“I think the community spirit has disappeared” – resident speaks out on decades of decline in Swinton

A resident in Swinton has been speaking out on Facebook about the lack of community spirit as another two shops close in the centre.

Some believe that there is a lack of good independent shops in the town centre, and even the bigger companies are moving out, as Lloyds and Halifax banks closed their branches within a week of each other last month.

We spoke to Gary, who is a Swinton resident, about the “ghost area” that he believes Swinton has become.

He said: “There’s no community of getting together anymore, if you want to go to an independent shop you have to travel out, or they’re now going to the supermarkets that surround the shopping centre, or lack thereof.

“Nobody gets involved in anything anymore.”

He said: “There’s no community of getting together anymore, if you want to go to an independent shop you have to travel out, or they’re now going to the supermarkets that surround the shopping centre, or lack thereof. Nobody gets involved in anything anymore.”

Gary, who moved to Swinton from the south more than 20 years ago, also spoke of feeling left behind by other nearby areas, like Walkden and the rest of the city, as he feels investments have gone to those areas with no explanations from the council as to why.

He claims: “The communication from the council on what’s happening is silence.

“My neighbours tell me what it was like prior to the 1990s, and then they’ve seen this gradual deterioration as times gone on.”

Additionally, a Salford City Council spokesperson accepted that residents have “strongly felt that there needed to be more investment in the town centre, and a plan to tackle empty buildings and shops.”

They have created the Swinton Vision to “shape the future of Swinton” and have also said that “parts of the town centre look increasingly dated and tired.”

However, they did respond to claims that they had not been transparent in communicating with residents.

On this development of Swinton, they said: “The council is currently looking to take this further through ongoing consultation and engagement with the community.”

They ended by adding that: “Any local residents who would like to be involved in shaping the future of Swinton can email the project team at swinton@salford.gov.uk.”

Despite this, it’s clear that some Swinton residents would like to see more communication and investment than what they’re getting currently.