Your Council Working for Swindon 2020 2021 - Swindon Borough Council
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Your Council 2020 Working for Swindon 2021
Introduction A flavour of what we
Welcome to this year’s council tax booklet
delivered last year
which gives an overview of where the Council’s
money comes from and how it is used to serve
Swindon and the borough’s 220,000+ residents.
News
The figures opposite give a sense of the scale
and breadth of council-delivered services. Councillor
Read on to find out how our efforts are paying
David Renard Over 8 million 469 hours a week 580 restaurants and
off to ensure that Swindon continues to thrive Leader of the Council waste and recycling spent keeping the cafés were inspected
and benefit from well-managed growth, collections town centre, car parks for good hygiene
investment and regeneration. This includes and public toilets clean
attracting millions of pounds of government
funding and commercial investment in new n Adm
sioAdmission issio
Admis
homes, schools and roads.
n
We are proud that Ofsted rated our Children’s Services as ’Good’ last
year. An ever-increasing level of demand for services to support our
vulnerable children and adult social care means more of our budget is
300 new school Gritted over 7,000 5,543 school
spent in these areas, accounting for over 80% of the Council's budget
places created miles of road admissions managed
this coming year. We also have to meet the ongoing challenge of
providing our services with less money which is why you will see
your council tax bill going up this year.
In the following pages you can find out about the progress made by
the Council last year towards delivering what we said we would back in
2015. I'd welcome your feedback on this booklet via this online survey:
smartsurvey.co.uk/s/ctaxbooklet
1,320 planning Fixed 6,257 potholes Issued 1,804
applications and damaged licences
This booklet costs 14p per household to produce. Switch to digital bills today determined patches in roads for taxis
to reduce that cost. Visit swindon.gov.uk/annualreport to find out more. and footpaths
Email customerservices@swindon.gov.uk if you require this booklet in
a different format.
Overview £36m £4.3m grant from
government
From you
In recent years the amount of business (£108.8m council tax)
rates
of the
money we get from government
hasn’t kept pace with demand From businesses
and the rising cost of services. (£36m business rates)
Council’s In recognition of the demand
pressures facing local authorities, Where the
budget
Grant from
budget
the Government has given government
councils an additional social care comes (£4.3m)
grant for 2020/21 and allowed from
councils to raise extra council
Total – £149.1m
Our net budget for 2020/21 tax through the adult social care
is £149.1m. This is funded by precept you will see on your bill.
council taxpayers, a share of the
business rates collected locally To keep our budget balanced, £108.8m
and government grants. which is required by law, over council tax
the last two years we have saved
We use our budget to provide £30m. We will have to save a
hundreds of services to the further £11.3m in 2020/21 to
residents of the borough, some keep our budget balanced.
of which are seen daily, such Vulnerable adults
as waste collections and road This year’s average council tax £3.3m
maintenance. Other services often has increased by 3.99%. This £3.5m £0.2m Children, families and
go unseen, such as providing includes a rise of 1.99% for £5.7m community health services
foster carers for children in crisis, general funds (which can be £71.9m
Waste collections, country
caring for older people, carrying spent on any service) and 2% parks and tree maintenance
out food hygiene inspections and which can only be spent on £18.1m
supporting rough sleepers. adult social care. Economy, skills and libraries
Where the
Over 80% of the budget this year budget Keeping people safe
(including community safety,
will be used to help vulnerable
For more detailed goes emergency planning and
adults and children. However,
the demand for these statutory information on your trading standards)
services continues to increase
meaning a lot less can be spent on
bill please visit: Highways and buildings
many services residents are used to. swindon.gov.uk/annualreport £46.4m Planning, regulatory and
heritage services
Why do you keep How can you afford Why don’t you spend
Budget building more houses to spend millions on more money in my
Q&A – in the borough?
Swindon needs to build 20,450 new
some projects but
then reduce other
local area?
Many of the services we provide
helping you
homes by 2036 to meet the demand are required by law, such as
of a growing population. House
services? caring for vulnerable adults and
understand
building targets are set by central The money we have to spend is children which takes up over 80%
government and we decide which split into two main pots which of our budget. The rest of our
local
sites are available to developers to have very different rules on how budget is then spent on a range
build new homes. We make sure they can be used: of different services which are
government
the right infrastructure is in place either prioritised by councillors
first. For example in Wichelstowe, based on need or are split evenly
Capital funding
finance
we have led on making sure new across the borough, like waste
roads and community amenities collections. If you identify a
Many of our big projects receive
are in place to support thousands priority in your area you can
external funding through grants,
of new homes. speak to your local councillor.
Have you ever wondered why which we work to obtain from
we spend money on certain the government. This money
things and not others? is often paid as a one-off sum
and can only be used on specific
Local government finance can
Why don’t you schemes. It cannot be used for
Why aren't you
be complicated but we want to spend more other services. If we did not investing more in
be as transparent as possible. bid for this type of funding we
repairing roads? would be unable to make these
the town centre?
We asked local people what they Funding for roads is partially big improvements to Swindon. When it comes to the town centre,
wanted to know and here are given to us by government, we play an important role in bidding
the answers to some of the most while the rest comes from the for government funding to improve
commonly asked questions. money we have to allocate
Revenue funding local infrastructure and bringing
across all of our services. This local landowners together to get
Our day-to-day spending on other
means our spending on roads is large investment projects underway.
services comes from a separate
limited. We maintain 500 miles We help to facilitate and attract
pot of money. This is money raised
Got a question of road and have just under
from council tax, other charges
new investment into the town
£3m to spend repairing them centre such as the new Zurich office
about our budget? in 2020/21. Councillors have
(such as planning applications
block, while also working to keep
and garden waste collections)
Drop us an email at: also agreed to spend an extra it clean, safe and tidy to make it a
and government grants.
communications@swindon.gov.uk £100k on repairing potholes. welcoming place for people to visit.
How you
help 815 322
change Children with additional needs
given support and transport to
Children, who have either
lost or can no longer live
the lives of
school throughout the year. with their parents, placed
with foster families.
those most
in need
When you pay your council tax,
you are funding services which
support vulnerable people
988
Older people given daily help
across the town including the
to live independently at home.
elderly, people with disabilities
and children without families.
Without these vital safeguarding
services, which we are required to
provide by law, many adults and
children would not be able to
1,601 2,158 888
live their lives independently
in a supportive environment.
Only a relatively small proportion
of people need these services but
they are incredibly important for
People supported to return Children and young people Residential or nursing care
those who depend on them.
home from hospital. supported with an Education, placements provided for adults
In 2019, your council tax helped
Health and Care Plan to support who are too vulnerable to live
to provide:
their special educational needs. by themselves.
Making our fleet
Taking sustainable
action to We are looking to replace our fleet of vehicles
with sustainable alternatives. We've already
improve
brought in the first four electric vehicles to
help reduce our carbon footprint.
our Powering our facilities
environment through renewable energy
Our solar farm at Barnfield provides 60% of
the energy needs of our waste processing
As your local council, we play
plant, at Cheney Manor, which turns the
a role in supporting central
borough’s non-recyclable waste into an
government to tackle some of
alternative to fossil fuels.
the important environmental
issues that affect us all today.
This includes encouraging local
businesses and residents
Using solar Electric charging points
to change behaviour, and energy to power as standard
making sure the Council is
as environmentally friendly
the borough We are looking to introduce a requirement for
electric vehicle charging points to be installed
as possible. Over the past five years we
as part of all new residential developments to
have encouraged investment
help encourage electric vehicle use.
We have also committed to in solar power across the
making the Council and all of its borough.
assets carbon neutral by 2030
which will be an important step We set ourselves a target to
in improving our environment. produce enough renewable Using LED lighting to
energy every year to power
On this page you will find the equivalent of every home
save energy
some examples of how we are in the borough. We are up We're replacing approximately 28,000 street
trying to improve Swindon’s to 97.5% of that target. lights which will reduce electricity usage by
environment. around 65%, saving us almost £800k per year.
Artist's impression of
Zurich's new office
Regenerating Major new
office space
our town Leading employer Zurich is
working with us to build a
centre new state-of-the-art office in
Swindon’s town centre. This is
part of a major development of
the site opposite Debenhams.
Our role in improving the town
centre is to use land we own
to encourage redevelopment,
attract external investment for
new development and influence
how other landowners use town
Turning Fleming Way
centre property. into a transport hub A new theatre, art gallery and museum
We're putting together a business We are proposing to build a new cultural quarter in the town centre
Here are some of the ways
case to turn Fleming Way into to attract investment and provide Swindon with a top class cultural
we’re doing that:
a town centre hub for national offer. Proposals include redeveloping the Wyvern Theatre and creating
and local bus services, replacing a new museum and art gallery. We're working with a range of experts,
the old bus station. We are in the local businesses and community groups to explore how we can
next stage of bidding for a £25m progress these plans.
grant and expect to hear later this
year if we have secured this.
Artist’s impression of
Fleming Way
Bringing more people
to the town centre
We have agreed a £17m development
of the former Aspen House site,
opposite The Savoy pub in Regent
Street. It will be turned into a Premier
Inn hotel, along with a steakhouse
restaurant, to help bring this area
of the town centre back into use.
Protecting Keeping
We care about Swindon's rich
heritage so we are working with Wichelstowe tunnel
landowners and investors to
Swindon’s Swindon
A tunnel is being built
protect key heritage buildings. The
underneath the M4 to
Swindon Heritage Action Zone is
provide access to the housing
heritage moving
bringing additional funding and
development at Wichelstowe
expertise from Historic England
and to relieve traffic elsewhere.
to help us deliver these projects.
The tunnel, known as the
Wichelstowe Southern Access,
Carriage Works has been allocated £22.9m
Over £6m is being invested into from the government.
the former GWR Carriage Works,
offering a modern office space
for start-up businesses. The Royal
Improving
Agricultural University will open Mead Way
a Cultural Heritage Institute there
Improvements will be made to
later this year.
increase capacity on Mead Way
to reduce congestion and improve
Health Hydro journey times in the local area.
We are investing £1.5m to
upgrade the iconic Health Hydro
on Milton Road.
New Moonrakers
junction
Carriage Works Corn Exchange Mead Way
This summer, we will be making
While we don't own the Locarno improvements to Moonrakers
building, we have been in junction to reduce congestion
conversation with the owner over following a public consultation
a number of years regarding the last year.
future of this Old Town landmark.
Mechanics’ Institute
We are bringing together local To stay up-to-date with all of our
groups and heritage specialists to road improvement schemes,
survey the building and work out sign up to Highways News at:
how it can be brought back to life. swindon.gov.uk/newsletter
Mechanics’ Institute
Credit: Local Studies (Swindon Libraries) Moonrakers junction
New White Hart junction
Improvements to this key gateway
Piccadilly
roundabout
Gablecross roundabout
This improvement scheme will
Eastern into Swindon include increasing
the number of lanes on the
Capacity will be increased
at Piccadilly roundabout, on
involve making the roundabout
larger and adding traffic signals to
Villages
roundabout and improving slip provide sufficient capacity to cope
Dorcan Way, by the Messenger
roads. We have received £29m with existing and new demand.
pub. Changes include wider
of government and developer This scheme will receive £8m of
roads on the approaches and
funding for this scheme. investment from government
improved road markings.
The New Eastern Villages (NEV) and developer funding.
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Swindon is Food waste trial
We are trialling a weekly
recycling
food waste collection to
11,000 properties across
Swindon. Thanks to
those taking part we have
more
managed to recycle over
380 tonnes of food waste so
We have made it our mission
far. A decision will be made
to improve Swindon’s recycling
later this year by Cabinet
rate. Thanks to your dedication
on the future of food waste
over the last year we have seen
collections in Swindon.
non-recyclable waste decrease
across the borough, which is
fantastic news. Your recycling guide
But we can’t stop there. Our website has plenty of useful resources to help you
In order to meet government make the most of our waste and recycling services.
targets we need you to If you aren’t sure where to dispose of an item
continue recycling as much you can use our handy A-Z guide. For updates
News of your waste as possible and on the status of your missed recycling
encourage your friends and collections visit:
family to do the same. swindon.gov.uk/bins
Compulsory recycling This
to be enforced in 2020 booklet is
made from 100%
Last year we made recycling compulsory recycled paper.
in Swindon. This year, our Waste Wardens Please recycle
will be out providing support to residents it after you
who do not recycle. As a last resort, the have finished
team may be required to issue residents with it.
with an enforcement notice.Priority one
Progress Improve infrastructure and
Improving
Mannington
on our
housing to support a growing,
low-carbon economy. roundabout
priorities
We made upgrades to
Mannington roundabout to
improve traffic flow and
Building a new reduce congestion.
We are committed to making
Swindon a fantastic place
community in
to live, work and play. Wichelstowe
We are playing a key role in the
Significant progress is being
4,000 new homes being built at
made on realising our vision
Wichelstowe. We also invested
Building affordable
and priorities for Swindon.
Visit swindon.gov.uk/vision
£2.5m in restoring part of homes for
the Wilts & Berks Canal and
to find out more.
opened a new bridge which
vulnerable people
connects Waitrose to the new Our housing company built 14
This is a snapshot of what
district centre. September new adaptable bungalows fitted
we have achieved over
2019 also saw the opening of with specialist equipment to
the last year:
a new secondary school, The help vulnerable adults to lead
Deanery Academy. independent lives.
Rejuvenating
Wellington Street
This key gateway between
the railway station and the
town centre was transformed.
Improvements included separate
paths for cyclists and pedestrians
and a new zebra crossing.Priority two Priority three Priority four
Offer education opportunities Ensure clean and safe streets Help people to help themselves
that lead to the right skills and and improve our public spaces while always protecting our most
right jobs in the right places. and local culture. vulnerable children and adults.
Support for
rough sleepers
Institute of Art on Tour Looking after Over 25 rough sleepers have
Technology We launched a new touring older people been supported back into
accommodation as a result of our
art exhibition to bring some of
We supported Swindon College Our two care homes, Whitbourne homelessness support programme.
Swindon’s most treasured pieces
with its successful bid to become House and Fessey House, were At our last count, the number of
of art to a wider audience.
an Institute of Technology which rated ’Good’ by the Care Quality homeless people has reduced from
will provide high level technical Commission. 45 in November 2017 to 20 in
training to more than 1,000 Collecting your November 2019.
students every year. household waste Good Ofsted rating
Ofsted judged our Children’s
Beat the Street
School results Following improvements, we
successfully completed 99.9%
Services department to be The popular walking, cycling and
providing children and families running game Beat the Street
Improvements were made of the 6.8 million kerbside
in Swindon with a ’Good’ service, returned in autumn 2019 and saw
in Maths and English among waste collections between
replacing the previous ’Requires nearly 26,000 residents clock up
Swindon’s GCSE students. In April and December 2019.
Improvement’ rating from 2015. an impressive 252,127 miles.
August, 64% of pupils attained a
Grade 4 (equal to the old Grade
C) or above in both subjects, The Deanery Academy School
compared to 61% in 2018.
New schools
Last September, three new
schools opened in Swindon,
meaning we have secured
over 300 new school places
for children in the borough.
Children’s Services staff celebrating Ofsted ratingWhere your money goes
Your council tax bill 2020/21
Where every £1,000 of your council tax goes
Vulnerable adults ................................................. £482
Children, families and
community health services .................................. £311
Waste collections, country parks
and tree maintenance ......................................... £121
Economy, skills and libraries .................................. £38
Keeping people safe (including
community safety, emergency
planning and trading standards) ............................ £24
Highways and buildings ......................................... £22
Planning, regulatory and
heritage services ...................................................... £2
TOTAL ................................................................ £1,000
The figures are provided for illustrative purposes. They do not
include services provided through Housing Revenue Account,
Dedicated Schools Grant or Public Health Grant as funding
for these is separate to the general fund services. For further
information, please search 'open data and transparency' on
the Council's website.
Information in this booklet correct as of 21/02/2020 D2812/FOI 4151/20You can also read
