More than 230 volunteer places booked for Swindon town centre clean-up

Volunteers had started work in Swindon town centre as part of The Big Town Centre Clean-Up, The Ink reported on Friday 21 August 2026. The first session covered litter-picking on Canal Walk and The Parade, and clearing vegetation near Fleming Way.

Who has signed up

More than 230 volunteer places had been taken by residents, businesses, councillors and council staff. The sessions were run by Swindon Borough Council, and the tasks included litter-picking, restoring benches and reviving flower beds. More sessions were planned, with places booked online.

Councillor Kevin Parry, Cabinet Member for Recycling and Streetscene, said: "The response from the community has been incredible, with more than 230 volunteer places booked across the programme."

What else was being done

• Council teams were repairing paving, removing graffiti, power-washing pavements and clearing weeds, and had restored the Golden Lion statue.
• People on Community Payback, supervised by the Probation Service, were doing full-day sessions in groups of up to 10, including removing graffiti from council-owned property.
• The council urged property owners and landlords to deal with maintenance problems. About 95 per cent of town centre land and buildings were privately owned, it said.

The council said more than 85 per cent of its budget went on statutory services, including adult and children's social care.

The article was written by Barrie Hudson. Part of it is for The Ink's paid subscribers; this summary uses only the free section.

Source: The Ink.