Ridgeway Ward

31/05/2026

International Pig Racing event at Helen Browning’s Royal Oak in Bishopstone today.

Last race is 4.15

Live music & great food.

29/05/2026

Ward Councillor Surgery is 9-10am tomorrow at Wanborough Village Hall with Gary & Matt.

28/05/2026

This is great news ahead of what promises to be a very hot summer!

27/05/2026

Following an update from Vistry, we wanted to share a quick update for Redlands Grove:

SCR
Vistry are continuing to work with Swindon Borough Council (SBC) to open the SCR for construction traffic and are awaiting bridge calculations from SBC to determine the required works, which Vistry will undertake to allow traffic access. This update is now due, and Vistry are actively chasing it. We raised this with the relevant Director at the Council yesterday and will share the update as soon as we have it.

Section 278 (highways adoptions and works required as part of planning consent)
Vistry are in discussions with SBC regarding a drainage issue that must be resolved before required works can commence. Subject to progress, the S278 works are expected to start in June/July and complete before Christmas.

Merlin Way
Approval has recently been granted by SBC for a temporary 20mph order on Merlin Way. Vistry are currently ordering the required signage, with installation to follow shortly.

HGVs
Vistry have monitored HGV arrivals over the past two weeks and are pleased to report that only three vehicles attempted to enter Redlands Grove before 7:30am. These were turned away and reported to the relevant subcontractors. To reinforce compliance, Vistry are introducing a yellow/red card system: a first early arrival will receive a yellow card, with company and registration recorded; a second occurrence will result in a red card and permanent refusal of site access.

Thanks,

Gary & Matt

27/05/2026

An update on all of the ‘Road Closed’ signs around the villages following a please from Tim Finney earlier that the signs make it look like Bishopstone is closed to civilisation - and paying customers.

We raised this with officers in Streetworks and we had this reassuring response. Pleased to see the signs face down on the way home tonight!

Afternoon Cllrs,

The closure is for Idstone Village where they are carrying out resurfacing works.

Street Works never agreed to the signage on our network, nor did we approve the diversion they are using. We have made contact with them and told them to remove the signage immediately and divert onto the diversion that was agreed.

The works end this Friday so no signage will be up over the weekend, but we will certainly sort out the mess they have erected on our network and ensure there is no confusion.

25/05/2026

Matthew Hinton is our new Cabinet Member for Community Engagement, Safety & Services. He is also the Councillor for Ridgeway & Chiseldon. 🫱🏻‍🫲🏼👷🏼‍♂️

“I’m delighted to be taking on the role of Cabinet Member for Community Engagement, Safety and Services at Swindon Borough Council.

My top priority is making sure residents can get hold of the right people at the council when they need to, and making those interactions as simple and straightforward as possible.

I am proud to have been born in Swindon and lived here all my life, and I’m thrilled to be part of a committed team that’s ambitious for Swindon and focused on getting things done.”

Ridgeway Ward

24/05/2026

We are very pleased to introduce our leader, and new leader of Swindon Borough Council, Cllr Gary Sumner.

Gary is an experienced, local businessman and has been the councillor for Ridgeway Ward since 2016. He now represents the new Chiseldon & Ridgeway Ward, where he lives with his family.

Gary has a huge amount of real-life business experience that he will bring to the Council, and following his election as leader on Friday, he welcomed in a new era of cross-party, collaboration on the Council.

He also rightly acknowledged the overwhelming majority of residents who wish to see politicians put party politics aside, and work for the betterment of Swindon.

Addressing Councillors and residents, Gary said, “We’ve got some big challenges ahead, particularly budget challenges, and we have to ensure that we deliver the good services and priorities that local residents expect.”

23/05/2026

This morning we attended the Hoopers Field Sports open morning and tried our hand at Bowls and pétanque.

Lovely cold drinks from The Rural Bean!

Wanborough Parish Council Chair - Kathy Glanville cut the ribbon on the new cricket nets and declared them officially open.

This is a fantastic facility with a range of sporting activities and we are so lucky to have it available to our residents.

Gary & Matt

17/05/2026

16/05/2026

A busy day today across the Ward, delivering speed surveys in Badbury, attending the Liddington village plant sale and popping in to Chiseldon museum and the Chiseldon Craft Club’s charity fundraising event in aid of Julia’s House.

Thank you to all the volunteers who dedicate time and effort to the village events and charities that support communities in the area.