A new plan for the long-term improvement of Coate Water will be put to senior councillors next week.

And if approved it will see more than £600,000 spent on improving facilities for visitors and protecting the site as an important nature reserve.

Members of Swindon Borough Council’s cabinet will hear from Councillor Chris Watts, member for highways and the environment, about immediate and long-term plans for the park.

He is set to tell them there is a real need to spend money on it.

His report says: “Coate Water is a much-loved country park. It has received a good amount of investment in recent years. However, there is a pressing need for further investment.

“The popular splash park has come to the end of its life and has closed. The Pitch and Putt course is in need of investment. Security enhancements, including CCTV, are needed in the area around the toilets and the new play park. Toilet facilities are poor.”

The proposed plan says it has five main principles for improving the park: accessibility for all; enhancing the role of the park as a nature reserve; concentrating new attractions in a “core area” near the car park; to make more of the lake as a water sports facility; and to connect the park better to local attractions such as the polo grounds, Coate Remembrance Wood and the Richard Jefferies Museum.

There are different funding streams approved adding up to a total of £667,000.

A grant of £400,000 from the government’s Shared Prosperity Fund will be used for a replacement splash park or children’s pool and additional café facilities.

The report to cabinet says: “We intend to carry out consultation of park users to determine the preference to replace the current Splash Park with either a pool or new Splash Park.”

It should open in summer 2024.

Money adding up to £117,000 contributed to “sports facilities” property developers will be used to upgrade the adventure golf and pitch and putt courses, and to improve the quality of the water to allow the pond to be used for fishing and water sports.

Another £150,000 of developer contributions will be used to add to money set aside for a Changing Places toilet, improvements to the existing toilets and improving security.

Money for the planting of trees and hedges will also be available from the Trees for Climate and Biodiversity Offset funds.