EDUCATION is at the heart of the community in Old Walcot.

The residential area, made up of private housing, is within easy reach of the town centre and it benefits from a number of schools for all ages with Lainesmead Primary School, Holy Rood Junior School and Churchfields School all within its boundaries.

And each has something special to offer its pupils and all play a role in the wider community.

For example Churchfields, in Salcombe Road, is home to more than 1,000 students between the ages of 11 and 16 and is a specialist school in maths, computing and science.

Most of its students go on to further education at post-16 and have the opportunity to progress to university.

Recently its specialist status has enabled it to become a Microsoft Academy member, allowing pupils to achieve the Microsoft Office Specialist qualification.

Care for the environment features too, with the development of an eco-garden in the school grounds, including a pond populated by frogs.

And after school hours the doors open for yoga classes.

Old Walcot, along with its neighbour East Walcot, began life in the mid 1950s when Swindon was declared an overspill area from London after the Second World War, creating an urgent need for more housing as the town began to rapidly expand.

And what had once been agricultural land at Upper and Lower Walcot Farms was transformed into a new housing estate after the Swindon Corporation bought almost 1,000 acres of land which had formed part of the Goddard Estate.

Some of the new homes were occupied by farm workers who had been made redundant from the land.

Serving the religious needs of the area is the Immanuel Church, which has the distinction of being the oldest non-conformist church in the town.

It is the successor of the first Congregational Church, which opened in Newport Street in 1804 and moved to its present site 72 years ago in 1939.

It continued to evolve, becoming part of the the new United Reformed Church when the Presbyterian and Congregational Churches united.

More recently the Churches of Christ and the Scottish Congregational Church have joined the URC.

Old Walcot is also home to the youth movements of the Sea Cadets and Air Cadets in Upham Road, which bring activities into the community for many young people. Last month cadets welcomed VIPs onboard for their annual awards evening.

The guests included Swindon Mayor Rex Barnett, Commanding Officer Keith Taylor and Rear Admiral Wilkinson, who is serving on HMS Portland, the group’s affiliated ship.

The needs of residents don’t go unnoticed either, with councillors Peter Mallinson and Mavis Childs (both Con) representing the area.

The pair both regularly make themselves available to talk to residents and listen to their concerns and Coun Mallinson holds Saturday surgeries in Old Walcot.