Vaccination is our best route out of the pandemic so it’s brilliant that more than 86 per cent of all eligible adults across Swindon, Wiltshire, and Bath and North East Somerset, have had their COVID-19 immunity topped up with a booster dose. If you haven’t yet had your first, second or booster dose, it’s never too late to come forward. Book your slot via the NHS website or find a walk-in appointment near you.

All children aged between 12 and 15 years old are also eligible for the vaccination. Around two thirds of this age group in the region have had their first dose, with a further 28 per cent having had both doses. Sessions are being held in schools, but please remember that children, or their parents and carers, can also book a slot at one of our vaccination sites as an alternative way of accessing the vaccine.

The offer of a COVID-19 vaccine has now been extended to children aged between five and 11 years old who are considered to be clinically extremely vulnerable. This news will be welcomed by many parents of young children who have been concerned about how catching COVID-19 may affect their child given their existing health condition.

Families across Swindon whose five to 11-year-old children are eligible for their vaccine, will be contacted by their GP practice. If a family’s GP practice is not participating in this stage of the vaccination programme, children will still be able to get protected at large vaccination centres, and the teams at these sites will contact parents directly.

At around 10:50am this morning (4 February) a fire broke out at the Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC) in Darby Close, Cheney Manor industrial estate.

Firefighters from DWFireRescue have been on site dealing with the fire which has now been extinguished and continues to be monitored. There were no injuries as a result of the incident, which started in the site’s waste processing plant.

The HWRC had to be closed while the emergency services responded to the incident and all booked appointments for the recycling centre today have been cancelled. If you were due to visit the HWRC for an appointment, please re-book your slot on our website. The site will re-open from tomorrow (5 February) but you will need an appointment to attend.

Effect on council services

As the HWRC is a shared site with other council operations, the fire had a knock-on effect on our other services, including waste collections.

Because the waste crews have been unable to access the site today, they haven't been able to complete their collection rounds. This means we will need to suspend recycling box collections for a further day on Monday (7 February) to allow the crews to catch-up on collections they were unable to make today.

If you are due to receive your recycling box collection on Monday, please store your recycling until your next collection day. All other collections on Monday will continue as normal.

If your recycling boxes are already full, you can use sturdy containers from around your home to put any additional recycling out on your next scheduled collection.

Advice if you’re struggling with rising energy bills

Ofgem, the UK’s independent energy regulator, has announced that from 1 April, the energy price cap will rise by 54 per cent for the 22 million people it protects.

Those on default tariffs paying by direct debit will see an increase of £693 from £1,277 to £1,970 per year, while prepayment customers will see an increase of £708 from £1,309 to £2,017.

To help mitigate rising energy costs, yesterday (3 February) the Government published details of an Energy Bills Rebate that will provide around 28 million households with an upfront discount on their bills worth £200. To find out more about the scheme, visit the Government’s website.

If you’re already struggling to pay your energy bills or finding it difficult to keep your home warm, contact Warm and Safe Wiltshire on freephone 0800 038 5722 to speak to an energy advisor.

Whether you’re a homeowner, a private or social renter, a student, or you live with your parents, there are lots of resources on the Be the Change webpages to help you squeeze your bills and carbon footprint.

95 per cent of the way through our LED street light programme

More than 24,000 street lights across Swindon are now operating with energy-efficient LEDs. These use 61 per cent less energy than the old lights, significantly reducing both costs and greenhouse gas emissions.

This is one of the actions we’re taking to respond to the climate crisis and get our emissions to net zero by 2030.

The street light replacement programme is now 95 per cent complete and last month our contractor upgraded street lights in Central Swindon, Chiseldon, Covingham, Gorse Hill, Lawn, Pinehurst, Ridgeway and along Mead Way.

For the next two Sundays (6 and 13 February), our contractor will be installing LEDs on Dorcan Way. For the protection of our workers and the public, traffic management will be in place during this time.

Maintaining Swindon’s roads

While winter weather can make keeping Swindon’s roads safe a bigger challenge for our teams, repairing road damage, including potholes, is an important priority and our team currently carry out up to 100 road repairs every working day.

The pressure on public finances over the past decade means local authorities today receive less central funding than they used to when it comes to pothole repairs. The Local Government Association estimate that there’s a £10 billion backlog of local road repairs across England. We know the condition of our roads is an important topic for our residents, so over the coming weeks we’ll be talking more about how we’re making the most of the resources we have to prioritise pothole repairs and keep Swindon’s roads safe.

That involves following-up pothole reports from people like you, and physically inspecting all 880km of Swindon’s roads and all 1165km of pavements, footpaths, cycle ways and alleyways at least once a year. Subscribe to our Highways News e-newsletter and keep an eye out on our Facebook page for more information.

Celebrate 70 years of The Queen's service

Her Majesty The Queen is celebrating her Platinum Jubilee on Sunday (6 Feb), marking 70 years of service to the people of the United Kingdom, the Realms and the Commonwealth. She will become the first British monarch to celebrate this!

To help you plan your own celebrations on the special Jubilee bank holiday weekend from 2 to 5 June 2022, advice and information is available on our website, including guidance on how to apply for road closures and temporary event licences. There is also information on the Big Jubilee Lunch, which encourages communities to come together to celebrate their connections and get to know each other better.

Have your say on the Council’s gambling premises policy

We want to hear your views about the policy the Council uses to consider any applications in respect of gambling premises.

The Gambling Act 2005 affects anybody operating premises or organising events that involve commercial gambling. The act requires us to determine and publish a statement of principles that sets out how we will administer our duties.

The current Statement of Gambling Principles has worked well for the last three years and there are no proposals to amend the current policy. However, there is a statutory requirement that the document is reviewed and consulted on in order to give people an opportunity to comment on the policy and propose any changes.

We are keen to consult members of the public, members of the trade, and other organisations, before taking a final decision on implementation.

The results of this exercise will be presented to the Licensing Committee for consideration on 22 March 2022. The online survey can be completed here.

Levelling up our town centre

As you can see from the picture, work is well underway to revamp one of Swindon’s well known town centre retail units and add residential accommodation.

Town centres need to adapt to changing shopping habits and the needs of the local community if they are to thrive in the future and the conversion of the former WW Hunter building, on the corner of Edgeware Road and Regent Street, is one example of this.

The building itself was built in 1901 and was once the home of furniture shop William Wallace Hunter. The unit next to it most recently housed a Phones 4 U store.

The two units, which have been vacant for some time, are being upgraded to keep the retail space on the ground floor but to also include 12 flats on the upper two floors.

This development shows that landowners and developers believe in the future of Swindon and its town centre and we hope to see more of these examples coming through throughout the year.

Already, over the past 12 months, empty units have been refurbished and gained new occupants. This includes the new Taco Bell in the old Game store and the community centre in place of River Island.

To find out more about the challenges facing the town centre and what can be done, both privately and by the Council, visit our website.

Celebrating LGBTQ+ foster carers in Swindon

February is LGBTQ+ History Month, which is a chance to celebrate lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender identities, and their contributions to our community. Here in Swindon, same-sex couples who foster play an incredible role in supporting local children who need a safe and loving home. Since the Adoption and Children Act became law in 2005, giving unmarried couples, including same sex couples, the right to adopt, the number of same-sex couples fostering and adopting across the UK has grown massively.

However, surprisingly, lots of people still think they are not able to foster if they are a part of the LGBTQ+ community, in a relationship or not. But that’s wrong. We welcome a variety of foster carers from all backgrounds, as long as they’re able to provide a safe, loving and caring home to a child in need. Visit our website to find out more about fostering in Swindon and the difference you could make as a foster carer.

Tuesday 8 February

Thinking about becoming an apprentice?

Or maybe you know someone who is? Then come along to New College’s free apprenticeships talk this coming Tuesday (8 February) from 4 to 6pm.

Employers, such as Nationwide, GWH and Recycling Technologies, will talk at the North Star Campus (North Star Avenue, Swindon, SN2 1DY) to students in Years 10 to 13, who will have the opportunity to discuss current opportunities, ask questions, and:

• Talk to the Apprenticeships Team about how apprenticeships work, as well as the application and assessment processes
• Watch presentations from employers including First City, Recycling Technologies, and Sinewave
• Talk to lecturers who deliver the curriculum component of Apprenticeships
• Find out more about Higher Apprenticeships and skills training offered by the new Institute of Technology

You can sign up via the Eventbrite website.

February

Experience an electrifying February Half Term at the STEAM Museum

It’s been 130 years since the end of Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s broad gauge railway system. To mark the occasion, STEAM’s new exhibition programme for 2022: ‘Changing Trains’ explores the story of modernisation on the Great Western Railway. The Museum is sparking minds and imaginations with a week-long series of family activities this February half tern:

• From 19 February: High Voltage – Electrification of the Western Network. Included with admission. Electrifying the western railway network has been a mammoth project. STEAM’s new special exhibition illuminates the story behind the scheme and explores the obstacles confronted by the engineers.
• Tuesday 22 February - Creative Family Activity Day - free 
• Tuesday 22 February - Create a Comic Workshop - £2 per child for 8 to 13 year olds to create comic-book heroes and villains with illustrator and cartoonist, Jack Brougham.
• Thursday 24 February: Buzz Wire Workshop. £7 per child. Learn more about electrical circuits with education specialists, STEMWorks. Children can design and build their own personal buzz wire game to take home.
• Friday 25 February: ‘Psst, pass it on!’ Morse Code and Semaphore Workshop. £2 per person, in addition to museum admission. Children can become code breakers, send their own private messages and uncover clues to find hidden secrets.

Tickets are now available to book online all the way up to 27 February, please visit the STEAM website to book your place.