Council leader says new hotel in Regent Street continues Swindon tradition of firsts

Swindon has always been a place with a proud record of innovation so I was recently delighted to learn that Whitbread had chosen our town as the place where it will pilot its first ever ‘all-electric’ Premier Inn hotel.

The new Premier Inn has been slowly taking shape behind the purple hoardings that have enveloped the derelict site opposite The Savoy.

When complete, the brand- new hotel will have 195 bedrooms and a ground floor bar and restaurant. The multi- million pound redevelopment of the brownfield site will breathe new life into an important part of the town centre, while at the same time creating 45 new jobs.

As the company’s first ‘all-electric’ hotel, it has been designed without a connection to a natural gas supply.

It will be fully heated and powered by energy from the grid, which is generated from renewable sources, and by on- site solar panels. The building will also benefit from air- source heat pumps and new water-heating technology. Whitbread has set itself a target of achieving net zero emissions by 2040.

At the council, we are aiming to reach net zero by 2030 and have set a 2050 target for the whole borough. This is going to be incredibly challenging but if we are to have a chance of making it happen we need firms like Whitbread to also play their part.

Zurich is another firm investing in green technologies and using the highest building standards to ensure its brand new office block at Unity Place, off Fleming Way, is fit for the future.

At the time of writing this column, council colleagues have just supported a motion calling for the council to declare a ‘climate emergency’. It was not something we had previously felt the need to declare because we have always felt that actions speak louder than words.

Unfortunately, as we hadn’t followed other councils in making this statement, it was becoming more and more of a distraction, so we have now declared the emergency with a solid track record of action to reduce our emissions and promote green technology behind us.

We have built large solar farms, are close to finalising a huge project to convert our 28,000 streetlights into LEDs and have begun expanding our electric vehicle fleet.

Another project we are currently developing is the creation of a solar innovation hub at our Waterside depot in Cheney Manor industrial estate.

This will not only generate power to run our household waste centre, but will eventually charge electric vehicles and use battery storage to utilise power from our nearby solar farm to provide electricity for up to 3,000 homes.

But we all have a role to play in tackling climate change. You can find out how you can ‘Be the Change’ by visiting www.swindon.gov.uk/bethechange for more tips and advice.