Events and initiatives to both protect and celebrate Swindon’s heritage will be Councillor Bazil Solomon’s new responsibility.

The Conservative councillor for Liden, Eldene & park South has been made Swindon Borough Council’s new community heritage champion.

That isn’t a cabinet portfolio role, and Coun Solomon does not have a council department to run – but he has been asked to look across the council’s activities to see how it can best celebrate and preserve the borough’s heritage.

Coun Solomon said: “It is an honour and privilege to have taken on such a revolutionary role. A person’s heritage connects them to the past.

"It can shape and define a person’s identity and help them navigate their future within the environment in which they live and work.

"Combining the influences of many heritages into a cultural and natural history, can help increase a person’s understanding of who we are collectively and can have a tremendously positive impact on their feelings of belonging.”

Coun Solomon, originally from South Africa, wants to reflect the town’s diversity: “Our town has a dazzling array of cultures and it is therefore critical that representations of our collective memories and identities reflect this increasingly diverse society.

"I believe that Heritage can help to promote our understanding of the different communities around us and increases our connections by creating shared values and narratives for the future.”

One of his early projects is working with Historic England and the Bangladeshi community to record important buildings to that community, so future generations remember. He said: “It’s a proper research project on this community’s long history in Swindon.

“It's something we can do with others. Eventually, people of all different heritages say “we”, and they feel they belong. That’s what we are aiming for.”

Another project is one to encourage black and Asian people from the town to become involved in Swindon’s natural heritage: “We want to encourage more people from those communities to work on conservation projects, looking after our natural history.”

“Heritage can be used for the common good and it is my intention to help improve, support, and further educate and record the contributions of the different peoples within our town. Including, potentially unrepresented groups such as ethnic communities, LQBTQ+ and disabled people.”

Councillor Solomon wants to hear individuals, groups and communities who want to celebrate their heritage and that of the town.

Please contact him at bsolomon@swindon.gov.uk with events and ideas for projects,