The old sporting facility near the A361 south of Highworth has become rewilded grassland since it shut in 2019, attracting wildlife and cultivating all manner of plants and shrubs.
For years, residents of the hilltop town on the outskirts of the Swindon Borough have been campaigning to keep this space available for public use and free of any new neighbourhoods.
Last July, Highworth Town Council suggested that Swindon Borough Council sell the 42 hectares of land to them for a £1 lease so that it could be used as a country park and wildlife reserve.
The local authority cautioned against doing so as that would fall foul of legal obligations under Section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972 that requires the borough’s bosses to secure the best consideration for public assets.
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There are now three possible options for the future of this old nine-hole golf course.
It could be modified to provide a country park setting, or there could be either 400 or 700 new homes built on part of the land (half of which would be affordable housing) and the remaining greenery turned into a country park.
Highworth Town Council has now formally submitted a business proposal to be considered as part of the first option, making it a country park.
The plan can be found online at highworthtowncouncil.gov.uk/SBC
It reads: “Highworth’s Old Golf Course site will remain open, undeveloped green space, accessible to all, combating inequality, providing additional leisure and recreation provisions for residents of Highworth and the wider borough to build a better Swindon.
“This will contribute to improved mental and physical health of borough residents, improve the environment and natural habitat, provide Biodiversity Net Gain and contribute to the borough’s environmental commitments and targets of achieving net zero.”
This will be discussed at Swindon Borough Council’s June Cabinet meeting.
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A public consultation about the latest version of the Highworth Neighbourhood Plan received hundreds of responses between December 2024 and February 2025.
Rob New, from the Action Group for Saving Highworth’s Old Golf Course, said: “Having read through most of this correspondence, it is absolutely brilliant that so many residents have written in support of the Old Golf Course, and Highworth Town Council’s plan to designate the top section as Local Green Space, which should give protection from development.”
As part of the consultation, Swindon Borough Council’s Planning department said: “The designation of the northern part of the old golf course as Local Green Space in Policy 10 of the draft Neighbourhood Plan is not appropriate as it severely limits potential options for the growth of Highworth.
“Growth options need to be tested through the due planning process – in this case through the Local Plan.
“A Local Green Space designation would severely prejudice future development options which may enable Highworth’s future growth to be met in a sustainable manner.
“To allocate land as a Local Green Space in advance of testing those strategic options renders the allocation premature.
“Swindon Borough Council, as Local Planning Authority, therefore objects to Policy 10 insofar as it relates to the Local Green Space allocation at the former Highworth Golf Course, and considers that the designation remains as open space.
“The proposed designation as Local Green Space is premature in advance of the Local Plan Review, potentially prejudicing the consideration of sustainable development options at Highworth.
“The council objects to any designation of the site as Local Green Space whilst it is considering the potential development of the site for a housing scheme.”