Restoration and transformation is ambitious parish council plan for Bowl and Queens Park Hothouse

South Swindon Parish Council has unveiled plans to transform two of the town's most iconic locations.

It aims to renovate the Town Gardens Bowl and turn it into a successful 21st century entertainment venue, and restore the hothouse in Queens Park.

The Bowl, built in the 1930s in the Art Deco style popular during the era, is thought to be unlike any other surviving venue of its kind in the country.

A similar one survived in a Liverpool park until fairly recently but was demolished.

The hothouse at Queens Park was built in the 1960s and was in use until the 'Great Storm' of 1987 tore off its roof, leaving only the supporting pillars.

Cllr Neil Hopkins, who chairs the parish council's leisure and amenities committee, said: "The Parish Council took on the running of both Town Gardens and Queens Park in 2019 and we have been keen to make improvements to both parks.

"Our plans for both the Bowl and Hothouse would represent our biggest improvements yet and could be huge heritage regeneration projects for Swindon.

"Both iconic structures are in a poor state, requiring immediate repair to maintain their structural integrity. Both structures are integral to the story behind their respective parks with some listed status.

"We have engaged with an events consultant who has said that with the right investment and marketing they represent a future revenue opportunity if refurbished correctly.

"Our next stage is to consult residents on our plans to see if they support them.

"Should these regeneration projects be supported we will then seek the proper permissions to do this work and we hope that we can deliver Phase 1 of both projects at the end of this year or beginning of next year.”

The plan for the Bowl includes  extensive renovation of the historic building, the removal of garages at the back and the solving of drainage issues which currently cause problems for audiences in wet weather.

A key aspect of the plan is the creation of special facilities for spectators, referred to in the proposals as pods, which would make the Bowl far more appealing to visitors.

There would also be improved facilities and access for performers, as the current ones are limited.

The plans for the Queens Park Hothouse include initially providing a covering of 'sails' above, alllowing the area below to be used as a cafe and gathering place. Later concepts in the plans include a clear lightweight roof harking back to the original hothouse.

Following the storm of 1987, the old Thamesdown Borough Council decided against a repair, leaving the concrete and brick columns and steel ring beams in situ as a feature and reminder of its former use, which also proved cheaper than full demolition.

Unfortunately, the remaining ring beams were not properly weather protected and in the intervening years they have deteriorated.