1BA) before making its way through town to GWR Park ready to begin Pride. Book your Pride March and Pride tickets.

Yesterday (7 August), Historic England announced it would be providing additional funding for the Health Hydro through its Heritage at Risk Fund. The money, £550k, has been approved to help restore the roof of the Turkish Baths.

Located at the Grade II* listed building on Milton Road, the Turkish Baths are the country’s oldest Victorian-style Turkish Baths and the funding will be used to repair and upgrade the dilapidated roof of the baths, paving the way for further investment.

Work on the first phase of the regeneration of the Health Hydro is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year, with leisure operators GLL then planning to reopen the historic pool in the early part of 2026. Plans have also been submitted for a second phase of works.

Bus companies will start to run services from Fleming Way from Sunday, 31 August, marking the final completion of this major infrastructure scheme.

Visitors arriving into the town centre by train, bus or bike will enjoy a vastly-improved public space, with new benches, bike racks and more than 185 trees and 23,000 plants and bushes planted.

There will also be new bus shelters with more space to allow for better accessibility for those in wheelchairs as well as wireless charging and digital screens (with Real Time Information for departures) powered by solar panels.

When all bus services are moved to Fleming Way, the current dilapidated bus station will be demolished.

Swindon’s Bus Company has published a list of which bus stop will service each of its routes, and a map of where to board.

The photograph above shows the rapid progress being made by Panattoni UK on one of the biggest brownfield developments in the UK.

When complete, the Panattoni Park site in South Marston, close to Junction 15 of the M4, will feature 7.2 million sq ft of best-in-class buildings for logistics, manufacturing and data centre uses.

Ninety-eight per cent of construction waste from the former-Honda factory site has been recycled with 5,000 tonnes of steel re-used in the secondary or recycling steel market.

You now have more time to register for the Solar Together scheme. Due to a higher than usual projected uptake, registration has been extended to 29 August.

This allows extra time for you to join more than 900 Swindon residents who have already registered their interest in order to take advantage of considerable savings on solar panels.

The core principle is that coming together as a group gives residents enhanced buying power and allows the approved providers to offer a better price than homeowners might get from entering the market alone. The prices for this year start at £1,872 for a four-panel system, which includes solar panels, inverter and mounting system with full installation, 10-year warranties and online monitoring.

It’s free to register with no pressure to commit. Take the first step towards greener energy today.

From this September, childcare provision is increasing, meaning eligible working families can now apply for 30 hours of childcare from the term after their child turns nine months until they reach school age.

This expansion is designed to support children’s early education and help parents better balance work and family life. It’s the final phase of the childcare expansion, which could save families up to £7,500 per year.

Run by the Adult Community Learning team, the Council’s ‘Eat Well, Pay Less’ cooking courses are designed to help you build your knowledge and skills in the kitchen. 

You’ll learn how to plan and prepare healthy, affordable home-cooked meals using a range of cooking techniques.

Sign up for one of the four cooking courses starting in September, including ‘Eat Well, Pay Less’ at three different skill levels, or the ‘Award in Food Safety’.

Lots of teddies were brought along to the Broadgreen Teddy Bear Picnic last Friday (1 Aug), where 90 special Brighter Broadgreen Teddy Bears, as well as a number of cuddly toys and jigsaws, were donated to those who attended.

Four picnics have been planned throughout the month, as part of the Summer Reading Challenge. These will take place at:

• The Circle and Pinetrees on Tuesday, 12 August, 2pm - 3.30pm
• The Gap in Park South on Monday, 18 August, 10am - 11.30am
• Wharf Green on Wednesday, 20 August, 11am - 4pm
• Penhill Library and Garden on Friday, 22 August, 10am - 11.30am