Diggers and construction workers should be on site at North Star to start work on a massive new indoor snow centre within a few weeks.

Developers Seven Capital were given planning permission to build the £270m indoor ski slope and entertainment centre in late 2018 and had hoped to start work on the cleared site across the road from the Oasis leisure centre in April or May last year.

That was delayed because the company had some difficulty in raising the cash necessary to build the complex – those problems were blamed on uncertainty in the British business and finance scene caused, at least in part, by Brexit

Before Christmas the company said it was very close to finalising the deals it needed.

A spokesman said: “Once we’ve done that, then realistically it’s three or four months before work starts, so we could be on site and working in February or March next year.

“It is a delay, but we are definitely going ahead – there’s no chance that we won’t be building the snow centre.”

The company reiterated that message this week, saying nothing had changed in its position.

If work does start within the next few months, then the snow centre should be open by 2022.

The company and Swindon Borough Council see the complex and being a major part of the regeneration of the area around North Star and a boon to the town’s economy – it is expected to attract more than three million visitors a year when up and running.

The centre will have two ski and snowboarding slopes of 170m and 75m size with real snow

There will be the largest IMAX screen in the UK at a new 12-screen Empire cinema and 19-lane bowling alley with an arcade, café and bar.

Seven Capital announced that with Gravity Active Entertainment, which runs trampoline parks, and KFC taking units at the proposed development it has pre-let two thirds of the space available, with a guaranteed £700,000 annual income for the centre

The area around the snow centre site has also been zoned for housing in the council’s draft local plan.

Cabinet member Dale Heenan assured councillors no houses would be built on the site until the snow centre had been constructed, calling it a ‘red line’ condition of the agreement between developer and council.