Council raising the roof on town centre sport and activities
Rooftop activities could be a new feature on Swindon town centre’s skyline, if new plans are approved.
Published: Friday, 4th April 2025
A new sports and activities centre is being planned for Whalebridge car park in Islington Street as Swindon Borough Council seeks to re-energise under-utilised areas of the town centre.
The Council recently submitted a planning application to convert the top floors of the town centre car park into a dedicated community sports space.
If approved, the new location could feature a variety of sports, space for street food vendors, a recreational hub and more.
The plan is the latest in a series of initiatives the Council wants to introduce to generate footfall and activity in the town centre in an effort to boost the local economy and make the area more appealing to visitors.
Improving the town centre is at the centre of the Council’s Heart of Swindon vision, which aims to stimulate investment to transform the area over the next decade.
In the vision, the Council is calling on local land and property owners to bring forward new uses for their own empty assets.
The Council hopes the Whalebridge proposal could act as a catalyst for similar activities while major new investment plans come forward. The car park is currently underused by visitors to the town centre so the opportunity is being sought to make it a more vibrant and bustling location that can benefit the local community.
Councillor Jim Robbins, Leader of Swindon Borough Council, said: “We want to transform the town centre into a bustling area that people want to come and visit but we know that won’t happen overnight.
“Whalebridge car park is underused and we want to make the most of this location in the heart of the town centre, next door to the soon-to-be-completed Fleming Way.
“While not what you would normally expect, similar proposals have been a success in other locations, including in Bristol where they’ve transformed a former Debenhams store into a skate park.
“We know there’s limited access to recreational leisure in the town centre and, along with being a new space for the local community, it can also become a hub for a variety of sports such as cricket or pickleball.
“This is an outside-the-box idea and I’m looking forward to seeing this project come forward and the benefits it can bring. Hopefully it will also encourage more landlords to look at what they can do to their own properties.”