The company which hopes to convert two listed buildings in the High Street into apartments has come back with a more extensive scheme after being refused at first.

Outside Clinic, which has been using the two buildings which used to be a Barclays Bank, at Old Town Court on the High Street, wanted to turn it into 24 flats in 2022.

That application was for “prior approval”, meaning the whole process is much quicker and cheaper, but planners at Swindon Borough Council refused it because the company had failed to demonstrate the building had been empty for at least three months.

Now the company has applied for a change of use permission, which would see the ground floor also converted to apartments, bringing the total to 20 flats.

Each flat would have one bedroom with an open-plan kitchen, dining room and living room.

The company’s application says: “An opportunity exists to layout the building in a fashion that will retain the character of the street and the grain of the surrounding area.

“No significant alterations to the external appearance of the building are required.”

The flats would come with seven parking spaces.