A FORMER office block that has blighted the Swindon skyline for more than a decade could be transformed into a new-look apartment building if the required investment is approved.

The six-storey building that appears to rise from the roof of Debenhams in Fleming Way, officially known as Falcon House, has been vacant for 12 years.

Efforts have been made to let it as office space, even as part of a package of proposed refurbishments, but it has proved impossible to bring it back to life.

The building has been described by council officers as ‘a significant example of brutalist architecture’.

But after years of deterioration — with windows dark and dirty, or in some places smashed — and an uninspiring concrete facade on show for some distance around, it is in dire need of serious attention.

It is the most immediately apparent feature of the skyline for anyone approaching Swindon from the direction of the Magic Roundabout, Great Western Way, or from the train station along the soon-to-be-refurbished Wellington

Street.

Acknowledging that in its current state Falcon House is a barrier to town centre regeneration, Swindon Borough Council is now in talks to move forward with an ambitious plan to give it a new lease of life.

In partnership with the building’s owners, Standard Life Investments, the proposals would see all but the concrete structure removed, to be replaced by new interiors and exteriors.

The hope is not to deliver a building that looks transformed, but rather a building that looks like a brand new addition to the town.

A similar concept has been put forward before, indeed when the site was marketed as a possible post-renovation business let — under the name New Falcon House — it was depicted as a bright glass structure with an eye-catching metallic facade in orange.

The latest plans, which are at such an early stage that no artists’ impressions have yet been made available, would not be aimed at the business sector. Instead they would seek to transform Falcon House into a residential property — complete with no fewer than 90 flats for rent.

It is proposed that Standard Life will fund 50 per cent of the development cost in return for the council entering into a 47-year lease.

Subsequent net rental income will be shared 50/50.

This is aimed at enabling the council to cover its funding costs, while also allowing Standard Life to fund the cost of capital from the lease proceeds.

A condition of carrying out the scheme is that Standard Life also undertake a scheme with Debenhams to improve the appearance of their building, another gloomy concrete feature on the Fleming Way landscape.

A business case for investment has been prepared for the council’s Commercial Investment Strategy Board later this month, and subject to agreement of the board, a formal request for funding from the council is expected to follow.

Garry Perkins, the cabinet member responsible for regeneration, said: “Falcon House clearly in its current condition is a blot on the town centre landscape and we have been in discussions with the owner to look at ways we can revitalise this dominant building and bring it back into use.

“A joint proposal to refurbish the building and create 90 flats for rent is currently being considered, while we are also looking into whether improvements could be made to the façade of the Debenhams building underneath.

“There are a number of hurdles still to be negotiated but, if approved, it would transform the visual appearance of Fleming Way and act as a catalyst for our plans to regenerate this part of the town centre.”