This week we took the next step towards approving work to improve Junction 16, as the Swindon and Wiltshire Local Transport Body reviewed the outline business case. In many respects, this project demonstrates the benefits of collaboration that will bring significant economic benefits to Swindon, Royal Wootton Bassett and the surrounding areas.

While most people recognise the need for improvement works, the first challenge is that no single body has overall control of the site.

Most of the land is in Wiltshire while only a little is in the Borough of Swindon. However, the slip roads and traffic lights are the Highways Agency’s responsibility. Another concern is how we can make improvements that could serve existing business and residential communities, and still open up the West and Middle Wichel developments. Lastly, we needed to find a source of funding as none of the individual councils or agencies could pay for it on their own. The Swindon and Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership, the LEP, has helped us with the funding. There are three key groups in the partnership: the two councils – Swindon and Wiltshire – and the local business community. The LEP chair is a business-person, not a councillor. In order to receive funding, the LEP undertook a thorough review of the various major schemes suggested by the local councils. A subsidiary group, the Swindon and Wiltshire Local Transport Body, played a key role in this evaluation process. As with the LEP, the Local Transport Body has representatives from the business community as well as the councils. The final list included only those schemes that we were confident we could deliver and would provide the maximum benefit for local people. Once we had this shopping list, there were further discussions with government departments before the announcement of the funding Whitehall had allocated us.

It was pleasing to see that Swindon will receive the highest per capita amount of funds – £435 – of any UK urban area. This will be part of the £94.87m LEP award to Swindon over the next five years, which is lion’s share of the £129.14m for the whole LEP.

There has been a great deal of close working with Wiltshire Council and the LEP to secure this investment.

It shows the strength of local government when we can have two major local authorities co-operate in such a way that it promotes wider economic growth for the whole region. Although Swindon Borough Council will be managing the project, this will be on behalf of the major partners – the LEP, Wiltshire Council and the Highways Agency.