Possible golf course homes plan a 'catastrophe'

The site ceased being used as a golf course in 2019, and is popular with walkers

A plan for hundreds of homes on a former golf course has been called a potential "catastrophe" by a campaign group.

Swindon Borough Council (SBC) will discuss three options on 4 June for the old Highworth Golf Course; a nature reserve, 400 homes with a reserve or 700 homes with some parkland.

SBC said officers are recommending the larger homes scheme as it will provide more cash for taxpayers and more affordable housing.

Campaigners against the scheme say surveys show the council-owned land is a haven for wildlife and is used by about 500 people a day.

Councillor Kevin Small said he knows the plans are not popular with those who use the site

The council has said the 700 homes scheme would leave 46% of the site left as parkland for the public.

Any decision from councillors will not be the final one, as officers would then have to carry out pre-application work.

Campaign spokesman Rob New said "It would be a catastrophe if this green, open accessible land was built on.

"Nearly 5,000 residents signed a petition opposing that, and around 500 people use this valued space every day."

He claims the council wants to "cash in" by selling part of the site for housing.

"The site is a haven for nature with over 300 species of flora and fauna having been identified there," added Mr New.

Councillor Kevin Small, SBC's cabinet member for finance, said: "It is almost a year since we asked officers to carry out a detailed options appraisal of the former golf course and we've taken our time because this is an important decision on a popular borough-owned asset."

He said SBC has consulted with the town council and community to consider the nature reserve proposal.

Mr Small added that while he understood the 700-home scheme was "unpopular", it was important to make the most of the land due to the authority's "extremely challenging position".

The site, which has been owned by different councils since the 1970s, stopped being a golf course in 2019.