A CYCLE store plan with apparently no door to the outside world got parish councillors scratching their heads.

Developers want to convert the three storey building on the corner of Bridge Street and Fleet Street, opposite the former Wilko store, into shops and eight flats.

The plans were discussed by South Swindon Parish Council’s planning committee on Tuesday night.

And while councillors were supportive of moves to redevelop a building that has been empty for several years, elements of the plans confused them.

Patrick Herring, vice-chairman of the planning committee, said: “The cycle store doesn’t appear to have a door. There’s no door into the outside world.”

He thought the omission was likely to be a drafting error. A similar suspected error also meant two first floor flats were unable to access a laundry room on the same floor, with residents instead having to climb a flight of stairs to the top floor before descending by a second staircase.

Swindon Borough Council highways officers raised concerns about access to the cycle store and the size of a proposed bin storage area in a response posted to the council’s planning website.

More positively, Coun Jane Milner Barry welcomed the prospect of a new life for the block: “It’s a very attractive building.”

However, the parish council voted to lodge an objection to the planning application over incomplete plans, the size of the bin storage and access to the laundry room.

To comment on the plans, search for S/19/0214 on the Swindon planning portal: www.swindon.gov.uk/planning.