Apsley House, former home of Swindon Museum, sold

An artist's impression of Apsley House under Arthur Dallimer's plans

A sale has been agreed for an old museum building ear-marked for re-development.

The former home of Swindon Museum and Art Gallery, Apsley House, closed in March 2020.

Sold to local property developer Arthur Dallimer by Swindon Borough Council, the new owner hopes to regenerate the site on the corner of Bath Road and Victoria Road, into a community hub.

The proposed plans include a 90-seat indoor and outdoor restaurant.

Apsley House sits on the corner of Victoria Road and Bath Road in Swindon's Old Town

Swindon Borough Council's Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Finance and Commercialisation, Councillor Keith Williams, said he was looking forward to "seeing Apsley House brought back to life".

Swindon born Arthur Dallimer, who will consult with Historic England over the listed building, said he hopes to get plans into the council for approval within two to three months.

Grade-II Apsley House in Old Town could become a community hub which includes a co-working space, five retail units, restaurant and café

Analysis by Will Glennon, BBC Points West, Wiltshire reporter

The sale and potential regeneration of a disused building is often celebrated as it can help bring life back to an area that was losing its focus.

Unfortunately Swindon Borough Council has a track record in recent times of announcing sales of historic buildings to developers, only for the promised projects then to never materialise.

However, there is a good amount of local support for the initial plans put forward by this developer, Arthur Dallimer of William Arthur Property. If this revamp of Apsley House does go ahead, there's hope that it could give the whole Swindon Old Town area a lift.

What this sale of Apsley House also does though, is remind everyone that it was the former home of Swindon Museum and Art Gallery. It closed three years ago this Friday, 17th March 2020, primarily because of the pandemic, but it never reopened.

A temporary home for Swindon's collection of art and artefacts has been promised, and a floor of the council's offices will be converted to accommodate it. This project is being continually delayed too, with many concerned about when it will happen.

Then a permanent museum and art gallery? When might that ever happen?

It leaves a town, with a population of over 220,000 people with no art gallery to visit, and a revered art collection, with nowhere to be displayed.

Swindon borough council closed the museum and art gallery at the start of the pandemic in March 2020

Mr Dallimer said he hoped to "move quickly to enable" the development of the site which could include a co-working space, five retail units and café, and will find "the best mix of independent tenants, while protecting the existing tenants' lease arrangements."

"This building has been a key part of my childhood, as it has been for many Swindon residents. I'm excited to be bringing it back to life and for the community to use as a commercial space," Mr Dallimer added.

Richard Deacon, Chair of the Old Town Business Association, said "This is an historic moment for Old Town. We've not seen a development and restoration like this in years and the site will clearly be a beacon for the future."

'Cultural Quarter'

The council said it decided to close Grade-II listed Apsley House at the start of the coronavirus pandemic due to "its split levels and limited capacity" which "made social distancing extremely challenging."

It decided not to reopen the site due to building accessibility issues and maintenance costs.

The museum and art collections were moved to a semi-permanent home at the Council's Civic Offices in Euclid Street, however, this is yet to open.

The council said a new Cultural Quarter proposed for the town will eventually house the museum and art gallery.

The art and museum artefacts have been moved to a semi-permanent home in Swindon Borough Council's Civic officers, but the display is yet to open