Our vision, priorities and pledges

As well as providing a vast range of public services, we are using our legal powers, assets, access to targeted funding, local knowledge and influence to lay the foundations for Swindon to thrive in the future. Bringing together partners from across the private, public and voluntary sectors to improve the quality of life for residents. Working across education, health, crime, the local economy and climate change.

We are ambitious for the town, realistic about the challenges but excited for the future. We’re acting now to meet the needs of Swindon’s growing population: building new homes, creating new school places, upgrading roads and enhancing our country parks while also working to revitalise the town centre with £100 million of Council-led investment.

We have a clear vision for how we see Swindon developing in the future:

By 2030, Swindon will have all of the positive characteristics of a British city with one of the UK’s most successful economies; a low-carbon environment with compelling cultural, retail and leisure opportunities and excellent infrastructure. It will be a model of well managed housing growth which supports and improves new and existing communities.

Swindon will be physically transformed with existing heritage and landmarks complemented by new ones that people who live, work and visit here will recognise and admire. It will remain, at heart, a place of fairness and opportunity where people can aspire to and achieve prosperity, supported by strong civic and community leadership.

None of this is possible if we don’t live within our means. That’s why our Council Plan sets out our clear priorities to make best use of our resources and how we will achieve our ambitious vision. We have committed to six key priorities which the Council will focus on over the next four years.

These set out how we intend to provide services to residents and set key milestones to achieving our aims. We are in the process of developing a new reporting system that will allow you to monitor our progress against each pledge.

Our six priorities are:

• Build an economy that works for you: creating more well-paid jobs, attracting further investment in our town and making Swindon a great place to start and grow businesses
• Protect and enhance our heritage, cultural and leisure facilities: delivering improvements now and securing long-term investment
• Deliver sustainable growth: through high quality affordable homes alongside infrastructure to support our growing town
• Equip all our young people with the education and skills they need: through additional and enhanced skills and higher education opportunities
• Make Swindon greener and more sustainable: we will help residents reduce their environmental impact and, as a council, we will aim to achieve net zero emissions by 2030
• We will make Swindon safer, fairer and healthier: by helping people to help themselves while always protecting our children and adults, increasing health and wellbeing facilities and tackling crime and anti-social behaviour

The practical steps that the Council will take so that we achieve our Vision and Priorities are set out in the Council Pledges, which have been refreshed in 2021.