UNLIKE many of the wards in Swindon, Eastcott has some unique differences in its appearance which many residents feel need to be taken into account.

At the bottom of Eastcott Hill is a brand new development at Regent Circus which it is hoped will transform the whole area of the town.

However, as you travel up the hill you enter one of the more historic parts of Swindon, with back-to-back terraced housing and narrow streets.

Because of this the residents have differing needs, whether it be in terms of transport demands or refuse collection.

Residents want whoever wins the seat to make sure they stand up for these needs whenever decisions are being made.

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Peter Green, above, who is the secretary of non-party political community group Swindon Back Garden, said: “What is all too often forgotten is parts of Eastcott are not like other parts of Swindon.

“Many of the houses are multi-occupancy but don’t have the space for more than one car so parking is a big issue in the area. The streets are regularly lined with cars.

“Many of the houses don’t have any garden so there is nowhere to keep bins and people are often surprised to find not every house in Swindon has back door access. This makes finding space for bins difficult.

“We want some recognition of this when policies are made so whoever comes in should make this case on behalf of residents.”

Although it is nearing completion, work on Regent Circus is set to continue for much of the year. While it will bring benefits when open, the construction phase has brought problems to the area of Eastcott, including an increase in large vehicles.

Peter said: “The builders ISG have been doing what they can but there are always going to be problems. What I think we all like is support from the council in dealing with any issues while the work is being carried out.

”We want the winning candidate to do what they can over the coming months to help people.”

Eastcott represents the only ward in Swindon in which all the winning candidates at the local elections in 2012 were from the Liberal Democrats.

The ward had one of the larger turnouts in the town with all three seats being won by quite a strong margin.

EASTCOTT CANDIDATES:
David BELL (Conservative)
Emma BUSHELL (Labour)
Terry DAVIS (UK Independence Party)
Bill HUGHES (Green Party)
Dave WOOD (Liberal Democrat)
Turnout in 2012 election: 36 per cent (7945)

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