One of the jewels in Swindon’s crown has got some extra shine since being taken under council control.

The management of the conference centre at Lydiard House was taken back under the wing Swindon Borough Council in early 2018, when talks broke down with a trust who wanted to run it over maintenance costs.

And now it seems, people are flocking to use it.

Coun Keith Williams, the council’s cabinet member for corporate and customer services told councillors on the scrutiny committee: “The occupancy rate now during the week is up at around 85 to 90 per cent from somewhere around 50 or 60 per cent.

“Occupancy at the weekends is also up, when it was very low is up as well.”

Coun Williams said it was apparent that the previous operator of the conference centre had not been taking bookings for weddings at Lydiard House - but the site had recently celebrated its first wedding there recently.

He added that the increasing use of the site was also benefitting Swindon tax payers: “The subsidy we used to pay every year for the conference centre was about £400-500,000 under the old regime.

“Last year it was £115, 000 because we undertook some significant repair work - we refurbished some of the rooms, and did work on the plumbing system an got rid of the oil-fired heating system that ran the boiler for the swimming pool.

“Next year, 2019-20 we expect to be able to run the facility without any subsidy at all, and we’d like to see it move into profit. Visitors should know that any profits from sales of ice creams and the like will all be reinvested into the upkeep and improvement of the house.”

Labour councillor Chris Watts asked Coun Williams if he was embarrassed by the turn-around: “We seem to be hiding this, when I think we should be shouting about it more.

“There seems to be embarrassment that taking it into public control is wrong - but it shows we can do this properly.”

Coun Williams said after the meeting: "We have listened to people, and users and taken on board what they've wanted

"This has been a very successful solution, and the appeal of Lydiard House is widening across Swindon and the wider area - we have more and more visitors coming from further afield, and this is good for the people of Swindon."

The deal between Swindon Borough Council and the Lydiard Park Heritage Trust for the latter to take over the running of the park and house collapsed in a bitter row over maintenance costs. A survey commissioned by the council found £850,000 worth of work was needed, but a similar survey commissioned by the trust put the repair bill at £5m.

Lydiard House and Park dates back to the middle ages, but the house was rebuilt in the Palladian style in the 1740s. It has been in the council's hands since 1943.