New facilities for the travelling community have been completed at a site near Chiseldon, with Swindon Borough Council hoping the improvements will help reduce the number of unauthorised encampments across the borough.
Chiseldon Firs, located just outside the village and run by the council, has undergone a major refurbishment aimed at making it a more practical stop for Traveller groups passing through the area.
The site is designed to provide a temporary and managed place to stay, offering basic facilities including pitches, toilets, washing areas and a play space for children.
Council officials say the improvements are intended to encourage groups arriving in Swindon to use the site rather than setting up on public green spaces.
If groups decline the offer of the designated site, the council says it will allow officers and Wiltshire Police to take quicker steps to move unauthorised encampments on.
More than £500,000 from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government funded the refurbishment works.
The upgrades include new water systems, improved toilet and shower facilities with individual cubicles, a newly installed play area and a dedicated washing-up station. A bin storage area has also been created, along with a grass patch for animals travelling with groups using the site.
Councillor Janine Howarth, Swindon Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing, said the improvements were needed after the site had fallen behind the needs of those travelling through the area.
She said: “Chiseldon Firs had been neglected for so long that groups coming into Swindon would refuse to use it because it no longer suited their needs.
“Now there is a dedicated location where these groups can go and make full use of the facilities and there is no excuse for them setting up illegal encampments elsewhere in the borough.
“While some groups may still decide to use our green spaces as temporary bases, having Chiseldon Firs available will mean that if it is refused, we will be able to take quicker and stronger action to get disruptive groups to move on.”
The council says the site can also be booked in advance by groups who know they will be travelling through the area.
