REPAIRS to a chapel damaged by the Regent Circus development have begun, but there is no visible evidence.

Rehoboth Strict Baptist Chapel, in Prospect Hill, remains encased in scaffolding, protecting it from further subsidence, but neighbours have seen little in the way of lasting repairs.

ISG, the developer behind the town centre leisure development, said yesterday a 28-week programme of repairs at the chapel got under way a fortnight ago.

However, Peter Green, of Prospect Hill, and the former secretary of Swindon Back Garden, said he saw little sign of repair inside the chapel when shown around by its deacon on Saturday.

According to Mr Green, Richard Cooke, the deacon of the chapel, is still waiting for work to start but he declined the opportunity to answer questions from the Adver yesterday.

Although ISG offered no official statement yesterday, Pete Creese, ISG’s site environmental officer at Regent Circus, confirmed work had started.

“I can see inside, but you can’t,” he said.

“Work started some time in the last couple of weeks, while I was away.

“I believe we have a 28-week programme.”

Mr Green said: “We were promised some action by the end of February, and then ISG blamed it on the chapel’s lawyers taking a long time to organise things.

“Richard’s getting fed up. They are having to dot every ‘I’ and cross every ‘T’.

“We are looking at May if we are not careful."

He said in March the deacon told him not to worry and the work would al be done.

“While I was talking to him they were emptying all the prayer books out of the chapel,” Mr Green said.

“That was March and here we are near May.”

The issue first arose in February 2014, when the deacon closed the chapel because it was deemed unsafe as a result of the subsidence.

Large cracks caused by the neighbouring building work had grown so large parishioners were no longer able to safely attend services there and instead retreated to a living room.

After meetings were held between stakeholders, politicians and the developer, it was agreed ISG would pay for the repairs at the chapel.

More recently services have been held at St Mary’s Church in Commonweal Road, but there has been no indication of when they will return to Prospect Hill.