Strategies, Plans and Policies

Wiltshire & Swindon Biodiversity Action Plan

The Swindon Biodiversity Action Plan was launched in March 2005, and presents a vision of Swindon as a place where wildlife and development exist side by side, and where wildlife is not just in the places where development doesn’t go.
The Swindon BAP hopes to achieve:

• Protection of the best existing areas for wildlife
• Enhancement of wildlife in the wider landscape
• Protection and enhancement of populations of particularly important species
• Involvement of people in the process of wildlife conservation wherever possible

The Swindon BAP focuses mainly on habitats rather than species. This is because in the majority of cases the main threats to wildlife are associated with the loss, degradation or fragmentation of the place in which it lives. If we can conserve the habitats, we have taken a vitally important step towards conserving the individual species.
For further information, go to the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust website (www.wiltshirewildlife.org) or Biodiversity Swindon (www.biodiversityswindon.co.uk)

Climate Change Action Plan

This Action Plan is for everyone in Swindon Borough who has an interest in the future of our planet. It has been developed by the Swindon Strategic Partnership in response to the overwhelming scientific evidence that our climate is changing and the fact that we must act now to prevent catastrophic, irreversible damage to our environment.
This document explains what climate change is and how it is likely to affect quality of life in Swindon Borough and beyond. The key aims of this action plan are to reduce our contribution to climate change and identify the issues we must consider in order to prepare for the inevitable changes to our weather. It is an action plan to reduce the carbon emissions responsible for global warming.
For further information, go to the Swindon Borough Council website (www.swindon.gov.uk/environment-agenda21)

Urban Fringe Action Plan

October 2005 saw the publication of the Urban Fringe Action Plan (UFAP) for the southern fringes of  Swindon. The UFAP has been developed by the North Wessex Downs AONB in collaboration with a broad partnership including the GWCF team. It was developed in response to issues raised through the development of the AONB management plan in relation to the impact of urban expansion on the nature/character of the AONB.  The UFAP has been built on feedback gained at the ‘Fringe Benefits’ workshop held in April 2005 when a number of key issues and realistic actions were identified and discussed via a broad partnership of organisations.

The UFAP addresses a complex range of issues facing people living in the urban fringes to the south of Swindon and reaching up into the protected landscape of the North Wessex Downs.  It not only looks at some of the negative issues facing people in the area such as flytipping, ‘rat runs’, trespassing, etc, but also describes the importance of the urban fringe as an area which has huge potential to: act as a ‘ bridge’  between urban and rural, act as a gateway to and from the AONB, provide opportunities for informal recreation and to promote healthy lifestyles, provide for outdoor education,  increase biodiversity and much more.

Achieving this potential isn’t something that will be done overnight. The UFAP sets out a long-term vision for area and describes how this could be achieved through collaborative efforts between local people, local authorities, agencies and organisations with a role to play, from setting the right policies through to delivering action on the ground.

For further information about the Urban Fringe Action Plan, go to the North Wessex Downs website (www.northwessexdowns.org.uk)

Swindon Borough Council Local Plan 2011

For further information, go to the Swindon Borough Council website (www.swindon.gov.uk)

Developer Contributions

For further information, go to the Swindon Borough Council website (www.swindon.gov.uk)

Local Area Agreements

For further information, go to the Swindon Local Area Agreement website (www.swindonlaa.org.uk)

South West England Woodland and Forestry Framework

For further information, go to the Forestry Commission website (www.forestry.gov.uk)