Swindon’s heritage buildings
In the mid C19th Swindon became home to the Great Western Railway’s central repair depot, and later its new carriage and wagon works. By 1920, the Swindon Works employed over 14,000 people – in the region of three-quarters of the town’s entire workforce. Eventually, due to the decline in the railways, the Works closed in 1986. Since then, Swindon’s economy has changed dramatically and the town has continued to expand its population and attract businesses from a wide variety of industries, including computer and telecoms technologies, financial services, pharmaceuticals, advanced manufacturing etc.
Perhaps due to the changes, the town has tended to leave behind its iconic railway heritage, and a number of historic buildings have been neglected. In this section we explain how Forward Swindon is tackling the issue of restoring or redeveloping some iconic, precious buildings as part of their work to regenerate the town centre.